TArticles tagged with: proposal management

Laying the groundwork for a great proposal kickoff

You only get one shot at a great proposal kickoff meeting, so make it count. Good kickoff meetings put the controls and processes in place to efficiently produce the proposal and motivate the team. By the end of a good kickoff meeting, participants must clearly understand the “who, what, when, where, why, and how” of efficiently developing the proposal and be prepared to start work. Do as much groundwork as possible to prepare for a great kickoff meeting before the RFP release. A comprehensive list of activities you can pick from to accelerate your preparedness follows. Kickoff meeting preparation tasks Prepare the kickoff meeting: Agenda Slide template Calendar invitations Physical or virtual meeting space Proposal planning and execution tasks Prepare the proposal: Schedule and milestones Assignment list (with a description of roles and responsibilities) Template to acquire/validate questions about the request for proposal (RFP) Plan to identify, assess, and mitigate … Continue reading Laying the groundwork for a great proposal kickoff →

[Webinar Replay] Planning and delivering winning orals presentations (Part 2)

Sponsored by the APMP Chesapeake Chapter | Lohfeld Consulting Business Winning Webinar

In today’s COVID world, you need to be ready to deliver either in-person orals—or virtual orals. Part 1 of our 2-part series on Planning and delivering winning orals presentations covers Orals Planning (click to watch part 1). Part 2 of our 2-part series covers Orals Delivery (click to register and watch part 2). Top takeaways from Planning and delivering winning orals presentations Learn how to manage orals timing and prepare with practice sessions. Explore orals presentation techniques and styles. Review orals logistics and production. Examine considerations for international orals. Get hints for handling demonstrations, audience interaction, and Q&A sessions. Discuss what to do “on the day”. Finally, determine what to do “after the orals”. This webinar replay addresses all varieties of orals, including U.S. Federal Government, State & Local Government, commercial, and international proposals. Who should watch this webinar replay This webinar replay is ideal for proposal professionals who need a … Continue reading [Webinar Replay] Planning and delivering winning orals presentations (Part 2) →

Using mind maps for proposal management activities

Visually generate, organize, structure, analyze, and classify ideas or information

I teach a proposal management class and use mind map examples for some of the lesson topics. I’m often surprised to learn that many of my students are not familiar with the mind map concept. In this article, I briefly introduce mind mapping and provide a few examples of how your proposal team can use mind maps as you prepare your proposal. What is a mind map? A mind map is a diagram used to visually generate, organize, structure, analyze, and classify ideas or information. It is an effective tool to capture and analyze information generated in brainstorming sessions. It facilitates collaboration, communication, learning, visual thinking, and problem solving. Mind maps can be used for planning, making decisions, and to facilitate outlining and writing. To create a mind map, you begin with a central concept/topic and develop related subtopics or themes around the central topic, connecting each to the center … Continue reading Using mind maps for proposal management activities →

Leading Teams on the Fly

To be successful, team leaders must understand the difference between teamwork and teaming.

Republished with permission from the APMP NCA Fall eZine Capture and proposal team leaders face challenges inherent to our business: fluid team composition, multiple concurrent tasks and opportunities, competing demands, changing priorities, and short deadlines. Most companies have a permanent cadre of full -time capture and proposal professionals supplemented by Subject Matter Experts (SMEs), consultants, and other specialists (contracts, pricing, Human Resources) for specific efforts. The fluid nature of capture and proposal teams creates challenges and opportunities for the team leader. To be successful, team leaders must understand the difference between teamwork and teaming. What’s the Difference? According to Harvard Business Review (HBR), teamwork is about stable teams of people who have learned to work together over time, for example, a Proposal Operations group. Teaming is “teamwork on the fly”: when we “gather experts in temporary groups to solve problems they’re encountering for the first and perhaps only time.” When … Continue reading Leading Teams on the Fly →