Biesshop Consulting

Introduction Writing  proposals  for  funding  is one of the most crucial aspects for any NGO. Proposals are important for any organization, as they decide the success or failure of an organization. No matter how big or small your organization is you cannot get away from writing a project proposal. As an NGO staff you might be aware that the primary purpose of a project proposal is to convince the donor agency to fund your project. It is thus important for you to write a proposal that is innovative, practical, and methodological. Your proposal should look at solving an important socio-developmental issue and at the same time should be appealing to the donor. To start with lets us first understand what is a project proposal? A project proposal is a document that presents a logical process of solving a problem. It provides a detailed description of the problem, the intended plan of action(s) towards tackling the problem and the budgetary requirement for implementi...

A strategic plan also known as a Road Map in reality is a living document which directs the overall functioning of any Organization.    Strategic planning is important, but at the same time can be a complex issue especially for new and small organizations. Looking at the NGO sector, one may find that many NGOs do not have well drafted strategic plans and the few NGOs that have the plans are written in a very complex way – not  comprehensible  by the communities they serve. These are either too lengthy or too complicated to implement and are therefore not put into use. What better way to describe the importance of planning in our day to day lives. Successful people or entities plan their actions and work tirelessly & endlessly to stick to their plan; while the not so successful people or entities, plan a lot but hardly ever implement the plan to the letter. The key to success is therefore not just having a plan but also executing it to achieve you...

Understanding the skills or competencies potential employers are seeking is not only key but the first step in laying out you application / cover letter when it comes to making successful applications and performing well at interviews. During the interview, it is prudent that you not only cite the competencies that you possess, but go a step further and cite examples of how you have applied those competencies and how they have transitioned to success or improved programming for an organization or business venture. This approach is more likely than not to show that you have the skills that the interviewers require as you are more likely to convince them of your strategic merit and ability to do the job. Relating your skills to the post Upon having studied the post that you are applying for, you will have a clear picture of what the organization you are applying to wants in the person who is to be the position holder. For further clarity, you can go a step further to study what ...

Accountability is a very large and academic term that encompasses several issues for an individual, household, group, society, organization or Government; some of these may include organizational management structure, financial procedures, and human resource policies. Organizations and governments with high accountability and credibility are often preferred by donors and are more likely to get funded. World over, NGOs chiefly work to compliment government efforts and bridge gaps on various societal matters and on instances; act as a social monitor to ensure that government accounts. In Africa for instance, NGOs have worked very effectively in areas where both government and private players have failed miserably, this ability of NGOs to work in the most fragile and backward places has been recognized and applauded by both national and international entities regionally and internationally. With the rising influence of NGOs in the development sector, there also has been an incr...

In recent times, many donor agencies prefer their grant-seeking applicants to submit a comprehensive concept note about their proposed project before submitting a full project proposal. In my 7 year career in development work, i have also observed this trend in many of the major aid organization. In some cases, these concept notes can be highly structured requesting in-depth information about the project and in some other cases, it can just be an overview of the project idea. Nevertheless, the concept note is your initial step to tap the donor agency for funding. If the idea is interesting, you may be requested to submit a full proposal. Many a times as a training and capacity building programmer in development work, I have been asked on numerous occasions these questions: What exactly is a concept note? How much time does it take in preparing it? What should go into it? A concept note is a brief outline of the project you have in your mind. A simple version of it will ...