The USAID Economic Security Program Let’s Make a Deal…The Art and Science of Writing Deal Notes
What is a Deal Note? • Is the “story” of a particular opportunity • It is a documents that captures the salient issues of an opportunity and is drafted during the co-creation process • It is submitted to USAID for review and approval • Once it is approved, it is the foundational document used to prepare and execute the appropriate contracting mechanism • It is most closely aligned with the Partnership Development Fund
Partnership Development Fund Process • Submission of Concept Note • Evaluation of Concept Note • Co-Creation Process • Negotiation of Specific Deal Points and Details • Due Diligence • Creation of a Deal Note • Submission of Deal Note to USAID • Decision by USAID • Begin relevant contract and implementation
Parts of a Deal Note • Background Information • Overview of the Opportunity • Partner Profiles • Justification for Program Involvement • Due Diligence • Program Support Recommendation • Economic Impact • Deal Points • Impact on Metrics • Annexes
Background Information • Sector • Type • Location • Mechanism • Partner • Partner Contact • Total Budget • Partner Participation • Program Participation
Overview of Opportunity • Thorough explanation of the opportunity including who, what, where, when, why and how. • Should be clear and concise • Should have a global/regional snapshot, problem statement, clearly defined solution, and why the solution is important • Should be written (as with the whole deal note) in active voice. • Example: Anka is helping Nato with the press release. (ACTIVE) Nato is being helped with the press release by Anka (PASSIVE) • Example: Mariam served dinner to her guests (ACTIVE) Dinner is being served by Mariam to her guests (PASSIVE)
Partner Profiles • Brief description of each partner company or organization • Should contain salient info on a) year it was founded, b) its core activities, and c) its leadership • This is NOT where due diligence is discussed
Justification for Program Involvement • Why the opportunity is important to Georgia • Why the opportunity is important to the Program • The Program’s role in the opportunity • Why the Program should support the opportunity • Why the Program is a better partner than some other organization/project
Due Diligence • Utilize Form • Due diligence should be done on both the organization/company and its principals • Obtain references • Conduct SAM check • Looking for “red flags”
Program Support Recommendation • The Program’s recommendation for level of support • Reiteration of justification for this support
Economic Impact • Financial Analysis • Return on Investment • Risk Assessment
Deal Points • Criteria for Support • Roles and Responsibilities of All Parties • Remediation
Impact on Metrics • Especially…jobs, investment, and sales/revenue increases • Impact on diversity • Focus on partnerships
Annexes • Concept Note • Budget • Due Diligence Form
Summary • Deal notes are both an art and a science • Whatever you include, the client will want something in addition • If you can’t tell the story in a way that “sells” the deal, it likely will not happen • Deal notes lay the foundation for everything else • Most concepts never get to the deal note stage • Deal notes must measure impact…otherwise they are a story without a purpose
Recommend
More recommend
