This document summarizes a workshop on improving bid proposals for funding. The workshop aimed to help attendees identify the key skills for successful bid writing, common pitfalls, and how to utilize project team skills and top tips to strengthen bids. The agenda covered bid characteristics of winners and losers, the skills of successful bidding teams, clues in funding prospectuses, and how to please funding panels. Top losing bid traits included providing too much or too little information, non-compliance, missing clues, poor evidence of need, and poor articulation. The workshop encouraged participants to consider strategic fit, effort required, partnerships, funding contributions, income potential and preliminary research when deciding whether to submit a bid.

1. Bid Proposals
‘Top tips for winning Bids’
12th July 2011 –Brunel University
Facilitator: Kerry Schutz
K1

2. Slide 1
K1 KU37314, 16/11/2010

3. Workshop outcomes
After attending this workshop you will be able to:
• Identify the key skills for successful bid writing
• Identify common pitfalls when producing a funding bid
• Describe and utilise project team skills to ensure key strengths,
knowledge and expertise are well documented in your bid
• Use the top tips from the workshop to improve your funding bids

4. Workshop agenda
Time Session Activity
1330 Introduction
1335
Session 1
Bid characteristics
winners & losers
Group work
discussion
1400
Session 2
Funding bid – project team skills
Group work
discussion
1430
Session 3
Searching for clues
Group work
discussion
1515
Session 4
Pleasing the Funding Panel
Group work
discussion
1540 Session 5 – Queries Question + Answer

5. Top 5 losing bid
characteristics:
• Too much or too little information
• Non-compliance (the right information was not provided)
• The bid is ‘clueless’–you have missed key clues or not
responded to the clues in the funding prospectus
• Poor evidence of the need for the project
• Poorly articulated –hard to follow; poor layout or
methodology; wrong style of language

6. Stop/Go questions
1. Strategic Fit –Is it core business?
2. How much effort is required, to prepare the bid?
3. Collaboration - do we need strategic partners?
4. Partner funding - do they need to contribute financially?
5. Will it produce income / be profitable, or a
loss leader for further work?
6. Preliminary research –what is required to create the bid?

7. Skills of a successful
bidding team
Leading
Project management
Leadership
Management
Monitoring/QA
Research
Analytical
Performance management
Planning
Negotiation
Facilitation

8. 20 Clues in the
Mayor’s Funding
Amount of funding –3 themes Value for money
Revenue not capital Sustainability - Legacy
Type of organisation –not for profit Partnership(s)
Financial & governance information Regular reporting on progress
Geography - coverage Matched funding –not ‘in kind'
Strategic fit to key organisations’work Inclusive and Active
Diversity Innovation –proven track record
Demand (links to ‘whole sport plans’?) One application per organisation
Experience and evidence GLA Terms of Reference
Reaching the inactive Assessed by a panel

9. The funding panel

10. The supporting cast

11. Questions?
Kerry Schutz
email2kerry@gmail.com
Mobile: 0793 175 0503