Most of the value in AI for contracting comes down to the quality of the prompt. A vague prompt produces vague output. A specific, well-structured prompt produces something you can actually use.
This pack contains the prompts I reach for most often, organised by task. Each one is written to be plug-and-play — fill in the bracketed values, paste it into your AI tool, and you'll get a useful first draft.
These work in any general chat-based AI tool: ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Mistral, etc. Local models will give simpler results but the structure still helps.
1. Drafting a client letter
Write a formal letter from [Your firm name] to [Client name] regarding [topic in one sentence].
Context: [2–3 sentences of background — project name, what's happened, the outcome you want]
Tone: formal but warm, in the style used between regional consultants and contractors. No filler. Avoid corporate jargon. Around [200] words.
End with a clear ask or next step.
2. Summarising a tender document
I'm pasting a tender document below. Produce a one-page summary with the following sections:
- Project at a glance: 3 sentences max.
- Key deadlines: bid submission, queries, clarifications, expected award.
- Scope: bullet list, max 10 items.
- Unusual or risky clauses: liquidated damages, performance guarantees, payment terms, scope exclusions, anything restrictive.
- Bid/no-bid considerations for a small contractor: 3–5 honest points.
Be conservative — flag anything that might be a problem rather than waiting to be sure.
[Paste tender document]
3. Daily site report from bullets
Convert the bullets below into a formal daily site report for [project name], [stage].
Format: header (date, site, weather, supervisor on duty), then sections — Progress, Manpower, Materials, Issues, Variations or Notes. Keep it under 350 words.
Tone: professional and neutral. Don't soften or amplify the severity of any item — preserve the wording I used. Don't invent numbers.
Flag anything that might be contractually significant in a separate "Notes" line for me to review.
Bullets: [paste your dictated notes]
4. RFI response
Draft a response to the following RFI from [consultant name].
Our position: [one sentence — what we want to convey]
Constraints: [any specifications or contract clauses we want to refer to, or "no specific reference"]
Tone: respectful, technically precise, brief. Around 150 words. Don't volunteer information beyond what's needed.
RFI: [paste RFI]
5. Risk register, first pass
I'm starting a project with the following description: [project type, location, value, duration, key stakeholders, any unusual conditions].
Produce a first-pass risk register with 12–15 items, in a markdown table with columns: Risk, Likelihood (Low/Medium/High), Impact (Low/Medium/High), Owner, Mitigation.
Bias toward risks that are common in regional contracting projects of this size. Don't include generic risks that apply everywhere.
6. Email triage
Below are [number] emails from today. For each one, give me: sender, one-line subject summary, urgency (Now / Today / This week / Whenever), and the suggested action ([reply, forward to X, no action, schedule]).
Don't reply to any of them — just triage.
Emails: [paste]
7. Estimating sanity check
Below is a draft cost estimate I've put together for [project description]. Don't redo the maths. Instead:
- Flag any line items that look unusually high or low for this kind of project in [country/region].
- Flag any line items that might be missing for this project type.
- List the top 3 risks to the estimate (price volatility, scope ambiguity, etc.).
Estimate: [paste]
8. Pre-bid kickoff brief
Produce a 1-page kickoff brief for our internal team based on the following tender summary. Sections: project overview (3 lines), our angle (3 bullet points — what we're competing on), required inputs (which team members we need from, with deadlines), and 3 questions to clarify with the client before we commit.
Tender summary: [paste]