Creating a Project Plan is the first thing you should do when you need funding for a project, whether that funding is coming from a grant or sponsorship. Discovering the perfect grant for your great idea often means people rush the project planning side, not realising how vital it is for grant success.
Assessors need detail, not just a concept or idea. They need to be able to assess whether your project will achieve its aims and whether you are capable of completing the project. To make this assessment, they need to know all the specific details of the project, including accurate costs of everything you will do to deliver the project, reasonable project time frames, information about who and how you will actually complete the project and what processes you have in place to oversee the work and make sure it is completed successfully, plus a whole lot more.
Essentially, the project planning element is the heart of your entire proposal and tells anyone and everyone, including your grant funders, where you are going, how you will do it and what it will mean when you get there. It also ensures everyone in your organisation, and any contractors, are on the same page and are clear about the expectations in terms of timing, scope of work, communication and budget. Having a clear and concise Project Plan will save your organisation a lot of time, money and problems down the track.
So how do you prepare a Project Plan that will help your project succeed? It’s as simple as Who, What, When, Where, How!
