Standard 1: Effective planning for quality project design.

• Primary responsible: Senior management team (SMT) members and any other supervisors of proposal development team members
  • SMT members and any other supervisors of proposal development team members ensure their direct reports identify the key responsibilities requiring coverage during the proposal development period and monitor the implementation of coverage plans.

• Others involved: Proposal coordinator; proposal development team members; proposal decision-maker; temporary duty assignment (TDY) staff or other program and operations staff providing coverage.
  • The proposal coordinator compiles the key responsibilities and coverage plans in a bridge staffing plan; proposal development team members work with supervisors to identify appropriate coverage options;
  • The proposal decision-makerThe proposal decision-maker is a senior staff (typically the country representative) with responsibility for making strategic decisions related to CRS’ response to a specific funding opportunity. This includes partnership/consortium-related negotiations and agreements; recruitment and selection of key personnel; definition of preliminary budget parameters (including any CRS cost-share); other critical budget decisions; and review and approval of final versions of proposal documents (including budgets). This is a critical, though not full-time, proposal development team role.  approves the plan and assists as needed with confirming coverage support; proposal development team members, supervisors, and TDY staff/those providing coverage ensure proper handover.

• As needed for discretionary funded projects
• For external funding opportunities:
  
  • Ideally during capture planningCapture planning is the process of identifying particular funding opportunities, assessing the environment, and implementing strategies for increasing the chances of winning a specific opportunity. Capture planning occurs before release of a funding opportunity. for opportunities CRS is tracking.
  • For unexpected opportunities, within 1 week of the "go" decisionA “go/no-go decision” is the decision whether to pursue a specific funding opportunity. Go/no‑go decisions may be made at multiple points; a preliminary go/no-go decision may be made based on a draft solicitation or intelligence such as information in a forecast of upcoming funding opportunities. The go/no-go decision is often revisited after the formal release of a solicitation. .

Follow these steps to ensure proper coverage of ongoing responsibilities during proposal development:

Identifying proposal development team member responsibilities and coverage needs and plans

1. The supervisor of each proposal development team member (identified per Standard 1, key action 1) requests the staff member to summarize major ongoing responsibilities and any special tasks during the anticipated period for the proposal development process.
2. Supervisors and proposal development team members review the responsibilities and tasks requiring coverage to identify appropriate options. This includes considering the feasibility and pros and cons of:

• Delaying or otherwise rescheduling certain tasks.
• Putting certain responsibilities on hold until after the proposal development process.
• Requesting TDY support or assigning other staff to complete specific tasks or cover priority responsibilities (see the bridge staffing plan template for examples).

Special considerations for donor and partner relations: Changes in how staff who normally work on an externally funded project charge their time may require donor prior approval or consultation. This may also be required if CRS proposes assigning another staff person to temporarily cover the responsibilities of a project-funded staff member. Additionally, if a proposal development team member works closely with a specific partner, there may be issues to consider regarding how to manage the partner relationship during the staff person’s proposal development assignment. Use the bridge staffing plan to capture actions needed for such special circumstances.

3. The proposal coordinator compiles the responsibilities and the proposed coverage plans, using the bridge staffing plan template (adapt as needed).
4. Using the tasks and coverage plans identified in the bridge staffing plan, supervisors and proposal development team members finalize a scope of work (SOW) for each coverage assignment.

Determining if additional staff support is needed: Consult with senior management if it becomes clear that a majority of a proposal development team member’s responsibilities require ongoing and active coverage, potentially over an extended period. Temporarily reassigning tasks requiring a high level of effort to multiple staff may result in a significant loss of quality in the execution of those tasks. In such cases, senior management, in consultation with the region, may consider temporarily increasing overall country program staffing. Options could include bringing on a new temporary full-time or TDY staff (e.g., a CRS Field Management Response Team member), or hiring a temporary, part-time staff to cover the proposal development team member’s responsibilities for the duration of the proposal development process.

Reviewing and securing support for coverage plans

5. The proposal coordinator shares a draft of the bridge staffing plan with the proposal decision-maker, and any other members of the CRS SMT as needed, for review and approval. Note that the plan may be tentative at this stage, with some coverage options still to be confirmed. When reviewing the draft plan, the proposal decision-maker and other SMT members should discuss the following:

• Are the coverage plans realistic? If not, what changes are needed?
• How will we monitor implementation of the coverage plans?

Senior management endorsement and support of bridge staffing plans is essential: If coverage of proposal development team members’ ongoing responsibilities is not planned out in detail and agreed to by those involved in providing coverage and their supervisors, tasks may go uncompleted or staff may stretch themselves too thin. This negatively affects project progress, relationships and morale. Senior management must review and confirm with any non-SMT supervisors the feasibility of the coverage options proposed, and support supervisors and proposal development team members to promptly address coverage issues if they arise.  

6. The proposal decision-maker confirms supervisors of staff who will provide temporary coverage are supportive of the arrangements, and contacts headquarters (HQ) and regional colleagues as needed to confirm external TDY or consultant coverage support.
7. Depending on assignment length and responsibilities, staff and supervisors may consider formally adjusting the lines of supervision and/or performance plans.

• This suggestion applies to both proposal development team members and those providing bridge coverage.
• Clearly describe the lines of supervision for those providing bridge coverage in SOWs.
• For large proposals, it is good practice for the country representative (CR) to communicate to country program and regional staff any reassignments/revised responsibilities of country program staff; adjustments in supervisory arrangements during the proposal development period; and the period for reassignments and supervision changes. 

Organizing proper handover and feedback

8. Proposal development team members and their supervisors organize formal handover and debriefs with any country program staff or TDY staff providing temporary coverage. Handover should take place at the beginning and end of the coverage period. Handover and debriefing may cover many issues but should include:

• (For staff who work on individual projects) A review of the project risk register and issues log.
• A review of formal handover notes, highlighting key tasks requiring immediate action or follow-up.

9. The supervisor provides feedback to the TDY staff and his/her supervisor on the TDY support.

Recognize exceptional efforts: Don’t forget to provide appropriate recognition, per CRS country program policy, for the contributions of staff taking on additional responsibilities (e.g., acting roles).