When you ask fundraisers what they consider the most dreaded part of proposal writing, many will tell you: Filling out the logframe.
But why is that?
And does the logframe have such a bad reputation for a reason?
In this article we want to look at a couple of the reasons and try to show you a way out of the dilemma – so you can maybe even grow fond of logframes at some point.
The logframe is supposed to make it easier for the donor to understand your project and to be able to easily compare it to other proposals. But this means that you have to follow their structure and their guidelines to fill it out – and that seems to be something, that many people have problems with. Writing a narrative is much more creative and gives more leeway while filling out a table someone else has designed gives much less room.
This is not such a big problem though if you look at it from a different angle. Having to fill out a table forces you to be much more precise, and that also helps you with your project planning. You will have to think your project through again, and the logframe will help you to not miss any points! It will help you to gain much more clarity and guide you through the process!
When you want to fill out a logframe, you clearly need to understand the hierarchy of activities, objectives and goals in your project to fit everything into it. To be able to do that, you need to be very clear on your project – you need to really have a structure to it. Sometimes it feels like it is difficult to fill out the logframe because the fundraiser themselves do not have the structure down.
Having to get more clarity on the hierarchy within your project will help you to plan it out and to correctly write the proposal as well. Once you have filled out the logframe, writing the proposal will be much easier. Don’t look at it as an annoying task but as the base to writing a good and well-structured document.
When you fill out the logframe, you already have to determine indicators, risks, and assumptions. Maybe you were hoping, that you would not have to put in that much work to get details at this stage of the project planning. But this is actually something that will help you to succeed later.
Instead of trying to keep things ambiguous, the logframe will force you to be specific and precise. Yes, it will take you more effort now to gather all the necessary information and determine indicators, risks and assumptions. But it will safe you so much time further down the line. If you are precise now, you will not fall into the trap of promising results that you cannot possible achieve – a pitfall of many projects.
We hope we were able to take some of your reservations against logframes away. If you want to learn more and get a roadmap of how to design your logframe, make sure to check out our new online course on this topic! In this course you will learn everything you need to know in four modules and more than 3 hours of video material:
Check it out now and never be scared of log frames again!
Eva is based in Germany and has worked for nearly a decade with NGOs on the grassroots level in Nepal in the field of capacity development and promotion of sustainable agricultural practices. Before that, she worked in South America and Europe with different organizations. She holds a Ph.D. in geography and her field of research was sustainability and inclusion in development projects.
