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Best Consulting
February 27, 2015
Kelly Van Loude, Consultant Contracting Officer
700 Walnut St.
16th Floor
Des Moines, IA 50309
Phone: (555) 555‐5555
Dear Kelly Van Loude,
Thank you for the opportunity to present this proposal in response to your request
for assistance in determining the source of inefficiencies in your sales department.
We understand that this is a timely matter especially with the upcoming move of
headquarters. You will find that Best Consulting is prepared to take the necessary
steps to isolate the source of your inefficiencies so that you may consider your next
steps.
Our four step process will only take two weeks to complete and will cause minimal
disruptions to Bauer and Rourke’s daily functioning. The plan will include employee
evaluations and interviews, researching job descriptions, department observations,
and research of lost contracts. Each step will be led by an expert with a small team
of staff who will quickly complete their duties and create a comprehensive report of
their findings.
Best Consulting assures you we are completely qualified to address the
inefficiencies of your company. Twenty‐five years of experience will ensure a swift
and detailed evaluation of the current inefficiencies Bauer and Rourke are facing.
Thank you for your time and consideration. We, at Best Consulting, are looking
forward to meeting you to discuss the details of this proposal. If you have any
further questions about the proposal or require any additional information, please
contact us at gparker@BestConsulting.com.
Sincerely,
Gwen Parker
Chief Operations Officer, Best Consulting

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Sales Department Inefficiency
Assessment
A Proposal to Bauer and Rourke
PD‐06‐2899
February 27, 2015
Presented by

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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................... 1
Infrastructure Issues ............................................................................................................................ 1
Figure 1 Project Contracts ............................................................................................................ 2
Assessment Plan ...................................................................................................................................... 3
Objective .............................................................................................................................................. 3
Employee Surveys and Interviews ...................................................................................... 3
Research Job Descriptions ...................................................................................................... 3
Department Observations ....................................................................................................... 4
Research Lost Contracts ........................................................................................................... 4
Figure 2 Project Timeline ............................................................................................................. 5
Background and Experience ............................................................................................................ 5
Company History ............................................................................................................................. 5
Best Consulting – Our Team ........................................................................................................ 6
Cost for Bauer and Rourke ................................................................................................................ 6
Benefits for Bauer and Rourke ....................................................................................................... 7
Evaluation Results ........................................................................................................................... 7
Continuous Status Updates .......................................................................................................... 7
Comprehensive Evaluation .......................................................................................................... 7
Further Actions ................................................................................................................................. 8
Conclusion ................................................................................................................................................... 8

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Introduction
Since Bauer and Rourke were founded in 1980 in Des Moines, Iowa, they have
completed hundreds of transportation and infrastructure specific projects in all
areas of the Midwest. Bauer and Rourke began as a small firm but in the past few
years they have grown to employ over one hundred professionals. Company growth
is a dream come true for small firms, but Bauer and Rourke did not anticipate, and
were thus unprepared for, this dramatic expansion.
The rapid expansion has resulted in detrimental inefficiencies for Bauer and Rourke.
Their sales department specifically has seen some fallbacks leading to a loss in
project contracts. This inefficiency needs to be remedied immediately if Bauer and
Rourke wishes to stay in competition with other companies.
Bauer and Rourke’s quickly approaching relocation to a larger facility mid‐year had
a large impact on what actions are feasible. Because of the upcoming move, it would
be poor judgment to buy new equipment and hire new support staff. Management
understands the weight of solving their inefficiencies by the time they move to the
new facility to ensure that they may continue to provide quality work and
partnership with their clients.
Bauer and Rourke’s consideration for a third party consulting firm is critical to the
survival and success of the company. Without adequate attention, the inefficiencies
and lost contracts will outweigh all the good that Bauer and Rourke accomplish each
year. If the lost contracts continue to multiply, Bauer and Rourke will fall to their
competition and will risk serious harm to the company’s life. Here at Best
consulting, we believe we can assess and address the source of Bauer and Rourke’s
inefficiencies in a timely manner.
To assist Bauer and Rourke in this transition, assessments of the departments and
employee morale need to be made a top priority. This proposal will explain in detail
the program that we believe should be implemented at Bauer and Rourke to
evaluate employee morale, cause of inefficiencies, and root of lost contracts. These
are all important facets of the all‐encompassing goal to make Bauer and Rourke a
leader in their field.
Bauer and Rourke’s Infrastructure Issues
Bauer and Rourke, a civil engineering consulting firm in Des Moines, has grown
astronomically throughout the past few years. But, not all growth has been
beneficial; it has taken a toll on the company and their ability to handle the large
workload. This has resulted in a loss in project contracts and an inefficient sales
department. Bauer and Rourke have requested a report that will study the current

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inefficiencies they are facing in order to give them a guideline of how to solve it.
There are a number of factors that have caused these infrastructure issues, which
we will explain before the results are presented.
The large increase in project contracts has resulted in Bauer and Rourke increasing
their engineering staff; but they were hesitant to increase their support staff and
equipment in the sales department. This large stress on the sales department has
resulted in the employees feeling they are being asked to work outside of their job
description, thus leading to low morale. They feel that their job description is not
outlined and is unclear. The low morale and uncertainty of the employees has thus
produced inefficiency in the sales department. They are no longer meeting their
quota, production, or the needs of their clients. The outcome of this is has been a
loss in project contracts (See Figure 1).
Fig. 1 Project Contracts Review
The increase in workload on the employees stemmed from a desire to keep their
edge over other companies. The competitive nature of their business has helped
their company grow larger, but they grew too fast. Solutions have been proposed to
both hire new support staff and purchase new equipment or to terminate current
employees. However, neither of these options is viable for Bauer and Rourke

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because they pride their company on being family oriented and one that takes care
of their employees. Bauer and Rourke are also moving their headquarters mid‐
2015; therefore, they are hesitant to make additional investments.
The overall inefficiencies of the company as well as the low moral and high stress of
the employees needs to be addressed and resolved before it creates further damage
to the company. Demand is projected to increase again in 2015 meaning that Bauer
and Rourke need to be prepared to take on and increasing workload if they wish to
survive. An assessment is needed to determine the extent of the company’s
infrastructure issues so that changes can be executed to make Bauer and Rourke
more efficient and stable. Below we have created a proposal that will address their
issues and allow the leaders of Bauer and Rourke to implement the changes that are
necessary to strengthen the company overall.
Assessment Plan
Objective
In order for us to provide the most beneficial plan for Bauer and Rourke, we must
first establish the current inefficiencies and lack of morale that the company is
facing. After the findings have been recorded Bauer and Rourke will be able to
evaluate the findings to determine what actions should be taken to alleviate their
problem. We propose these following methods to assess Bauer and Rourke’s current
situation.
Employee Survey and Interviews – This will help us better understand the
concerns of the employees.
 Create an electronic survey that will analyze the problems that the
employees are facing.
o An electronic survey will provide the necessary information
with little to no disruption and distraction to the workday.
 Allow employees to set up interview times at the completion of the
survey to further discuss their opinions.
o Interview questions will be based off the survey questions.
o Interviews will allow employees to further explain their
opinions
o Focus will be on the noted inefficiencies in the company and
specific departments
Research Job Descriptions – This will aid in determining the cause of low employee
morale. This will help distinguish which employees and departments are completing
work outside of their job description.

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 Consult management and the recruiting team to determine what the
job descriptions are at the start of employment with Bauer and
Rourke.
 Have employees describe their current projects and contracts.
 Cross‐reference the job descriptions with the actual work done to
determine which departments are exceeding what they are expected
to do.
Department Observations – Spend 4 days viewing the different departments
within the company. This will allow an immersed view of the company without
distracting the employees from their current work.
 Day 1 of observation with Bauer and Rourke leadership to view the
management style
 Day 2 of observation will be spent with the sales team to search for
the inefficiencies or blatant communication discrepancies.
 Day 3 of observation will be divided between the business, financial,
and engineering departments.
 Day 4 of observation will be dedicated to floating throughout the
company to find the final connecting pieces between the departments.
This will be a day to establish final opinions about the efficiency
between the departments.
Research Lost Contracts – This will help us come to a better understanding why
contracts were lost and what can be done to reduce contract loss in the future.
 Contact companies from lost contracts to gain a new vantage point
for why the contracts were not filled.
 Compile the responses and look for common opinions. This
information will help assess what the cause of the lost contracts is.
We can assure that these steps will be completed in 2 weeks (10 business days).
This timeline will promise Bauer and Rourke that evaluations will be done quickly
and efficiently so that a solution may be established as soon as possible. Once the
final assessment is complete, Bauer and Rourke will be presented with a report that
highlights the inefficiencies and cause of low employee morale found in the
company. This plan and review will be compiled in a timely manner. With this
evaluation, Bauer and Rourke will be able to identify their problems and move
forward to finding a solution, thus improving their success.
The figure below walks through the intended program and its duration. We plan for
the process to be complete within two business weeks.

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Background and Experience of Best Consulting
Choosing a firm to explore your company is a decision that should not be taken
lightly. You need to be certain that the company that you hire holds dear the same
values as you. Best Consulting will do just that. Best Consulting has 25 years of field
experience in improving efficiency and communication within a company. Family
values and respect for employees are top values held by not only you, Bauer and
Rourke, but also by Best Consulting. We applaud your desire to better your company
starting internally and we feel that Best Consulting will be the perfect partnership
for this project.
Company History
Best Consulting was founded in 1990 and since then has established itself as a
leader in professional engineering consultation. We pride our company on staying
dedicated to not only the contracts we build but also the employees whom are so
crucial to the success of Best Consulting. We feel that we are successful at taking an
objective view of a company in order to pinpoint areas that can be strengthened.
Every contract we work on is different and has different needs so we understand the
necessity of staying flexible. Our clients have seen improvements in many aspects of
their companies after collaboration with Best Consulting.
Fig. 2 Project Timeline

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Best Consulting – Our Team
Best Consulting has a highly effective and efficient team of skilled employees who
know the importance of working quickly and building lasting relationships with
clients. Our team is here to assist you in any way you see fit.
Jonathon Best, CEO
Jonathon, CEO and founder of Best Consulting, earned his Ph. D in Operations
Management from Stanford as well as his Masters in Business Administration from
Yale. Jonathon has well over 35 years of experience in office consulting and
management. Jonathon has had the opportunity to attend (and lecture) at many
business and administration conferences throughout the country. Jonathon has
inherited his strong respect for employees and client relations from his father, a
business consultant in New York City. Jonathon loves to mentor students and
interns from his Alma matter whenever he has the chance.
Gwen Parker, COO
Gwen Parker, Chief Operations Officer, has been with Best Consulting since it first
got off the ground. Gwen graduated top of her class from Princeton with a double
major of Business and Communications. She continued her education at Princeton
where she earned her Masters in Human Resources. Gwen has worked her way up
through the ranks in the business world. She previously worked as a project
manager for a successful firm in California then joined with Jonathon when he
presented the idea of Best Consulting. Gwen has shown an unrivaled loyalty to not
only the company but also to the clients that she has served.
Aaron Baker, Senior Program Manager
Aaron Baker, Senior Program Manager, has dedicated 15 years to Best Consulting.
Aaron earned a civil engineering degree from Iowa State University and has since
then served as a project leader on some of the most difficult contracts that Best
Consulting has encountered. Aaron’s engineering background has given him the step
up in understanding the company structure. Aaron has collaborated with companies
across the country on many accounts.
Cost for Bauer and Rourke
Cost can be negotiated later in the consultative process. We promise to keep our
services affordable for the common company and to stay competitive with other
company rates.

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Benefits for Bauer and Rourke
By partnering with Best Consulting, your team at Bauer and Rourke will receive the
following benefits:
 We will provide you with your evaluated results as quickly as possible with
little to no disruption to your work environment.
 You will receive continuous updates about the status of the evaluation. You
will be a part of every step to ensure you feel comfortable about the research
process.
 You will be provided a thorough and comprehensive evaluation of the
company and departments at the conclusion of the two‐week program.
 Your management will be able to use the report to decide what type of
program is necessary to strengthen and make the company more efficient.
We will provide you with your evaluation results in a timely manner.
We understand the importance of completing this project in as little time as possible
due to the immediate need for improvement as well as the looming pressure of the
headquarters move in the middle of the year. We also understand that work never
ends in an engineering company; therefore, we promise to work quickly without
disrupting the natural workflow of the company. We will focus on employee morale
as well as the efficiency of the sales department. Within two workweeks we will
provide you with a finalized report on the source of the company inefficiencies.
You will receive continuous status updates of the evaluation.
After each step of the evaluation process is complete you will be notified and given a
copy of the results. You will also receive a notice of the upcoming steps so that you
are aware of every step in the process. Having these updates will give immediate
feedback of the departments and their weak spots before the final report is
compiled. The job descriptions of each position will also be outlined along with an
employee description of the work they feel is required of them. This can give a
direction for the lack of morale.
You will be provided a comprehensive evaluation report within 2 weeks.
We understand that Bauer and Rourke needs and requires this information as soon
as possible, so that they can decide what type of intervention will be most beneficial
for the company. At the end of two weeks a comprehensive final report will be
distributed that describes the findings and sources of inefficiencies and low morale
in the work force.

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Bauer & Rourke leadership can use the findings to decide what further actions
to take.
Bauer and Rourke have made it clear that they currently do not need a plan of action
for how to fix their inefficiencies in their company; however, they would like a
report on where the source of this problem is for them. Having this final report will
allow them to see what is not being communicated correctly in their departments.
This insight will allow Bauer and Rourke to decide what type of program they need
to implement to enhance their company.
Conclusion
Thank you for considering Best Consulting as your partner for this project. We are
determined to provide you with the best counsel, insight, and evaluations to strengthen
the company. We look forward to collaborating with your leadership team to make
Bauer and Rourke a leader in civil engineering consulting.
If Bauer and Rourke has any questions or concern regarding the proposal, please
contact Gwen Parker by phone at (332) 879‐0882 or email at
gparker@BestConsulting.com. She would be more than happy to answer any
questions you may have or schedule an appointment to further discuss the proposal.
We, at Best Consulting, look forward to hearing from you.