Consulting engagement proposal
Consulting engagement proposal priced in day rates
A consulting engagement proposal sells judgement in phases, so it should price each phase in days and give the client a point to stop. This example from a Sydney consultancy to a three home aged care provider prices 20 days and a travel allowance at $45,800 plus GST, offers six more days of implementation as an option, and lets the board walk away after the diagnostic.
The proposal, page by page
Every page as the client sees it and as it prints, pricing table included.
The pricing, line by line
- Phase 1: Diagnostic
- 8 × $2,200.00
- Phase 2: Roster redesign
- 12 × $2,200.00
- Phase 3: Implementation support (optional)
- 6 × $2,200.00
- Travel and accommodation
- 1 × $1,800.00
- Tax
- $4,580.00
- Total
- $50,380.00
- Deposit due on acceptance
- $12,595.00
Section by section
- Cover
- A contract style cover with the three homes, 20 days plus 6 optional, and a reference.
- About us
- The consultancy and the two named consultants who do every day of the work.
- Understanding your needs
- Rising agency shifts, concentrated overtime and care minutes, with 186 beds, 14% agency shifts and about 260 staff.
- Our approach
- Diagnose, redesign, support the change, with the number of days in each.
- Deliverables and timeline
- A findings paper, three master rosters, a cost model and the decision point, then four dated phases and a note on the board decision.
- Investment
- Three phases priced in days at one rate, phase 3 optional, plus a fixed travel allowance.
- Why us
- Two named consultants, a decision point, and one day rate.
- Terms
- Deposit then monthly billing for days worked, the decision point, scope changes, confidentiality, ownership and validity.
- Next steps and acceptance
- E-sign in order, client first, then the consultancy countersigns.
Why consulting proposals are priced in days
A consultant's cost is time, and a board approving a review wants to know how much of it it is buying. Pricing each phase in days does that and makes the proposal easy to compare: another firm's quote can be read as more or fewer days at a higher or lower rate. It also gives scope changes an obvious price, which clause 3 uses. The alternative, a fixed fee for the whole engagement, suits work whose scope is already clear. A rostering review is not, because nobody knows what the diagnostic will find. That is the reason for the decision point after phase 1: the client buys the diagnosis first and decides on the cure once they have read it.
How the numbers work
Phases 1 and 2 are 20 days at $2,200, which is $44,000, and travel to the regional homes is a fixed $1,800, so the default subtotal is $45,800 and the total with GST is $50,380. Phase 3, six more days, is optional and adds $13,200 before GST if ticked. The 25% deposit is $12,595 and is invoiced as soon as both parties have signed. Clause 1 then bills days at the end of each month as they are worked, less the deposit, so the provider pays for work done rather than in advance. If the board stops after phase 1, clause 2 limits what is owed to the days worked and the travel allowance.
How to adapt this proposal
Write the needs section from the client's own reporting: board papers, annual reports and the regulator's requirements for their sector. Name the consultants who will do the work, because clients buy people as much as method. Break the work into phases with a deliverable and a decision at the end of the first. Keep one day rate unless roles are genuinely different, and say so if there are no hidden extras. Price travel as a fixed allowance where you can, since an open ended expenses line worries a finance team more than a known number. If the work involves staff interviews, keep the confidentiality clause, which also makes staff more willing to speak candidly.
What makes this proposal work
The client can stop after phase 1
The deliverables, the timeline and clause 2 all name the decision point: after eight days the board receives findings and decides whether to continue. A provider spending $45,800 is far more willing to start when the first commitment is $17,600 of work.
Every fee is a number of days
Phase 1 is 8 days, phase 2 is 12 and the optional phase 3 is 6, all at $2,200. The client can check the effort behind each phase, and clause 3 prices any extra day the same way.
It answers the sector's own constraint
The needs section names care minutes, the requirement every aged care roster is judged against, and phase 2 tests every new roster against them, the award and the budget. The proposal reads as written for aged care, not for any client.
Questions people ask
What is a consulting engagement proposal?
A document that sets out the problem a consultant will work on, the phases of work, what each phase delivers, the time and fees, and the terms of the engagement, so the client can approve it. This example covers a three phase rostering review for an aged care provider, with each phase priced in days and a decision point after the first.
How do consultants price an engagement?
Usually by day rate times days per phase, or by a fixed fee when the scope is clear. This example uses $2,200 a day for every phase: 8 days of diagnostic, 12 of redesign and an optional 6 of implementation, plus a fixed travel allowance, so the client can see the effort behind each number.
What is a decision point in a consulting proposal?
A planned moment where the client reviews what has been delivered and decides whether to continue. This example places it after phase 1: the board receives the findings paper, and clause 2 lets it stop by written notice with only the days worked and travel payable. It lowers the client's risk without lowering the price.
Should a consulting proposal include a deposit?
For a new client it is common. This example asks for 25% on acceptance, then bills days monthly as they are worked, less the deposit. The deposit secures the consultants' time in the calendar; billing the rest in arrears means the client pays for work it has seen.
How should consultant expenses be shown in a proposal?
As their own line, and fixed where possible. This example prices travel and accommodation to the two regional homes as a single $1,800 allowance rather than charging receipts at cost. A finance team can approve a known number; an open ended expenses clause often sends a proposal back for questions.
Who signs a consulting engagement proposal?
Someone with authority at the client and a director of the consultancy. This proposal uses e-sign acceptance with countersigning: the client signs first after confirming a code sent by email, then the consultancy signs, and the deposit invoice is issued once both signatures are in.
Build your own in about a minute
The button below opens the generator with this use case already described. Change the wording to match your own, generate, then edit anything you like.
Make one like thisOther proposal, quote and invoice examples
Business proposal example: a priced office fit out
A business proposal tells a buyer what you will deliver, when, for how much and on what terms, in the order they need to decide. This example is a furniture supplier quoting a 42 desk office fit out at $90,838 including GST, with two optional extras, a 30% deposit and a signature page for both companies.
Software development proposal example: fixed price with change requests
A fixed price software proposal works when the scope is pinned to a signed specification and changes have their own price, so neither side argues about what was included. This example from a small studio to a pool service company fixes the build at $87,000 plus GST, reserves 30 hours of changes at $165 an hour, and asks both companies to sign.
IT managed services proposal with per user pricing
An IT managed services proposal prices support by the user or device, so the client can see what each extra staff member costs and what happens when they leave. This example from a Western Sydney provider to an accounting practice prices onboarding and the first month at $4,416 plus GST, with the staff count set by the client and a written exit clause.
Want the steps in the builder? Read Send a proposal and get paid. For everything this generator can do, see the proposal maker.
Written and checked by the OneCraft team. Last checked .