This article will help you to make comparison between internal and external proposal made by a researcher in the firm.
Difference # Internal Proposals:
Internal proposals are a memo from the researcher to management outlining the problem statement, study objectives, research design, and schedule is enough to start an exploratory study.
Privately and publicly held firms are concerned with how to solve a particular problem, make a decision, or improve an aspect of their business. Seldom do businesses begin research studies for other reasons. In the small-scale proposal, the literature review and bibliography are consequently not stressed and can often be stated briefly in the research design.
Since management insists on brevity, an executive summary is mandatory for all but the most simple of proposals (projects that can be proposed in a two-page memo do not need an executive summary).
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Schedules and budgets are necessary for funds to be committed. For the smaller-scale projects, descriptions are not required for facilities and special resources, nor is there a need for a glossary.
Since small projects are sponsored by managers familiar with the problem, the associated jargon, requirements, and definitions should be included directly in the text. Also, the measuring instrument and project management modules are not required. Managers will typically leave this detail for others.
Difference # External Proposals:
An external proposal is either solicited or unsolicited. A solicited proposal is often in response to a request for proposal (RFP). The proposal is likely competing against several others for a contract or grant.
An unsolicited proposal has the advantage of not competing against others but the disadvantage of having to speculate on the ramifications of a problem facing the firm’s management. Even more difficult, the writer of an unsolicited proposal must decide to whom the document should be sent. The most important sections of the external proposal are the objectives, design, qualifications, schedule, and budget.
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The executive summary of an external proposal may be included within the letter of transmittal. As the complexity of the project increases, more information is required about project management and the facilities and special resources.
In contract research, the results and objectives sections are the standards against which the completed project is measured. As we move towards government-sponsored research, particular attention must be paid to each specification in the request for proposal.