“What are the single most (a) frustrating and (b) rewarding aspects of proposals in your organisation?”

This is a large firm that has undergone several acquisitions and managerial changes over the years; systems have been added and accountabilities have been spread around. With multiple systems and people managing different subsets of information, the whole statistical snapshot of a given time in the company’s existence between annual reports can be difficult to find. Luckily, management is aware of the problem and steps are being taken to correct it…

My advice to firms that are crafting such a document and program (e.g. Propose to Win, Refuse to Lose, Pitch to Perfection), before you put anything down on paper, you should figure out how you can get your folks to change their current behavior. More likely than not, even if you have a program and document as good as ours, getting the individuals to change their current behavior as a result is is another matter entirely.”

Once the sales person has been through the process, they “get it”, resulting in a new found respect for the writers. HOWEVER, that does not mean that the sales person can dump it in our lap the next time and not participate! They are sales people – they use flattery to sell! Don’t buy the “I trust you know what you’re doing so send it to me when you’re done” nonsense!

the follow-up questions that trickle in or the request for presentation assistance or ‘can you find X’ for me. We bend, we are flexible, we are always willing to help, but we will not be used. We are not your clerical staff, we are professionals.

Every Proposal Manager I know is a perfectionist. And a bit of a control freak. But that’s okay, we’re allowed, because we have to be, to get the job done. Except that only Proposal Managers themselves recognise that, and can sympathise and empathise.

If we were brain surgeons, we would be applauded for being particular about detail, thorough to the end. As a Proposal Manager, I am frequently prodded, rushed, and harrassed, to the tune of phrases such as ‘Don’t bother reading it, I checked it myself – it’s complete’, ‘Does the font REALLY matter?’, ‘You’re too fussy’, and worst of all – ‘It’s only a proposal’.

These are the moments when I quietly slip outside for blessed fresh (usually dewy) air and a shot of nicotine. No-one tells a surgeon that ‘It’s only a brain’. Okay, so they aren’t REALLY comparable, no-one ever died as a result of a dodgy proposal, but Proposal Management is our discipline, our art, and it needs more respect.

“What are the single most (a) frustrating and (b) rewarding aspects of proposals in your organisation?”

​David Blume works for the Sant Corporation in the UK, a leading provider of proposal automation solutions. He has responsibility for sales and account management in a number of industry sectors across Europe including Asset Management, Insurance, IT, logistics, and telecommunications. David has nearly 20 years of international sales and management experience and has worked specifically in the field of sales effectiveness since 2001.

Lesa Camarri manages the RFP department for VSP Vision Care, a national employee benefits organization specializing in eye health care. She started out as the company’s only RFP specialist and over the past 15 years has built the proposal team to include eight full-time proposal specialists, one full-time editor, one full-time knowledge base manager and part-time administrative support. Lesa’s team responds to about 350 formal RFPs annually and they outsource fulfillment to a popular print-on-demand company.

Robin Davis began her career at Healthways Inc. eight years ago as an Administrative Assistant.  She quickly moved into a sales support position as a Manager that included responding to RFPs.  With no formal process in place, she developed and implemented a robust proposal and content management process that has grown exponentially since 2003.  As the company continues to grow and expand, her team has grown to 11 proposal and content management professionals who delivered over 250 proposals over the last year.

Barbara Esmedina is Communications Manager for CONEXIS. She has more than 25 years RFP experience in both government (DoD) and commercial (healthcare) sectors. She is a long-time Pragmatech software user and APMP member. Barbara specializes in document automation, knowledge bases, online surveys, market research tools, and learning management systems.

Roisin McCorry works for Tata Consultancy Services, the Indian offshoring giant. She graduated five years ago, spending a year in Business Analysis and the subsequent four years in proposal management. She is responsible for all bids generated from the Insurance and Manufacturing verticals with the occasional foray into government, utilities, etc. “as a disaster recovery agent when things begin to go horribly wrong”. Roisin is currently based in Belfast, working from home, but she travels to the UK for 90% of her working time. She’s currently working towards the APMP Practitioner qualification.

Lisa S. is an assistant vice president and proposal team member with a global financial services firm in New York.  She has also held high-level proposal writing and content management roles in two additional industries over the last seven years. With more than 13 years of professional writing and communications experience and a Master of Fine Arts in writing, her publications extend beyond proposals and into the journalistic and literary realms.

Jeff Scurry is the North American Proposal Manager for Baker & McKenzie and has a very keen interest in all facets of proposals, business development and professional services marketing. Previously Jeff led Grant Thornton’s National Proposal Center. Prior to Grant Thornton, Jeff was with KPMG Corporate Finance LLC. He received his bachelor of science in organizational behavior from Northwestern University.

“Dead Team,
I just wanted to write to thank you…”

“I obviously meant ‘Dear’ and not ‘Dead’”