Networking to Enhance your Proposal

Summary covering Chapter 3 of Get That Grant Book  by Weisblat

Remember when you were in search of a job at a career fair, and you were told to have a strong elevator speech introducing yourself? Well when gathering partnerships or collaborating with others, it is beneficial to create something similar known as a cocktail conversation. Cocktail conversations should consist of three primary elements to quickly explain valuable information of your program. It should first include a fact or statistic related to the cause of your program.

For example,

three-quarters of students are failing in math and science due to the lack of interest.

It should also include a relevant fact to the others or the audience you are speaking with. This is classified as a self-interest tie because it is meant to grab the listener’s attention as to why the program should interest them.

For example,

fields like manufacturing drive our economy, but more than 1 million manufacturing jobs will go unfilled next year.

Finally, include short details as to how the program will work.

For example,

a student will have the option of choosing a project that will involve each of the STEM fields. Upon conclusion of the school year, the student will be award based on the success of their project.

By using these three elements to introduce your program, you are to influence and gain partnerships within a with minutes.

As stated in the first blog of this series on grant writing, credibility is earned through collaboration and partnership with those who have the expertise or similar experience. If you are wondering why this is true, it is because funding agencies look to fulfill as many opportunities through one source of funding. Otherwise, they end up providing money for multiple separate programs with similar objectives. After forming your cocktail conversation, consider who you may want to approach for cooperation. Your networking circle can be as close as family and friends, or as distant as other programs, community groups, and businesses. Regardless of the audience, always evaluate the benefit of the person or organization. Based on their benefits, you should be able to quickly understand their role in the program. Since this is networking, keep in mind what you bring to the table in terms of the program and your partners. Your resources may include the facility, materials, manpower, and more. It’s essential for you to have an equal or fair share in the needs and of the program.

Weighing out potential networks and assets can possibly sound overwhelming or maybe even confusing. However, creating tables, web diagrams, and charts can assist with structuring ideas and strategies. Understand your partners, their roles and assets, and the benefits of the program to them. These tools will eliminate any gaps in the collaboration portion of your proposal.

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