Identify a potential funding source you will approach in support of a need or proposed initiative.

Assignment #4 – External Funding Proposal

In tight economic times –i.e. most of the time – there are few resources available for new initiatives. But new initiatives are critically important to the health and vitality of organizations. And the allocation of scarce resources is one of the most important responsibilities of leaders. Another important responsibility of leaders is to develop resources for their organizations, and often this is accomplished by effectively advocating to external persons and political or charitable organizations or foundations.

Identify a potential funding source you will approach in support of a need or proposed initiative. It may even be a charitable foundation; it may be a governmental agency or legislative committee; it may be a bank or other financial institution. Find out how proposals are submitted to this source. How much money have they provided to organizations like yours in recent years and to whom? Who sits on the board or committee or other decision-making body and what interest might they have in your ideas? How will a decision be made on any proposals they receive?

Prepare a 3-5 page proposal that sets forth the following:

The need or opportunity that your proposal is intended to address;
The program or project you wish to initiate;
The results you will achieve is the proposal is funded;
The reasons a source should support this idea; and
The financial support you are requesting and how it will be used.
In addition, a 1-2 page summary of the strategy behind this proposal should accompany this assignment.