Proposal Red Flags Library
A catalogue of recurring warning signs in proposals - vague scope, circular references, unverifiable claims - with worked examples.
A red flag is a prompt to ask a question, not evidence of bad faith. Several flags have entirely reasonable explanations once raised publicly.
Each pattern includes an anonymised worked example and the question that resolved it.
Preview
Example patterns
- Scope stated as an outcome with no deliverable attached
- Budget lines that cite 'market rate' without a source
- Milestones that can only be verified by the proposer
- Third-party endorsements that cannot be independently confirmed
- Dependencies on unbuilt infrastructure with no fallback
Use these alongside it
Resources members commonly pair with this one.
Proposal Evaluation Canvas
A single-page canvas for working through a governance action: problem, evidence, cost, risk, accountability, and open questions.
Evidence and Source Quality Checklist
A short protocol for grading the sources behind a claim: provenance, independence, recency, and reproducibility.
Milestone Funding Review Sheet
A worksheet for assessing staged funding: milestone definition, evidence of completion, and what triggers the next tranche.