In this reading you will continue examining communication within the data workspace. As you have learned, communication is a key part of all aspects of data professional work. On a data team, project tasks and responsibilities are shared by different data professionals. Effective communication and collaboration among all team members and stakeholders is key to the success of any data project.

A project proposal can provide the structure and communication needed for tracking tasks. In addition, project proposals are beneficial for teams when facing challenges that require a high degree of flexibility. As projects progress, the expectations, resources, or even team members can change. This will require adjustments within a project that can impact the overall workflow and delivery date.

Project proposal

A project proposal’s main function is to outline objectives and requirements. Project proposals present idea in more detailed and actionables segments often called milestones. Proposals are commonly created with input from team members and other stakeholders. It may also be the case that project proposals are shared with clients or executives to gain approval and inform them of a project’s path to completion. Project proposals are used across a multitude of industries and organisations. Although the design and layout of project proposals can vary, there are key elements that are common among them.

Elements of a project proposal

Each project proposal contains important information that a team will need to consider before work begins. Below is a brief explanation of some common sections you will find in project proposals. Note that the format of project proposals will vary, so not every section described here will be included in every project proposal.

Project title: The title of the project is prominent, usually placed near the top of a document. Effective titles are brief and purposeful. Depending on the context and circumstances surrounding a project, the title can change over time.

Milestones: Milestones are groupings of tasks within a project, breaking the work needed into smaller, manageable goals. Milestones assist in the delegation and scheduling of work that needs to be completed within projects.

  • The milestones in the provided example are representative of future end-of-course projects.

Tasks: Tasks detail the work that needs to be completed within a milestone.

  • The tasks in the provided example parallel some of the work you will complete in upcoming end-of-course projects.

Outcomes: Outcomes are the completed actions or results that allow a project to continue.

Deliverables: Deliverables are items that can be shared amongst team members or with stakeholders. These are the end products of work undertaken for a project.

Stakeholders: The individuals or groups who are directly involved and have a vested interest in the success of a project. Input from stakeholders can serve as a basis for making decisions throughout a project.

Estimated time: At the beginning of a project, the time needed to complete milestones is estimated. As a project develops, these estimates will often need to be updated to account for adjustments to timelines or changes in team members.

PACE and project proposals

In this course, you learned about the scalability of PACE (Plan, Analyze, Construct, and Execute). Through the PACE framework, projects can be organized globally by outlining their main tasks and deliverables. At the same time, each individual task within a project can be broken down into smaller actions.

You will discover that PACE strategy documents are a great reference when working on project proposals. During your end-of-course projects, you’ll be presented with questions that will assist you in identifying the planning, analyzing, constructing, and executing stages. The more time you spend considering and answering each question, the more information you’ll have available to you when creating project proposals.

Key takeaways

A project proposal is a plan of action that outlines what needs to be accomplished and how to achieve your intended goals and outcomes. Proposals define a project’s purpose and scope, and list key milestones, deliverables, timelines, and schedules. It’s important to update proposals throughout the course of a project, as the project’s scope, objectives, and stakeholders may change over time.