The Problem with Problem Statements (and Why Needs-Only Proposals Get Scored Lower)

If grant proposals came with warning labels, one of them would read:“Do not skip the problem.”

And yet, that’s exactly what happens—over and over again.

I’ve reviewed and coached countless proposals that begin with a list of needs: food, staff, training, supplies, technology, transportation. The intentions are good. The urgency is real. But the proposal quietly loses points because the reader is still waiting for one critical thing:

What problem are you actually trying to eliminate?

Here’s the disconnect. Needs are tools.Problems are conditions.

Food is a need. Homelessness is a problem. Training is a need. Unemployment is a problem.

When proposals start with needs, funders are forced to reverse-engineer the logic. They have to guess what condition exists, how severe it is, and why it matters now. Most won’t. They simply scorehttp://problem.Training lower and move on.

From a reviewer’s perspective, a needs-first proposal feels like a shopping list without a blueprint. The items may be reasonable, but the purpose isn’t yet convincing.

Strong problem statements do three things before they ever mention a solution:

1. Clearly name a condition causing pain, hardship, suffering, or risk.

2. Identify who is affected and where.

3. Explain why this problem matters—now.

Only after that groundwork is laid do needs make sense. Suddenly, food isn’t just food. It’s a response to food insecurity. Staffing isn’t overhead. It’s capacity to address a documented condition.

This is why, in my R.A.T.E.S. framework, Response-ability comes first. If the problem isn’t clear, everything that follows—program design, budgets, evaluation—rests on shaky ground.

A little grant-writing truth with a smile:Funders don’t fund groceries. They fund solutions to hunger.

When organizations learn to anchor their proposals in a clearly defined problem, something shifts. The proposal stops sounding reactive and starts sounding intentional. Reviewers can follow the logic. Scores improve. Confidence rises.

So before you ask for what you need, pause and ask yourself: Have I clearly shown the problem that makes this need unavoidable?

That’s where funding conversations actually begin.

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Dr. Margaret Jamal is the Founder of New Skills Online and the creator of the R.A.T.E.S. Principles, a framework designed to support nonprofit capacity building, grant readiness, and organizational sustainability.