Many clients overlook the importance of the reviewer’s impression of their team. Reviewers will judge a proposal not only on the viability of the proposed research activities but also on the experience and expertise of the team. This means that all senior personnel’s resumes have to be on point. Without impressive and up-to-date resumes, the reviewers may not think your team can carry out the proposed research, leading ultimately to a poor score and a decision on the reviewer’s part not to approve your grant award. Why do resumes matter so much? Here are the top three reasons.
#1 It is the only opportunity to brag about your team
While it is common practice to add a few sentences about company history and key personnel in a grant proposal, there is little space for sufficiently describing the complete experience and expertise of your team. The only place to truly show the reviewers where your team excels is through their resumes. Without a robust and relevant resume, your team can look sloppy and underqualified. Use resumes as an opportunity to showcase what your team has learned through experience and how it applies to the current project.
#2 Team resumes can bolster gaps in the experience of the PI
While reviewers like to see PIs with ample research experience, every researcher has to start somewhere. This can be a barrier for researchers that did not pursue the sciences in college and have little to no previous experience with research projects. Fortunately, the resumes and experience of other team members can make up for this gap in experience. A PI with less experience will be better received by reviewers if the resumes from other team members (subject matter experts, co-investigators, subawardees, etc.) have strong experience to demonstrate in a relevant field.
#3 It is the only polite way to drop names
It would be most unprofessional to shamelessly announce to the reviewers that the team has a colleague or friend that is a big deal in the industry. Fortunately, if you add such a person to your team as a subject matter expert, you can include their impressive resume and well-known name without behaving badly. This strategy also works well for team members who have worked at acclaimed companies within the industry before or for well-known founders.
Resumes are one of the often overlooked aspects of proposal preparation. Ignoring the importance of the team’s credentials and relevant skills can give the reviewers the wrong impression and cause them to score unfavorably. The team at E.B. Howard Consulting are experts in guiding clients to craft competitive resumes that showcase the skills learned and experience earned throughout their careers.
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