ISyE 4104
Senior Design
General Guidelines for Client Acceptance/Rejection Letters
Ø Now that you’ve been assigned a project, you need to notify both of your potential clients of the decision. Here are some guidelines to help you with the task.
o Don’t wait! Both of your potential clients have given you help, so they deserve to know the outcome as soon as possible. While they may not be rushing to the mailbox every day, they do have to make some important decisions based on what they hear from you. Should they allocate any resources (including people’s time) to working with your group? Should they start thinking about hiring an outside consultant to work on the project? They need to make decisions quickly, so you need to get the outcome to them right away. You should do two things: (1) send an official letter as soon as possible, and (2) in the mean time, call your contact person and let him/her know of the outcome. In both the letter and the telephone call, express your thanks for their help even if you won’t be working on their project.
o Be polite in all of your communications. Even if you had a bad experience (for example, if you decided not to work with the client because the contact person took three weeks to respond to your phone messages), be courteous and friendly. You never know whether you (or another of your group members) might end up applying for a job with the client at some point in the future.
On the other hand, it also is a bad idea to badmouth the “other” client in any of your communications. Saying “we really appreciated your responsiveness…” is good, but adding “…especially since our other client took three weeks” is unprofessional.
o Giving a potential client the news (especially if you’re not going to work with them) is almost never as hard as you imagine it to be. Avoiding personal contact by sending an email might seem easier, but a personal telephone call will make a good positive impression. Put yourself in the client’s shoes – would you want to get rejected by email? Most likely, the client will pick up on your discomfort, and will try to make the conversation easier for you.
If all else fails, feel free to blame your choice of projects on me. Saying “we were assigned a different project” might be easier than saying “we chose a different project.”
Format of Client Acceptance/Rejection Letters
Letters to your clients should follow basic business-letter format. If you’re not sure what that is, go to http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/pw/p_basicbusletter.html
The text of your letters is just as important as the format when establishing or cementing a professional relationship. Below are some suggestions for the content of your letters:
Ø Project acceptance letter
o Paragraph 1 – Make the client feel good: Thank the client, let them know that you’ve chosen their project, and assure them of your interest in working with them.
Example sentences/phrases:
“Thank you for your help in identifying a project for our senior design course.”
“Our proposal has been approved.”
“We are looking forward to working with <insert company name>.”
(Of course, these phrases are so bland that it’s better to write your own, following the same style and ideas.)
o Paragraph 2 – Stay in contact: Suggest some future meeting times (but be flexible), or mention that you will be contacting them in the near future to schedule a meeting.
Example sentences/phrases:
“We would like to schedule a meeting with you…”
“We will contact you by telephone…”
“…in the upcoming week”
“…to plan the next phase of our work”
“Our team can be available on <insert dates/times, giving them lots of choices because they might have very busy, inflexible schedules>”
“If another time works best for you, we would be happy to adjust our schedule.”
“We will call you to see what you prefer.”
(Again, it’s probably better for you to write your own sentences in the same style.)
o Paragraph 3 – Make the client feel good: Close on a positive note.
Example sentences/phrases:
“We are looking forward to this opportunity to work with you.”
“We thank you again for this opportunity to work with you.”
Ø Project rejection letter
o Paragraph 1 – Make the client feel good: Thank the client, let them know that their project wasn’t selected, and assure them that you would have enjoyed working with them.
Example sentences/phrases:
“Thank you for your help in identifying a project for our senior design course.”
“While the prospect of working with you was exciting…”
“...a different project has been assigned to us.”
(Of course, these phrases are so bland that it’s better to write your own, following the same style and ideas.)
o Paragraph 2 – Give them another opportunity: Let them know how to keep their project active on the senior design web site so that they might be contacted by future teams.
Example sentences/phrases:
“We would like to help ensure that your project information remains part of the database for future senior design classes.”
“You may be hearing from other Georgia Tech senior design students in the next few months.”
(Again, it’s probably better for you to write your own sentences in the same style.)
o Paragraph 3 – Make the client feel good: Close on a positive note.
Example sentences/phrases:
“Again, thank you for your time and help.”