Preparing for a conversation with your program manager

A conversation with a program manager can provide valuable insight into the funding potential of your idea.  The following are some useful suggestions:

• Make contact early (at least several months in advance).
• Do not make a surprise call. Email a one-page summary and request a phone or in-person appointment to discuss.
• Why a one-page summary?  A well-written one-page summary can communicate the project relevance, highlight the logic of your approach, and enable targeted feedback.
• Develop your one-page summary using the format below.

Start with a storyline:

• What is the problem?
• What has already been done to address this problem?
• What is the gap that still exists?
• How do you propose to address this gap?

List your goals / objectives.

Describe why your team is ideal for the project.

Overview the methodology.

Summarize the impact of your success.

For more suggestions on how to prepare for a conversation with your program manager, please read the documents:

• Can We Talk? – Contacting Grant Program Officers
• What to Say – and Not Say – to Program Officers