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Solon

Proposal workflow

From client conversation to approved consulting proposal.

Solon connects the full proposal process: intake, opportunity context, engagement shaping, artifact creation, commercial review and exact approval.

Run a live proposalSee an example workflow

Proposal work starts before anyone opens a template.

The quality of a proposal depends on whether the team understood the client, found the right prior work, identified missing information and shaped a credible engagement. Solon structures this work before generating the document.

Opportunity context

Northstar Mobility · AI operating-model proposal

Client objectives

  • Align AI priorities across business units
  • Identify first deployable use cases
  • Establish governance and ownership

Open questions

  • Confirm executive sponsor
  • Validate data-access constraints
  • Agree pilot business unit

Sources

  • Discovery call — 14 July

    Transcript · Connected

  • AI strategy notes

    Document · Reviewed

  • Prior operating-model proposal

    Proposal · Connected

  • Scope and pricing catalogue

    Firm rules · Reviewed

Opportunity context panel for Northstar Mobility: client objectives, open questions awaiting confirmation, and the connected source material behind them.

Build the engagement architecture once.

Objectives, workstreams, activities, deliverables, roles, timing, dependencies, assumptions and risks should exist as structured engagement information. The proposal, SOW and project plan can then be generated from the same foundation.

  • Objective
  • Workstream
  • Activity
  • Deliverable
  • Owner
  • Timing
  • Dependency

Create a complete proposal package.

The package stays connected. A change to scope should be visible in the budget, staffing model and project plan rather than being corrected manually in several documents.

  • Proposal narrative
  • Scope and approach
  • Workstreams
  • Deliverables
  • Timeline
  • Budget
  • Staffing
  • Assumptions
  • SOW
  • Project plan
  • Client email

Northstar Mobility

AI operating-model proposal

Version 4LatestApproved version: 3Changes pending review

Opportunity context

Client objectives

  • Align AI priorities across business units
  • Identify first deployable use cases
  • Establish governance and ownership

Open questions

  • Confirm executive sponsor
  • Validate data-access constraints
  • Agree pilot business unit

Sources

  • Discovery call — 14 July

    TranscriptConnected

  • AI strategy notes

    DocumentReviewed

  • Prior operating-model proposal

    ProposalConnected

  • Scope and pricing catalogue

    Firm rulesReviewed

Proposal

  1. 1Executive context

    Northstar Mobility already runs a functioning governance forum. The proposed operating model builds on that foundation rather than replacing it.

  2. 2Objectives
  3. 3Proposed approach
  4. 4Workstreams
  5. 5Deliverables
  6. 6Team and timing
  7. 7Commercial proposal

Update requested

Request

Make the introduction more sensitive to what already works well in the client's current governance model.

Solon

Suggested revision prepared using the discovery transcript and the current proposal. No commercial assumptions changed.

Review changeApplyReject

Source references

  • Discovery call, 00:18:42
  • Governance notes, page 3

Connected artifacts

  • ProposalChanges pending
  • BudgetIn review
  • SOWPlanned
  • Project planDraft
Solon proposal workspace: opportunity context on the left, the proposal artifact in the centre with version status, and a suggested revision awaiting review on the right.

Refine the same proposal instead of generating another one.

  • Section-level editing
  • Version history
  • Alternative branches
  • Compare and restore
  • Comments
  • Google Docs synchronisation where supported

Give reviewers the context they actually need.

A partner should not have to reconstruct the entire opportunity before reviewing the proposal. Solon packages the relevant client objectives, decisions, assumptions, changes and open questions with the review request.

Proposal Version 4

Changes pending review
Requested by
Engagement Owner
Reviewer
Managing Partner
Due
Friday

What changed

  • Client requested a narrower pilot
  • Timeline changed from 12 to 10 weeks
  • Price increased by €12,500
  • New data workstream added
ApproveRequest changesReject
Review request card for proposal version 4, listing what changed and the approve, request changes and reject actions.

Know what was approved.

“The latest document” is not an approval state. Solon records the exact version approved and marks approvals as outdated when material changes are made.

  1. Version 1

    Draft

  2. Version 2

    In review

  3. Version 3

    Approved

  4. Version 4

    Approval required

Continue into delivery without starting again.

Once the proposal is approved, the same context can generate the statement of work (SOW), project plan, workshop materials and delivery artifacts.

Explore connected deliverables

Test the workflow on a real proposal.

Apply as a design partner