Proposal Executive Summary Examples
If you’re searching for a proposal executive summary example, then you know that a compelling executive summary has the ability to engage your audience and inspire them to read your proposal in detail. Writing the content, however, is the hard part. We’ve included proposal executive summary examples here for inspiration to help with your writing.
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Why include an executive summary?
In many proposals, the executive summary is the one place you know everyone will read. Similar to the cover letter, the executive summary provides an opportunity to highlight how your business solves the client’s pain points. The goal of the executive summary is to not just summarize your proposal but to instead summarize what life will look like if your company is chosen for the project. The executive summary allows you to tell a story that connects with your audience and inspire them to choose you over the competition. Read our blog about the difference between cover letter and executive summary.
Note: this post focuses on executive summaries for business proposals for projects or services (often in response to an RFP). Executive summaries for investor or grant proposals are slightly different and include other elements.
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How to Write an Executive Summary
Always write the executive summary as the last step of your proposal. You should know all of the details of what you are proposing before you create the executive summary or you will end up revising the content multiple times. In general, executive summaries will follow this layout:
Summary of Pain Point/Challenge
First, summarize the pain point or challenge that the client is trying to solve. This can be a few sentences or a couple paragraphs. The goal is to show that you understand what they are trying to solve and the unique challenges that they face.
Description of How to Solve Pain Point/Challenge
After describing the pain point or challenge, move into the solution. This doesn’t necessarily mean you describe your solution in depth (yet), but instead write about how they are going to achieve their goal at a higher level.
For example, if a customer is currently facing a challenge because they have outdated technology, the way they solve that challenge is to update their technology to x, y, z. You can write about this in a paragraph or a couple sentences before moving on to your company.
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Overview of How Company/Solution Achieves Goal
Now that you have laid out the landscape of the client, their challenge, and the solution, it’s time to talk about how your specific company or solution solves that challenge. You can provide a short overview of what you offer, but make sure it is always in the context of their pain point and challenge. One way to do this is to always follow up any description of your service with a benefit to them.
Unique Qualifications of Company/Proposal
If your company or proposal has unique differentiators compared to competitors, you should also mention them in your executive summary and go into detail within your proposal. The goal is to win your audience over early instead of them being skeptical as the skim through your proposal.
Proposal Executive Summary Examples
Now that you know the general structure of an executive summary, it’s time to review a few examples to inspire your writing.
Proposal Executive Summary Example 1
Keeping communities safe begins the moment residents open their door. Because of this, the City of Client (Client) requires working and energy-efficient city street lights across the city. The first step in this project is replacing all lights from HPS to LED technology. As a project that encompasses every corner of Client, you require a vendor who can complete this project on-time and within budget the first time for the ongoing safety and security of your residents.
With over 50 years of experience in the electrical technology space, Company LLC (Company) brings experience to ensure the success of this phase and beyond. Company’s international recognition as a leader attests to our expertise, and our focus on innovation and quality places our solutions as the best in the industry.
Why Company
In addition to our extensive history and expertise, there are a few key reasons why Client will benefit from working with Company.
National Presence. We are an international company, but our over 10,000 US employees cover the country from coast to coast. With this many resources at hand, we can comfortably staff this project, no matter the timeline or specific challenges.
Local Experts. While we will leverage our national resources where necessary, our CITY office is located a mere 8 miles from Client’s offices, making for easy collaboration and quick implementation.
Light Innovator. We have developed many of the latest technologies and processes for traffic systems. To date, we have installed over 300,000 lights, including 30,000 in your state alone.
In working with Company, Client can rest assured that you are receiving top-quality products and installation by experts. Our history of completing similar projects both within your neighborhood and around the globe speaks to our expertise and attention to quality. We look forward to supporting Client in this phase and beyond.
Proposal Executive Summary Example 2
In today’s world, brick and mortar companies face the challenge of needing to anticipate and protect the health of both employees and customers. With over 10,000 individuals visiting your premises each day, Client LLC (Client) faces a particular challenge of requiring extensive cleaning daily to reduce the spread of infectious diseases, maintain the quality of your location, and provide safety and comfort for your patrons. At Company LLC (Company), we understand the effect a clean space can have on productivity and customer satisfaction, and our focus on quality ensures that all of our clients are greeted with sparkling clean facilities each morning.
Why Company
Company started 50 years ago in a garage with a mop bucket. Today, our network has spread across the country, and we now support many of the largest organizations in the United States. We stay true to our roots by providing comprehensive benefits to all of our employees to ensure they stay with us long-term, which allows us to constantly meet our standards for quality. A few other reasons why Company is best suited to help Client include:
Satisfaction Guarantee. We stand by our quality, and we guarantee your satisfaction with our services. In the event of an issue, we will be onsite in less than 3 hours, and we hold quarterly review meetings with you to review and address any concerns.
Green Products. With so many harsh chemicals used in cleaning supplies, it’s easy for a cleaning service to become a source of pain. We use biodegradable, environmentally-friendly materials that are less likely to result in allergic reactions or break down the surfaces we clean.
Local Cleaners. While we are a national company, we staff local cleaners for all of our projects, and we always have at least 3 local backup resources on call in case someone is sick or has an unexpected emergency. Our resources and local presence ensure that you will never have a lapse in service or quality.
With Company, Client can rest assured that the thousands of visitors you receive every day will be safe and healthy, with a clean site to explore. Our history of quality work, extensive training, and proven products allows us to remain a leader in the industry. We look forward to work to supporting Client in this initiative.
Conclusion
At the beginning of your proposal, the executive summary has the ability to win over the evaluators early before they even see your rates. Take extra time to perfect your executive summary, and your overall proposal efforts will improve.
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