How to pitch an idea to your manager

The cards

1. 1

   Start with the ask

   I would like [ten minutes / your approval] to [proposal in one line]. It would help us [main benefit] and the first step costs [amount or time].

   Senior people want the conclusion first.

2. 2

   The problem

   At the moment, [current situation].

   This costs us [time, money, quality, staff morale or customer experience], for example [specific recent case].

   It links to [team or organisation goal] because [reason].

3. 3

   My proposal

   I propose that we [what you want to do], starting with [first phase].

   In practice that means [what would change day to day].

4. 4

   Costs

   • Money: [amount, one-off and ongoing]
   • People and time: [hours, who]
   • Disruption: [what would pause or change]
5. 5

   Benefits

   • [Benefit] – estimated [value or saving, with how you worked it out]
   • [Benefit] – [measure]
   • Less obvious: [e.g. fewer errors, staff retention, better reputation]
6. 6

   Options I looked at

   1. Do nothing: [what happens]
   2. [Alternative]: [pros and cons]
   3. My proposal: [why it is the best balance]
7. 7

   Risks

   • [Risk] – I would reduce it by [step]
   • [Risk] – [step]

   If it does not work, we can [how to reverse or stop it] at a cost of [amount].

8. 8

   A small first step

   Rather than committing to everything now, I suggest a [trial, pilot, test] with [scope] for [time period].

   We will judge it on [measure], and I will report back on [date].

9. 9

   Likely pushback

   • We tried that before: what is different now: [change in people, tools or need]
   • No budget this year: [low-cost version or a later start date]
   • Who will do it? [named people and the hours you have checked they have]
10. 10

    The decision

    So what I am asking for today is [specific decision]. Is there anything you would need to see before saying yes?