Architect's Essentials of Winning Proposals (The Architect's Essentials of Professional Practice)

Architect’s Essentials of Winning Proposals Frank A. Stasiowski, FAIA John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Architect’s Essential...

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Architect’s Essentials of Winning Proposals

Frank A. Stasiowski, FAIA

John Wiley & Sons, Inc.


Other Titles in the Architect’s Essentials of Professional Practice Series: Architect’s Essentials of Ownership Transition Peter Piven with William Mandel Architect’s Essentials of Cost Management Michael Dell’Isola Architect’s Essentials of Contract Negotiation Ava Abramowitz Architect’s Essentials of Presentation Skills David Greusel Architect’s Essentials of Starting a Design Firm Peter Piven and Bradford Perkins


Frank A. Stasiowski, FAIA

John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

This book is printed on acid-free paper. \ Copyright © 2003 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey Published simultaneously in Canada No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permitted under Section 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, Inc., 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, (978) 750-8400, fax (978) 750-4470, or on the web at www.copyright.com. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, (201) 748-6011, fax (201) 748-6008, e-mail: [email protected]. Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: While the publisher and author have used their best efforts in preparing this book, they make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this book and specifically disclaim any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by sales representatives or written sales materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for your situation. You should consult with a professional where appropriate. Neither the publisher nor author shall be liable for any loss of profit or any other commercial damages, including but not limited to special, incidental, consequential, or other damages. For general information on our other products and services or for technical support, please contact our Customer Care Department within the United States at (800) 762-2974, outside the United States at (317) 572-3993 or fax (317) 572-4002. Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books. For more information about Wiley products, visit our web site at www.wiley.com. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data: Stasiowski, Frank Architect’s essentials of winning proposals / Frank Stasiowski. p. cm. — (The Architect’s essentials of professional practice) Includes index. ISBN 0-471-27241-8 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Architectural services marketing. 2. Architecture portfolios—Design. I. Title. II. Architect’s essentials of professional practice series. NA1996 .S718 2003 720’.68’8—dc21 2002152370 Printed in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Contents

Preface

ix

Part 1 PROPOSAL PLANNING

1 What’s So Special About Writing a Proposal?

3

2 Setting the Stage for Winning Proposals: Marketing

9

3 Setting the Stage for Winning Proposals: How Much Should You Spend?

19

4 Setting the Stage for Winning Proposals: Types of Proposals

25 v

5 To Bid or Not to Bid: The Go/No-Go Decision

33

6 Your Proposal Strategy

45

7 Your Proposal Plan, Your Team, and the Process

61

Part II PROPOSAL ELEMENTS

8 Up Front: Cover Letter, Table of Contents, Executive Summary

75

9 Résumés

87

10 Scope of Services and Approach 97

11 Schedule, Budget, and Fee

105

12 Related Experience

115

13 Additional Materials: SF 254/255 Forms, Appendix, and Management Proposal vi

123 Contents

Part III PROPOSAL DEVELOPMENT

14 Giving Your Proposal Finesse: Writing and Graphics

131

15 The Red Team Review

153

16 It’s Ready: Now What?

157

Part IV PROPOSAL PRESENTATION

17 Your Presentation Team

163

18 Your Presentation Contents

171

19 Visuals

181

20 Preparing and Rehearsing

187

21 Afterward

199

Index

203

Contents

vii

Preface

When A/E/C professionals get together to talk about “the business,” an outsider probably would get the distinct impression that preparing proposals is not one of their favorite activities. And they wouldn’t be wrong. A/E/C professionals are in this business because they love to do the work, not because they love to sell their services. Moreover, proposal writing is time-consuming and staff-intensive, and sometimes can seem a waste of time and energy; on average, only 30 percent of proposals result in being awarded the project at hand. The increasingly rapid pace of communication has served to intensify the proposal-writing challenge. Typically, in the past, A/E/C professionals might have been given several weeks to prepare a proposal. Today, it’s not unusual for clients to want to see a proposal within days, sometimes even within hours. It is in this challenging environment that you, an A/E/C professional, must find a way to make your proposal stand out from all the others stacked on the potential client’s desk, knowing that the client will probably spend only a few seconds forming an initial impression of your firm and your ideas. ix

Fortunately, there are effective ways to achieve the goal of standing out in the crowd. As you’ll learn in this book, the most successful A/E/C firms have a system for evaluating opportunities, which means they don’t waste time and energy going after business that’s not right for them or that they’re unlikely to win. Their staff members are attuned to the clients and the marketplace; they know how to analyze a client’s needs and how to focus each proposal so that everything in it demonstrates how those needs will be met. Successful proposal writers understand the power of word choice and graphics to convey a strong, confident message. Successful presenters are skilled in creating the appropriate factual and emotional impact. In short, by developing an effective proposal-writing system, and with staff attuned to the customer, you’ll spend less time and energy while winning more business, whether you’re a firm of 5 or 500. The essentials of preparing winning proposals are the same, regardless of how many people do the work. I bring more than 30 years of PSMJ Resources experience in helping A/E/C firms plan, manage, and market their businesses to the preparation of this book. I know it can help you and your firm develop award-winning proposals that impress clients every time. By following the suggestions and techniques described in this book, you and your firm can and will be winners. Frank A. Stasiowski, FAIA CEO & Publisher PSMJ Resources, Inc.

x

Preface

Acknowledgments

In my 30 years of consulting and publishing in the A/E/C industry, I’ve benefited from the help and advice of many creative and thoughtful colleagues, several of whom have helped in preparing this book. I’m extremely grateful to Margaret Cummins, editor of the Essentials series at John Wiley & Sons, Inc., for her patience, encouragement, and support, as we produced this addition to a long line of Wiley books in which I’ve enjoyed the pleasure of collaboration. (A list of the others can be found at www.psmj.com.) Thanks also to Janice Lindsay of Janice Lindsay Communications, Marlborough, Massachusetts, whom I often call upon when I need the help of a talented writer who’s professional, reliable, thorough, and fast. My appreciation also to the following colleagues who provided information and suggestions for this book: > John Filice, President, JMF Enterprises, Washington, DC > Tamara Goff, Marketing Director, Hnedak Bobo Group, Memphis, Tennessee xi

> Edward Lynch, Director, Group GSA, Sydney, Australia > Pat Rosenzweig, Marketing Principal, OWP&P, Chicago, Illinois, and Phoenix, Arizona > Thomas N. Sargent, PSMJ Resources Consultant, Atlanta, Georgia > Barry Yoakum, PSMJ Resources Consultant; Partner, Archimania, Memphis, Tennessee

xii

Acknowledgments

Proposal Planning

P a r t 1

What’s So Special About Writing a Proposal?

1

If you’re a professional in an Architecture/Engineering/Construction (A/E/C) firm, it’s probably because you love the work, not because you love getting the work. A focused, efficient method for writing winning proposals allows your firm to spend less time winning lucrative contracts and more time doing the work, or conversely, less time spending money and more time earning it. Consider these scary statistics: A/E/C firms spend an average of $5,000 to $9,000 to prepare each proposal. Unfortunately, most proposals are bland and ordinary, and only 3 out of 10 actually bring in work. That means that for every 10 proposals you write, you could be spending up to $63,000 for no return at all. If that’s not frightening enough, consider this: Reviewers at your potential client’s firm will spend less than a minute flipping through your carefully prepared proposal to get a first impression of your firm and your ideas. If they decide to read the whole 3

A winning proposal . . . is a project blueprint and, therefore, specific. Problems during the project concerning budget, schedule, and scope of work often relate to deficiencies in the proposal.

4

proposal, they’ll spend only 25 to 35 minutes on the document that took you hours, maybe weeks, to create. What to do? Learn to create stand-out proposals that separate you from the thousands of lookalikes submitted to clients every year. Keep your proposal on the top of the stack. Make your proposals special—focused, readable, convincing—in both content and appearance. Redesign your proposal-writing process to make the best use of the time and talent of the people in your firm. Stop spending money chasing business that you won’t get and that might not even be appropriate for your firm.

Stand-Out Proposals versus AlsoRans A winning proposal focuses on the clients’ needs and concerns, not those of the A/E/C firm. You need to know your potential clients very well in order to identify their real issues (not always those stated in the request for proposal—the RFP), and counter those with the benefits you provide that will solve their problems. A winning proposal will show that you understand the big picture—your clients’ overall business and the competitive world in which they operate. It will show how you will add value to their operation. The content presents clearly your logical, technical approach to their project, and shows that your plan will work. It presents an attractive fee in relation to the value you will add. It shows a clear link between the elements of the proposal and the evaluation criteria. What’s So Special About Writing a Proposal?

A well-written, winning proposal demonstrates your understanding of the clients’ needs and desires. It restates the criteria for selection and details how your firm meets those criteria. It demonstrates the competencies and experience that your project team brings to this specific project. It’s readable, concise, attractive, and well organized. Boilerplate, if it’s used at all, is used creatively. The also-ran proposals, the ones that sink to the bottom of the stack, tend to be too generic: they don’t reflect the client’s specific needs, wants, or concerns. They focus on the features offered by the A/E/C firms instead of the benefits those features could provide. Losing proposals are often packed with statistics and exhibits that are not relevant to the project, or they’re padded with good-looking boilerplate that says little or nothing relating to the client’s concerns at this moment. Losing proposals are disorganized, hard to read, incomplete, too long or too short.

Overview of a Successful ProposalWriting Process The proposal-writing process can be more or less complicated, and involve several people or only a few, depending on your firm and the work you’re pursuing. But three essential steps are critical in any process of creating a business-winning proposal. 1. The go/no-go decision. Evaluate whether you should spend your time and money proposing on a specific project. Consider your strategic plan, your financial objectives, and the value of this client to your business. 2. The Issues, Features, Benefits, Proofs (IFBP) analysis. Look at the project from your client’s point What’s So Special About Writing a Proposal?

5

Why Are Proposals Such a Chore? Many firms consider proposal writing a necessary unpleasantness, rather than part of an ongoing, dynamic, well-informed marketing effort. They prepare proposals on an ad hoc basis, in preference to maintaining an efficient, thoughtful preparation process. Often they go after lots of RFPs, even if the work isn’t what they prefer to be doing, or they go after appropriate projects even when they know they won’t get the work. They “bulk up” the proposal with boilerplate, unnecessary information, or untargeted writing. Then, they don’t get the work. This further convinces them that proposal-writing is a necessary unpleasantness.

of view. Which issues do they really care about? How can you address these issues? How can you prove that you can do it? 3. The Red Team review. Members of your firm— people who are not involved in writing the proposal—pretend to be the client and give the proposal draft a critical analysis from that standpoint. (The reason it’s called the Red Team seems to be lost in A/E/C history. Red pencils maybe? The color of a stoplight? Team members raise red flags?) Whether you have weeks or only days to complete a proposal, these three steps should be part of the process. Adjust the scale of your proposal efforts accordingly.

Winning Proposals, Successful Firms Proposal writing is a marketing function. The most successful A/E/C firms are market-driven, with dedicated proposal operations centralized under marketing. They screen opportunities, so they’re not wasting time and money bidding on every RFP that arrives in the mail. They measure their success by customer 6


satisfaction. And they consider proposal-writing expertise career-enhancing. In this book, we’ll talk about how to design your proposal-writing process so that you bid on jobs that will be appropriate and profitable for your firm; and we’ll show you how to create proposals that impress clients and win you their business. This information is based on observations PSMJ Resources made during more than 30 years of helping A/E/C firms plan, market, and manage their businesses.


7

Setting the Stage for Winning Proposals: Marketing

2

Many essential proposal-writing activities occur before you ever even see an RFP; therefore, you’ll want to define your firm’s direction, do your marketing, decide how much time and money you should spend writing proposals, and understand the ins and outs of different types of proposals.

Your Strategic Plan Many A/E/C firms don’t have a working strategic plan. If you wrote one in the past but haven’t paid attention to it lately, get it out, dust it off, and change what is no longer relevant. An up-to-date strategic plan prevents you from wasting valuable resources on proposing for jobs that you probably won’t get or that won’t take you in the direction you want to go. Most workable strategic plans include the following elements: 9

> A clear, short, simple statement of your firm’s mission that everybody can remember. What is your focus? What makes you unique? How do you provide value for your clients? > A business or strategic plan that everybody can understand. Where are you now? Where do you want to be? How will you get there? > A strategy for how you will manage change. If you’re not open to change, you can’t grow your business. > A plan for identifying and penetrating new markets. > A clear picture of the types of clients and business you intend to pursue.

The Marketing Function Proposal writing is a marketing function. The research you do for a specific proposal adds to your knowledge about the market. Knowing the market helps you identify opportunities for proposals and helps you understand how to get the business. Three essential functions are included in the discipline people call marketing: > Business development. Build your market: study the marketplace; understand your competition; make yourself known in the industry; ferret out opportunities. > Marketing. Develop a specific client. Know the people, understand their business and their competition, learn about their upcoming projects. > Sales. Win the project. This activity starts when you receive the RFP. It continues with your proposal and through your presentation and your follow-up. 10


The 75/25 Rule of Marketing Marketing to a new client costs 10 times as much as marketing to repeat clients. But on the average, 75 percent of annual revenues come from repeat clients. Many A/E/C firms love the “thrill of the chase,” always trying to capture that new client. But if you’re truly focused on the profitability of your firm, it makes sense to spend more of your marketing budget—about 75 percent of the total—on getting new business from repeat clients. It also makes sense to devote time and attention to considering how you will keep your current clients coming back. What if they liked you so much that every proposal won the job? What if you were always their first choice? Their only choice? When you look at it that way, marketing becomes a full-time job. Every interaction on every project offers an opportunity to reinforce how excellent you are and how easy you are to work with. What makes customers so pleased with you that they can hardly wait to read your next proposal? > First, you know exactly what they want, what they need, and the standards they use to judge the quality of your design, service, reports, financial systems, interactions with their employees, and every other aspect of doing business with them. They know that your firm is organized to meet their needs and live up to their standards. > Second, they know that at the outset of each project you will help them establish realistic expectations: that is, agree on what has to be perfect; agree on what can be slightly imperfect, and to what specific degree; expect contract Setting the Stage for Winning Proposals: Marketing

11

modifications and have a system for dealing with them. > Finally, clients know that you’ll do what you say you’re going to do. Meet deadlines. It’s amazing that so many firms promise to supply something by a certain date, then let the date slip by, with no delivery and no explanation. Or they say, in their proposal, how responsive they are, but they ignore phone messages. Or they don’t answer e-mails. The point is, in every little thing you do, you have the opportunity to create an image of competence and professionalism. That’s the image—if it’s also the reality—that keeps customers coming back.

Who Should Do Your Marketing? Today’s model for the successful A/E/C professional is the person who both does the work and sells the work. The more doers you can encourage to bring in the work, the more successful you’ll be. Marketing is primarily a three-way partnership involving the principals, marketing professionals, and project managers. Table 2.1 shows one way in which you might divide some of the major responsibilities among these three functions. If you create a similar chart for your firm, with the headings, issues, and responsibilities that are pertinent to your business, you’ll be able to analyze who does what and see where you should make any changes. The most powerful answer to “Who does your marketing?” is: “Everybody.” Employees live in a world beyond the confines of your office, and they can bring information from what they see, hear, or 12


Table 2.1 Marketing Responsibility Assignments Issues

Marketing Manager

Project Manager

Principal

New Client Relations

Leads

Supports

Approves

Existing Client Relations

Supports

Leads

Supports

Statement of Qualifications

Prepares

Supports

Oversees

RFPs

Receives

Reviews

Evaluates

Fee Proposals

Supports

Prepares

Approves

Presentations

Supports

Leads

Supports

Fee Negotiations

Assists

Supports

Leads

Repeat Work

Supports

Secures

Approves

read, if they know how to recognize what’s valuable. Encourage everyone in the firm to bring in marketing intelligence and ideas for new clients or new business, and reward them for doing so. In the most successful firms, a focus on marketing is part of the culture.

Marketing Intelligence: Know Your Clients The key to successful marketing is maintaining personal relationships with your clients. The beginning of these relationships is marketing intelligence— about the market, your current and prospective clients, your competitors, and possibly even your clients’ competitors. Setting the Stage for Winning Proposals: Marketing

13

Sources of Marketing Intelligence

> Conversations with people in the profession > Meetings and journals of professional associations > Trade shows and publications > Conferences > News media > Government publications > Business and industrial directories and guides > Contacts at regulatory agencies > The internet: client and competitor Web sites, search engines, library and internet search services

> Annual reports, 10Ks, brochures > Employees, including new ones who have worked for other firms > Interns who do research for you > Interns who have experience with other firms > Clients and their associates and acquaintances > Clients who turn you down > Other firms who have worked for your client > Your friends, your clients’ friends > Your broker > Subconsultants > Head hunters > Manufacturers’ representatives > Government agency budgets, which are public information > Better Business Bureau > Chamber of Commerce > Members on selection committees > Past proposal postmortems > Past proposals given to you by clients 14


What should you know about your clients? Ideally, everything. Store this information in your personal digital assistant for quick easy reference. Include the following: Basic data. Proper name and nickname (if applicable), title, address, phone number(s) and extensions, fax number, e-mail address, how he or she prefers to be contacted, and how often. Career. History in the profession and in the firm, technical discipline, current responsibilities, level and dollar volume of authority, salary level, education, certificates, licenses, memberships in organizations, likely attendance at trade meetings. Associates. Names of supervisor and subordinates, how he or she is viewed by employees, peers, colleagues in your own firm and in other companies. Personality. Strengths and weaknesses, comfort with risk, work habits, goals and ambitions, ethics, quality expectations, entertainment preferences, dress standards. Your association. Your past experiences with the individual, his or her expectations of you, names of other consultants his or her firm uses, his or her role in the project, his or her friends at your competitor’s. Personal. If married, spouse’s name and occupation; names and ages of children (if applicable); home address and phone number; political and religious preferences; memberships in social, civic, and community organizations; recreational activities; type of car; pets; military service (if applicable); whether he or she can accept gifts and under what conditions; sensitive issues you shouldn’t discuss. Setting the Stage for Winning Proposals: Marketing

Which Software? Which Technology? New marketing software, presentation and data management technologies, and hightech gadgets come on the market all the time. Somewhere in your firm, there’s a technical person who loves this stuff. Assign him or her to watch for innovations and make recommendations.

15

Marketing on the Web The World Wide Web is an essential tool in marketing your firm, and for gaining information about your clients and your competitors.

> Your Web page. Make sure it clearly and simply describes what you do, creates the overall impression you want to create, is easy to navigate, and makes it easy for a reader to reach an individual at your firm, by phone or e-mail. (Make sure someone at your firm is paying attention to these messages.) As you design the site, be aware that competitors, as well as potential clients, are likely to visit.

> Search engines. Your Webmaster should understand how the various search engines work, so that your site can be written to place your firm prominently in positions where clients are likely to look.

> Reciprocal links. Collaborate with clients, contractors, and consultants to provide links with one another’s sites.

> Listings. Clients can find you through listings of AIA and other professional sites. These sites might also offer direct links to your web page.

> Research. Check Web sites of your clients, potential clients, and your competitors. Also find information about them through the various search engines.

Marketing Intelligence: Know Your Competition Knowing your competition can be just as important as knowing your clients. For your competitors, have the following information readily available: Basics. Location(s), capabilities, type of ownership (public, private, foreign), marketing approach, size and goals of the office you’re competing against. Associates. Key staff, their clients, reputation with clients and other professionals, common teaming partners, their contact at the client and the quality of the relationship, whether you have a trusted friend at their firm. 16


History: Growth history, bidding experience, past successes and mistakes. Current conditions: Strengths and weaknesses, billing rates, turnover rate, financial condition, D&B rating, MBE/WBE/SBA status under the Small Business Act or as an M/WBE (Minorityowned or Women-owned Enterprise), amount of liability insurance, are they self-insured, how they react to indemnification, regulatory philosophy. Their people: Work quality, current workload, papers published, awards, patents, unique qualifications. Current project: Types of proposals, quality of presentations, likelihood that they’ll win the business.

Keeping Track of the Data Almost any database program, from all-purpose office-management software to single-purpose tracking programs, will allow you to track the names and information you collect about clients and prospects on an ongoing basis. Fields in the database should include: > Name > Address > Phone > Title > Business type > Follow-up date > Upcoming projects > Source of lead > Your firm’s contact person Setting the Stage for Winning Proposals: Marketing

17

> Contacts you’ve made, including via direct mail > Space for notes about each contact The most successful firms view proposal writing as a key component of their marketing effort. The people who prepare their proposals have a clear view of their firm’s goals and priorities, as well as of each customer’s needs and competitor’s strengths. When you do the strategic thinking, and as you continue your ongoing market research, you are setting the context for devising a proposal-writing system and strategy that will win you the most business with the least effort.

18


Setting the Stage for Winning Proposals: How Much Should You Spend?

3

How much money should your firm spend preparing proposals? What do other firms spend? Following are recent national averages from one of PSMJ Resources’ annual A/E/C industry surveys. Calculate your own numbers and see how they compare. Just keep in mind that these are averages, not guidelines. Your firm could have many reasons for higher or lower costs. Marketing cost as percentage of gross revenue 2% to 8% Distribution of marketing dollars Administration

10%

Promotion

9%

New client development

7%

Proposals/presentations/negotiations

50%

Client maintenance

21%

Marketing labor as percentage of total marketing cost

70%

Marketing cost per total staff

$2,000

Ratio: total staff to full-time marketers

37 to 1 19

Other Data to Consider The following figures are also based on PSMJ Resources’ national surveys. Firms participating in bid/price competition

65%

Percentage of work from repeat clients

75%

Proposal hit rate

35%

Terminated negotiations

0.5%

How Much Should You Spend on a Specific Proposal? On average, A/E/C firms find that 75 percent of their work comes from repeat clients. So it makes sense to spend 75 percent of your marketing budget pursuing that business.

Use a number of bases to decide how much you should spend as you consider a specific proposal: > Gross Margin Sold (GMS) > Gross sales > Percentage of revenue > Predetermined number of proposals > Other measurement of your firm’s success Make sure you capture the true costs of writing the proposal. For example, principals sometimes write proposals and don’t capture those costs. But they represent a cost nevertheless, because the time could have been spent in other ways, such as networking with future clients. Here’s an example of how to compare two projects, using the measurement of gross margin sold (also called gross profit sold). Gross Margin Sold (GMS) = Contract Value – Direct Labor – Labor Overhead – Out-of-Pocket Costs A GMS of 35 percent to 50 percent of revenue is a good target to aim for. It’s also possible to manage sales goals using this measurement.

20


Consider two projects with equal expected revenue: Revenue

$100,000

$100,000

Direct Labor

$ 30,000

$ 15,000

Labor Overhead (at 33%)

$ 10,000

$ 5,000

Out-of-pocket

$ 20,000

$ 50,000

GMS

$ 40,000

$ 30,000

What’s your average cost per proposal? Considering the GMS, is it worth it to spend that much on this proposal?

Costing a Specific Proposal Use a table like the following to determine what a specific proposal will probably cost. Principal

__ hrs × $/hr

$

Project Manager

__ hrs × $/hr

$

Engineer/Architect

__ hrs × $/hr

$

Administration

__ hrs × $/hr

$

Subtotal: Labor

$

Other Direct Costs Travel

$

Graphics

$

Other

$ Subtotal Other Direct Costs (ODC)

$

Grand Total

$

Probability*

____ %

Weighted Cost

$

* The “Probability” figure is your best guess, based on your marketing intelligence, that (1) there’ll be a job (the client isn’t just fishing for information); and (2) you’ll get the job.


21

Keep Track of Your Data Many A/E/C firms don’t keep track of data that will help them measure the success, or failure, of their marketing efforts, including their proposal-writing activities, or that will help them define, from a profitability point of view, when they should or shouldn’t propose on a specific project. Establish some measurements that work for your firm, then keep track of that data continuously. Use the information to help you improve the process.

The Marketing Funnel

1

Some people might prefer to think of a pipeline, but, instead, picture a funnel. At the wide end, imagine the number of leads you get, at the narrow end, the number of contracts that result. The following numbers are fairly typical, though yours, of course, might be different: > You get lots of leads, maybe hundreds. > You send out 100 Statements of Qualifications (SOQ)s. > You receive 30 RFPs. > You submit 20 proposals. > You make 10 to 15 presentations. > You win 4 to 7 contracts. Most firms don’t know how well their proposal process is working, because they don’t keep track of all the pertinent elements. Be sure to track the following: > SOQs you submit. > RFPs you get. > RFPs you pursue. 22


> Success rate: the number of proposals that result in business versus the number of proposals you create. > Cost: all labor and out-of-pocket costs, presentation costs, number of hours spent (if principals work on proposals while traveling, at night, or on the weekend, have them keep track of their time, so you’ll have a realistic statistic). > Average capture cost: what you spend, on average, per proposal. Decide on a set of measurements that are appropriate for your firm, and keep track of them meticulously. Use the data to analyze how well your proposal-generating system is working, whether you’re spending an appropriate amount of time and money writing proposals, and even whether you should spend the resources to bid on a specific project.

1 Thomas N. Sargent, P.E., DEE, PSMJ Resources consultant, Atlanta, Georgia.


23

Setting the Stage for Winning Proposals: Types of Proposals

4

Request for Qualifications (RFQs) RFQs are an enlightened approach for everyone involved in the proposals process. They give clients the opportunity to prequalify competitors, and they save time and money for both the client and the A/E/C firm. Using RFQs means you can focus on the staff qualifications and the experience of your firm; you don’t have to spend time calculating price and schedules.

Private-Sector Proposals

1

As compared with public-sector proposals, privatesector proposals have different ground rules, different evaluation schemes, and different formats. You also have a little more freedom in how you write each proposal. Marketing intelligence is of major importance when you’re proposing on private-sector projects. 25

There are two fundamental types of private-sector proposals: > Single-project opportunities > Long-term relationships, such as Master Service Agreements (MSAs), General Service Agreements (GSAs), and Basic Order Agreements (BOAs)

A Caution Increasingly, both private clients and public agencies are concerned not only with the quality of your work, but also with the financial stability of your firm. So be prepared to answer those types of questions, and be extremely careful when you consider teaming with another firm.

26

An MSA and a GSA set the framework for every task. They are a good deal for everyone. All you have to do is write the scope and price it. This simplifies the task for the client and for you. You might be the only firm holding this agreement, and you might be able to offer the client a discount because you’re not incurring any marketing costs. A BOA is similar, except that you might have competition.

Private-Sector Proposals: Some General Characteristics When you’re bidding on a private-sector project, you’ll generally have one to three weeks to bid on an RFP, and usually you’ll have the opportunity to make a presentation. Except for MSAs and GSAs, your proposal should focus tightly on the scope of the project. Your proposal will probably have only a few reviewers, but during the negotiation process be prepared for input from professional negotiators. As in all proposals, liability/indemnification are serious concerns. And, increasingly, clients have a strong interest in the financial stability of proposing firms. Setting the Stage for Winning Proposals: Types of Proposals

Following is a list showing the pros and cons of private-sector proposals1: Pros

Cons

Short response time

Less rigor in the process than in public-sector projects

Fast selection Low proposal costs Few client staff involved Not a lot of “red tape” Short proposals

Your proposals can be “shopped” Cost considerations Most proposals are priced Clients accepting of alternative proposals

Public-Sector Proposals

1

Writing proposals for public-sector projects is a different discipline from writing for the private sector, for a number of reasons. Representations and certifications (“reps” and “certs”) must be included, and they’re legally binding. Awards are made on many levels: > 8A > Minority-owned small business > Women-owned business (WOB) > Small disadvantaged business (SDB) > Awards by size of the business > Unrestricted There are two types of public-sector proposals: > Priced > Unpriced Standard Forms 254/255 (SF 254/255) You might be awarded a single project or a multiple-task order for a series of projects. Setting the Stage for Winning Proposals: Types of Proposals

27

The pros and cons of public-sector proposals are as follows1: Pros

Cons

Large projects

“Everyone and their brother” may compete

Sometimes unpriced (not necessary to compete on price) Provides a “hunting license” Long term Impact on business Rigor in the process

No guarantee of any work Motivation level/expertise of reviewers Long selection process Red tape

About Government Rules: Follow Them RFPs come with all sorts of rules regarding what must be incorporated into proposals, including: order, format, type of information required, and length. Follow the rules, even if they don’t seem to make sense. It will count against you if you don’t. Government evaluators have been known to tear off the extra pages from proposals that exceed the page limit and read only what’s left. You don’t want that to happen to your proposal. Here are the rules: > Technical people are not allowed to talk with you after the RFP comes out. > Government agencies sometimes blackball companies. Do your market research; don’t team up with any firm that has been, or is in danger of being, blackballed. Also, government agencies usually don’t like to work with joint ventures because of concerns about lack of accountability. > Be prepared to prove the financial stability of your firm. 28


Letter Proposals Whether solicited or unsolicited, the success of a letter proposal depends totally on the quality of your marketing intelligence because it must focus precisely on the client’s concerns. > A solicited letter is inexpensive to prepare and shorter than a full proposal, but the same fundamentals apply. > An unsolicited letter is a great technique for getting the attention of a new client. There’s no time limit and no page limit. Be innovative, but use your marketing intelligence to hit on an issue that really matters to the client. You’re not looking for a one-shot project, but aiming to build a long-term relationship. Here’s a formula for an effective, quick-hit, onepage proposal. Include: > Client’s name, address, and so on > Client’s number-one “hot button” and name of project > “I would like to propose the following”: 8 Brief summary of the project 8 Simple description of your recommendations 8 Deliverables (demonstrate your brain power) 8 Terms and conditions (low price, moneyback guarantee) > Closing sentence In a proposal like this, don’t offer a design, which might raise liability issues. Instead, offer to prepare a report, write a Statement of Work (SOW) for a government client, or organize their data into a usable format. Setting the Stage for Winning Proposals: Types of Proposals

29

Pricing Table 4.1 offers a quick comparison of private-sector versus public-sector1 pricing. Table 4.1 Private-Sector versus Public-Sector Pricing Private-Sector Pricing

Public-Sector Pricing

Usually one labor pool

Often more labor pools

Usually requires Firm Fixed Price (FFP) or Time & Materials (T&M) pricing

May require any pricing type

Not concerned with labor classifications

Definitive labor categories

Less problem in employee salary escalation; concerned primarily with overall multiplier

Concerned with Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) pricing requirements A/E/C firms need experienced negotiators who are familiar with government regulations

No red tape

Lots of red tape

Table 4.2 compares federal, state, and local government1 awards. Knowing the pros and cons of various types of proposals helps to prepare you for the next step in the process: deciding when, and when not, to bid on an RFP.

1 Thomas N. Sargent, P.E., DEE, PSMJ Resources consultant, Atlanta, Georgia.

30


Table 4.2 Government Awards Federal

State

Local

Competition

National/International

Regional/State

Local

Scale of Award

Larger

Varies

Varies

Teaming

Probably

Perhaps

Sometimes

Evaluation Scheme

Two-step

One- or two-step

One- or two-step

Special Items

8744, Small Business (SB), 8A, WomenOwned Business (WOB)

8744, SB, 8A, WOB

8744, SB, 8A, WOB

Reviewers

Professional

Professional

Professional/other

Presentation

Likely

Possible

Possible

Contract Types

All

All, usually Firm Fixed Price (FFP)

Usually FFP

Proposal Cost

Can be high

Midlevel

Less costly


31

To Bid or Not to Bid: The Go/No-Go Decision

5

Many A/E/C firms practice the Pavlovian approach to RFPs. Ivan Pavlov, you’ll remember, was a Russian psychologist who trained dogs to connect the sound of a bell with a reward of food. Afterward: Ring bell, dog drools, whether food appears or not. The point is, resist the temptation to drool over every RFP. One sure way to increase the hit rate of your proposals is to have an objective, efficient, orderly, rigorous system for deciding when, and when not, to propose on projects.

First, There’s Your Strategic Plan A strategic plan is your description of how you will gain competitive advantage by capitalizing on your firm’s unique capabilities. The best firms have written plans that are updated regularly and shared widely, so that everyone in the firm knows where the company is going and can make a strong contribution. 33

The plan identifies your market and what you bring to it, offers a vision of what your firm will look like in the future, and establishes identifiable, measurable interim and long-term goals. Among all the things that a viable strategic plan can do for you, it helps you focus your proposalwriting process; it’s a guide for deciding when to bid and when not to.

All Clients Are Not Created Equal As part of your strategic plan, you’ve defined the type of business you want to do and the type of clients you want to work for. Each firm has its own criteria for quality clients. These might include: > They have the type of project you do best, that’s most profitable for your firm, or where you have a competitive edge. > They’re in a market or geographic area where you want to grow. > They pay their bills on time. > They’re ethical. > They’re financially stable. > They have an efficient project management system. > They offer repeat work. > Your people and their people would enjoy working together. Considering the time and money you invest in preparing proposals, you can afford to be picky. In fact, you can’t afford not to be. If your current hit rate is far below the national average of around 35 to 40 percent, you’re not being picky enough. 34


For a nonquality client, your default decision should be “no go.”

Strategic Clients A subset of quality clients is strategic clients; that is, they’re important to the overall success of your firm because their work will support your growth strategy or some other business imperative. When you consider an RFP, consider the role this client and this project would play in your ability to achieve your strategic goals. Perhaps they’re in an industry where your firm needs experience, or this project is in a geographical area where you’d like to expand. Maybe the client is a leader in a field that you’ve targeted, and if they use your services, others in the same industry will, too. For example, if your primary strategic goal is to be recognized as a leading-edge designer in health care, but a tempting school project comes along that could bring in a lot of revenue, should you propose on the school project? Is there something about that project that would help you achieve your strategic objective? You might use a table like the following to help you think this through. First, define your strategic goal: ______________________________________ Action steps necessary to achieve the goal:

How would this project contribute?

1. 2. 3.

For a strategic client, your default decision should be “go.” To Bid or Not to Bid: The Go/No-Go Decision

35

Initial Review of an RFP: Questions to Ask Every Time When you first receive an RFP, you might have a positive “gut” reaction. Don’t trust your gut. It’s not enough to go ahead and write the proposal. Instead, define specific, objective criteria by which you evaluate every RFP. This removes emotion from the decision-making process. Principals, especially, often get emotional about RFPs from long-term clients. And everyone’s tempted to go for high-profile, high-revenue projects. The goal of your initial review is to determine, in an objective frame of mind, whether the RFP represents a good business opportunity. To do that, make a list of questions to ask yourself every time you initially review an RFP, which might include: > What do we know about their business? > Are we credible with agencies? Do we have contacts that will benefit the client? > Is geography a concern? A benefit? > Do we have a track record in managing that client’s funds or the funds of that type of client? > What are the client’s likes, dislikes, preferences? > Would teaming be required? With whom? Why? > What are our value-added statements? How could we add value to the client’s project? > Are there staffing considerations? Multiple offices? Politics? > What are the client’s hot buttons? While you review the RFP, also have your lawyer look at every element for potential liability issues. 36


Then, if, after this initial review, you decide that your firm should probably invest the time and money to pursue this business, use the more extensive questionnaire at the end of this chapter to make your final go/no-go decision.

“Wired” Projects Sometimes an RFP is wired to another firm; that is, the clients have already chosen the firm they want to work with but, for some reason, have to go through the motions of comparison. To determine when a project is wired, watch for highly specific evaluation criteria or, conversely, no evaluation criteria or criteria that have little to do with the job. Also watch for: > Whether the project is a continuation of work another firm has already done > If the scope of work was written, or looks as if it was written, by another consultant > A ridiculously short time in which to respond > An obvious political advantage on the part of another firm If a project is wired, you probably shouldn’t go for it, although sometimes an enthusiastic, knowledgeable firm can snatch work away from the front-runner. Consider the importance of the project to you, the magnitude of the proposal effort, the likelihood that you’ll get the job, and whether the client is a strategic one. And if you’re the wired firm, be aware that you might be in a vulnerable position. Sometimes staff members get complacent in that situation, and the competition tries even harder to replace you. To Bid or Not to Bid: The Go/No-Go Decision

37

Be sure to read the unwritten messages your client may be sending you, both good and bad. Good Signs

Bad Signs

They agree to meet with you to discuss the project

They won’t meet with you.

They’re open and genuinely interested in your firm.

They meet with you, but talk too much and don’t seem interested in you or your ideas.

They’re cautions about saying They’ve had previous good too much or giving you information. experience with you. They’re willing to provide evaluation criteria and are open to suggestions about changes in the selection process. RFP Warning Signs

> The RFP isn’t specific enough. The clients might be fishing for information or they don’t fully understand what they’re asking for.

> It’s too specific. They’ve already made their minds up about everything; they won’t accept your suggestions.

> It’s highly specific and too wellthought-out. The project might be wired (which is okay if it’s wired for you); or they might be planning to shop your price and/or scope of work.

38

They won’t tell you their evaluation criteria or describe their selection process. They say they want to “keep everything on an equal basis.”

What an RFP Won’t Tell You You might not be able to learn everything you need to know about a client or a project just by reading what they say in an RFP. The most valuable information typically comes through your direct relationship with your client, through your marketing intelligence, or through reading between the lines of an RFP. Here are some of the things you might not learn from an RFP: > The client’s real priorities, concerns, hot buttons. > Preconceived ideas about how they want the work done. > Makeup of the selection committee. This is important because you’ll want to match your presentation team as closely as possible to the selection committee in terms of age, gender, ethnicity, and technical background.1 To Bid or Not to Bid: The Go/No-Go Decision

> Problems with past projects; for example, if cost control was a problem last time, it’s probably a hot button now. > Problems with past A/E/Cs. > Past problems with your own firm. > Perceived differences in your strengths and weaknesses as compared with those of your competition.

While You’re at It, Check the Client’s Web Site As you review an RFP, see what you can learn about the client’s current business by studying their Web site, if they have one. Note the following: Basic information: Headquarters, location, and so on. Selection process: Find out where the person requesting the RFP fits in the organization’s hierarchy. Mission statement: This might tell you how critical the project is to their operation and their corporate strategy. News releases: Are figures available about recent or forecasted growth? Have they just completed a merger? Do they have new ways of doing business? New leadership or ownership? How’s their stock performance? Listings: Customers, board members, staff. Do you know any of these people? Is this how the client might have heard about your business?

The Final Go/No-Go Decision The “Evaluation Criteria for the Go/No Go Decision” sidebar at the end of this chapter will help you To Bid or Not to Bid: The Go/No-Go Decision

39

judge whether you should pursue an opportunity. Firms that get the highest score on this list tend to win the most contracts. Your yes answers will help you evaluate a specific RFP. Your no answers can provide a checklist of steps you might take to improve your hit rate. And if you decide not to bid on a given project, you’ll have some good background material if you should ever consider proposing on another project of this client. Benefits of Saying No One important aspect of marketing—and one benefit of a careful, objective go/no go decision process—is the ability to know when and why to turn work down. The best firms say no when the work is not in line with their focus and vision. You might discover other benefits as well: confidence that you can succeed without accepting every project; showing your team that you’re strongly committed to the firm’s vision and strategy; and savings in time, energy, and money otherwise spent seeking work you’re not likely to get.

Saying a Provisional No Maybe, after you’ve studied the RFP and evaluated it, the project as described isn’t something you want to do. You might try a number of tactics to keep you involved. > If timing is a problem, propose a change in timing. > If price is the issue, say yes but raise the price. You might price yourself out of the market for this client, but, if you do get the job, at least you’ll make a good profit. And you’ve established a higher price scale for this client in the future. > If you just want to maintain a relationship with this project and this client, offer to help in some other way, as a free service. For example, a private-sector client might appreciate your help in evaluating the proposals. You’ll maintain your relationship with the client while you gain significant marketing intelligence by reading others’ proposals. Saying a Final No in a Positive Way Suppose you’ve been through all your evaluation criteria and have decided that, for whatever reason, the

40


project is not for you. But you don’t want to hurt your chances of being asked to propose on future projects. Consider that even saying no is a marketing contact, a chance to reinforce your professionalism and maintain your relationship with the client. If possible, try not to put your no in writing. Some clients keep letters from firms that have turned them down and won’t give them another chance. Instead, say no in a well-thought-out, rehearsed phone call. Thank them for the opportunity, explain why you didn’t propose, and express interest in future projects. In explaining your turndown, don’t say you don’t have the resources to do the project. Firms constantly grow and change, and you don’t want the clients to pigeonhole you as someone who’ll never be able to do their projects. You might consider recommending the client to another firm. Then, if that firm gets the job, contact the client when the project is complete to see if the firm did a good job. If you establish strategy-based criteria for deciding which types of projects you’ll pursue, and watch for client behaviors that raise a red flag, you won’t waste time and energy pursuing business you might not win, or business that you might win and later wish you hadn’t. Instead, you’ll focus on winning projects that will be appropriate and profitable for your firm.

1

Thomas N. Sargent, P.E., DEE, PSMJ Resources consultant, Atlanta, Georgia.


41

Evaluation Criteria for the Go/No-Go Decision Answer “yes,” “no,” or “unknown” to all the yes/no questions; fill in the blanks on the others. To calculate your go/no-go decision score, total all the yes answers in sections B, C, D, E, and F. Divide by 28, the number of questions in those sections. (If some of the questions are not applicable, subtract them from the 28 value before calculating the score). The higher the score, the more attractive the project. Use the rest of the questionnaire to evaluate the competition, the proposal process, the odds that you’ll get the project, the costs for proposing, and the risks of getting the project. The more yes answers, the better.

A. Adherence to the Marketing Plan _______ Does the project meet our objectives and goals? _______ Does the project fit our target markets and services as defined in our marketing plan? _______ Is the project within our geographic reach? _______ Is the project consistent with our minimum/maximum project size objectives? _______ Does the project present us with an unusual opportunity to break into a new market? _______ Does the project offer repeat client potential?

B. Client _______ Are we known to the client? _______ Have we worked with this client before?* _______ Is this a former client with whom we have a good reputation? _______ Will we have adequate opportunity to research the client’s needs before the selection process begins? _______ Do we have an inside track with the primary decision maker? _______ Have we found in the past that this client has not been a problem for us?* _______ Is the client financially sound and responsible?* _______ Is the client’s standard professional services contract compatible with our standard agreement?*

C. Project Viability _______ Is the project adequately funded?* _______ Is this the type of project the client has successfully completed before?* 42


_______ Does the client have funds for unexpected contingencies? _______ Is the client experienced in contracting A/E/C services?* _______ Is the time schedule for completion of the overall project adequate?* _______ Is the time schedule for completion of our work adequate? _______ Does the fee correspond to the proposed scope of work? Is the fee adequate?* _______ Is everything the client is asking us to do something that we consider professional and ethical?* _______ Are there expected insurance requirements (as opposed to anything unusual that might raise a red flag)?*

D. Profit Potential _______ Can we make a reasonable profit on this job? _______ Are there any prevailing reasons to take this job even if we cannot make money?

E. Skills and Experience _______ Do we have the capability to perform the work?* _______ Do we have a solid track record and relevant experience in the project type?* _______ Is the project the right size for us in terms of our objectives, our ability to compete, and our ability to produce the work?* If we answered no to the preceding questions, or if we are weak in these areas, do we have a strategy or other credentials to offset these disadvantages? If necessary, will we be able to find a joint venture partner or association to compete effectively?

F. Location and Available Staff _______ Is our location favorable in terms of the client’s criteria? _______ Do we have the staff experienced in this type of project?* _______ Do we have the available staff to produce the work in the client’s time frame?

G. Competition _______ Who is the likely competition? _______ Do we have a chance against the competition?


43

_______ Does this project offer us an opportunity to compete at a higher level against firms with which we would like to be identified in the marketplace? _______ Can we convey a strong message? _______ What do we have that makes us uniquely qualified to do the job? To compete effectively?

H. Selection Process _______ Do we know the selection and weighting criteria? _______ Is the selection process reasonable? _______ Do we know that the job is not already wired to another firm? _______ Can we compete effectively under the conditions of the selection process? _______ Can we influence changes in the selection process?

I. Odds Calculation _______ Are the odds good for being shortlisted? _______ What are the odds for being awarded the job? (If the odds are 50 percent that we will be shortlisted, and 25 percent that we will be selected, then the overall odds are 50 percent × 25 percent, or 12.5 percent.)

J. Cost to Pursue _______ How much sales time and effort will be required in proportion to our odds of winning? _______ What are the sales costs relative to the potential profit? (Spending the profit to get the job may be sufficient reason to decide not to pursue it.)

K. Analysis of Risks Related to Acceptance of Project _______ Describe the risks to which the firm would be exposed if this project is accepted. _______ What is the dollar value of these risks, in terms of liabilities to the firm? _______ Describe the firm’s ability to control/manage the adverse consequences of these risks. * Indicates questions that are essential when you do the risk analysis in Section K.

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Your Proposal Strategy

6

Most proposals consist of a cover letter, a collection of stock resumes, some project sheets with particulars of past projects, boilerplate about the approach the firm takes to projects, and a list of names and phone numbers for references. They don’t, in fact, “propose” anything of specific interest to the client. Instead, the idea is to build a cohesive, winning strategy that will form a framework for you when you write your proposal. Your proposal then becomes a definitive statement of your understanding of the project, the client, how you intend to solve the client’s problem, and how different you are from the competition.

Opportunity versus Effort: How Big? One of your first strategic decisions is to determine how much effort to put into winning this project. Establish workable standards for your firm. You can always change the rules for a specific project, depending on your strategy. But make these deci45

sions as early as possible. Late changes make the process more expensive and time-consuming. Tables 6.1 and 6.2 suggest some guidelines. Table 6.1 Competitive Opportunity1 Large

Midlevel

Small

Represents 5% of your activity

15% of your activity

80% of your activity

New client

New or existing client

Existing client

Large complex proposal with highly developed strategic plan

Reasonable effort to plan and produce

Simple but strategic effort; assumes excellent understanding of the client and the project

Big marketing budget

Medium budget

Low production budget

Requires internal champion and proposal manager with management authority

Requires proposal manager with technical and clerical support

Requires proposal manager with clerical support

Table 6.2 Production Standards for Proposals1 Major Effort

Medium Effort

Lesser Effort

More than 100 pages

25 to 100 pages

Fewer than 25 pages

Color cover, color graphics throughout

Color cover, some color graphics

Some color

Color-copied or -printed

Color-copied or -printed

Good-quality photocopies

Custom-designed front and back covers

Custom-designed cover sheet in three-ring view binder

Generic cover

Custom binding

Three-ring binder

Comb binding

Custom, color-tabbed dividers

Custom page or tabbed dividers

Numbered-tabbed dividers

Original writing throughout; no boilerplate

Original writing for cover letter, summary, technical approach; some boilerplate

Mostly boilerplate

High cost

Moderate cost

Minimum cost

46


Your SWOT Analysis Your Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats (SWOT) analysis is the start of your winning strategy. Strengths. What specific strengths does your firm bring to this particular project? Weaknesses. Identify them objectively. How can you address weaknesses or compensate for them? Opportunities. What will you gain by working on this project? Experience with a new client? A new project to maintain relations with an existing client? Valuable marketing intelligence? Threats. Are there dangers to your organization, your reputation? For example: if you bring in a subcontractor, you risk diluting your team; if you don’t, you admit there’s a weakness in your firm. Once you have completed your SWOT analysis, analyze the other firms that are most likely to compete for this project. Naturally, your proposal won’t directly address your competitors’ weaknesses, but understanding them will suggest how best to describe your own strengths.

The IFBP Analysis The Issues, Features, Benefits, Proofs (IFBF) analysis addresses the central question: How can we convince the client that the job should be ours? As you complete the analysis, you begin to develop the themes that will thread throughout your proposal. The key is to show that for every issue the client cares about, your firm offers a feature; the feature brings a benefit that answers the issue; and you can prove it. Your Proposal Strategy

47

Most A/E/C proposals are feature-oriented. But clients don’t care about your features. They’re more interested in benefits: What do all your features mean to them? Read through a cover letter on a recent proposal. If you find more “we’s” than “you’s,” you’re probably too featureoriented.

Issues (also called hot buttons). What few, basic issues are most vitally important to the client? What needs are most important to each person on the selection team? You won’t necessarily get all this from the RFP, so you’ll need to use your marketing intelligence, too, to “get inside the client’s head.” Features. What’s unique about your firm? How does that differentiate you from your competitors? Clients really don’t care much about your features—how big you are, how many locations you have, how many architects or engineers you have and all the degrees they hold, and so on— they care only about what these features mean to them. But during your strategic thinking, you need to think about how each feature might bring some benefit to the project. Benefits. How does each of your unique features address the client’s issue? Why will the client see it as a benefit? Maybe you have offices in 22 cities. Does that mean that you’re easily accessible? That you know environmental regulations in 22 states? That the client won’t have to pay high travel costs? Proofs. Where’s the objective evidence of your features? Is it irrefutable by the competition? For example, the RFP might ask you to list the locations of your offices. Most likely, the client’s issue (their hot button) relates to accessibility: they want you close by. Or maybe they’re concerned about travel costs. Your feature might be that you have 500 offices. The benefit to the client is that one of your offices is close enough to alleviate the accessibility or cost issue. The proof: List your locations.

48


Approaching Proposal Writing with the IFBPs As you prepare to write your proposal, make sure you understand the client’s real hot buttons and what they mean. Link everything to the client’s hot buttons. Here are some guidelines: > If a feature doesn’t relate to an issue, don’t present it. The client doesn’t care, and it dilutes your message. > Give all proposal writers the list of benefits, features, and proofs. Repeat these over and over, in as many different ways as you can think of, throughout the proposal. (For instance, if the client’s hot button is concern about your knowledge of the locale, talk about your experience there, the local regulators you know, etc.) > Don’t be afraid to state the obvious. It might be obvious only to you. > Use superlatives if you can back them up. If you were really the first firm in the business to use a new technology, don’t be shy about saying so.

Typical Hot Buttons: What Clients Say and What They Mean Key issues as written in the RFP might not reflect the client’s real concern. Here are a few common issues that appear in RFPs, along with what the client actually wants to know. > They ask about your time commitment and availability of project personnel. They mean: Will you disrupt the work with regular personnel changes? Does the project team have a sense Your Proposal Strategy

49

of urgency? Are you personally committed to the project? > They ask about your performance record on schedule or budget. They mean: What methods and techniques will you use to keep this project on schedule or on budget? > They ask about your ability to estimate construction costs. They mean: What methods will you use to control costs? > They ask about design and conceptual sensitivity. They mean: Will you listen and understand what we want? Can you empathize? > They ask about your familiarity with public work. They mean: Do you know how to schmooze with people responsible for funding and/or approvals? Do you have the patience to deal with a committee full of politicians and amateurs? > They ask about your previous performance. They mean: Have you proven your capabilities on projects like this one? > They ask about qualifications of key personnel. They mean: Is the project manager personally interested in this job?

What Might Clients Object To? As you’re developing your proposal strategy, think about why clients might object to hiring your firm. Are you too big, too small? Too close, too far away? Too young, too old? Too focused, too general? Too expensive, too low-end? Is the client right? If not, what can you say in your proposal that will change their perception? If so, how 50


can you show that this is an advantage? Or what will you offer to compensate?

What Do Clients Want? In spite of the fact that clients have hot buttons specific to themselves and their projects, they’re relatively predictable in major factors they consider important when hiring an A/E/C firm. These include: > Project management capability > Reputation of the firm > Ability to show a client orientation > Visible and active principals > Good staff at reasonable rates > Innovative solutions > Qualifications of the overall team > Technical expertise > History of fiscal responsibility > Strong references

Quality as a Discriminator Quality is a discriminator. As you plan your proposal, consider how you’ll demonstrate your commitment to quality. Traditionally, the quality assurance function reports to the project manager. It should instead report to the principal in charge. This assures the independence of the function. Make this relationship clear in your proposal.1 In the text of your proposal, reaffirm your commitment to quality. Show that you have proven processes in place. Give examples of quality problems you’ve solved or averted in previous projects. Talk Your Proposal Strategy

51

about dollars you’ve saved. Provide references that address quality issues. Government agencies are apt to evaluate quality by how costs compared with estimates; whether you reached milestones; how professionally you behaved; whether your systems worked efficiently; or by some other standards described in the RFP.

Preproposal Meetings with the Client Sometimes clients schedule formal meetings for all firms interested in proposing on the project. The proposal manager should attend this meeting, along with other professionals on the project team, depending on the disciplines required and the extent of the project. During this meeting, gather information and ask questions, but otherwise keep quiet and listen. Don’t discuss your proposal strategy. Take notes, get a copy of the attendees’ list, and share all this information with the proposal team. If the client hasn’t scheduled a formal meeting, phone to set up an informal one, either in person or over the phone. This is a good opportunity to build a better relationship with the client, learn more details of the project, and “read between the lines” of the RFP. It might also be a chance to visit the project site with the client. Ask open-ended questions. Again, listen: learn everything you can about the project, the client’s experience with previous projects, and expectations for this one. You might ask for a copy of the best proposal they ever received, as well as their evaluation scorecard for the current project. 52


Preproposal Client Interview Questionnaire A. Client Need Determination What led you to our firm? How can we help you? What do you have in mind? What do you consider to be the general scope of the needs on this project? What is our overriding goal for this project? What problems have you already identified in achieving this goal?

B. Project History How did the project originate? Was this idea similar to someone else’s? Who developed the idea? Who is supportive of the idea within your organization? Who was, or is, questioning the project? Is there any opposition? Will land acquisition be required? Are there utility conflicts or concerns? Are there environmental concerns? What organizations or groups are involved or have interest in this project? What is the source of funding for this project? What is the source of funding for the professional fees? What is the status of the funding? Are there any aesthetic considerations and concerns? Has anyone been preselected to do anything? To whom will we be accountable? Are permits and/or regulating agency approvals required? What type of scheduling does your project plan anticipate?

C. Client Representative’s Involvement How did you get involved in this project? How do you feel about this project?


(continued on the next page) 53

Where have you done this before? What is your role now? What will it be? What type of rating system will be used to evaluate firms? Is a copy of the rating system available to us? Are there MBE/DBEs that you have used or recommend to be considered? Who decides who gets the contract? Where does this project fit into our organization’s long-range planning?

D. Client Expectations Have you worked with other consultants before? How do you feel about them? What type of problems did you experience with other consultants? Are you also talking with other consultants? Who? Do you have a particular type of firm in mind? Are there any especially qualified MBE/DBE firms for this project? How will you evaluate the proposals? Do you expect our firm to bid on this project? In what ways? What preferences do you have regarding the basic fee structure? What preferences do you have regarding invoicing? What time frames have been established for awarding the contract? What is the estimated dollar amount involved? How did you arrive at this value?

E. Consultant Response to Client Promise to deliver either a summary letter or a proposal:

> How many copies? > To whom addressed? > To whom delivered? > By when delivered? Commit to following up within five days to assure the proposal was received and respond to questions.

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F. Final Questions to Client How do you feel about us? Have you had any problems with our firm or any members of it? How can we correct those problems? Can you think of any reason (or concern, or doubt) that would cause you not to select our firm?

Think Strategically With your IFBP analysis and your other research in mind, study the RFP and determine the themes that should thread through your proposal. Ask: What? Why? How? Here’s an orderly, five-step process to help you focus your thinking on the issues relevant to this client and this project: 1. Review what you know: the RFP, other supporting documents, marketing intelligence. 2. Prepare a proposal outline using the RFP instructions and evaluation criteria as a guide. 3. Define what has to be addressed in the proposal. 4. Articulate how you will do it. 5. Tell why you selected that approach. Step 1: Review What You Know You’ve already studied the RFP as part of your go/no-go decision, searching for clues as to the client’s needs and desires. Look for: > Scope of work statements > Performance standard statements > Written specifications > Client-implied requirements > Data requirements > Explicit proposal instructions Your Proposal Strategy

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> Evaluation criteria and weightings > Spoken and unspoken “rules of the game” > Page count limitations > Client-preferred solutions > Previous experience with this client > Previous winning proposals for this client Step 2: Prepare a Proposal Outline Convert each point in the RFP, the scope of work, the performance standard, instructions, and evaluation criteria into sections, headings, subsections, and paragraphs. Do the following: > Follow the order of the RFP. > Address hidden or implicit instructions. > Include a response to every RFP item. > Use the same terminology as the RFP. > Address the what, why, and how of your proposal solutions. > Identify themes. > Allocate pages according to relative importance of evaluation criteria. Step 3: Define What Has to Be Addressed Look in the RFP for stated requirements: > Proposal instructions > Evaluation criteria, including weighting factors > Scope of work requirements > Performance specifications > Page count limitations > Other requirements Read between the lines and do your own research for: 56


> Weaknesses in the concept. > Weaknesses in your competitors. (Without talking directly about competitors in your proposal, you can talk about the strengths that make you a better choice.) > Unwritten requirements. > Political considerations. > Previous successful proposals for this client (if the strong points relate to your strategy for this project). Step 4: Articulate How You Will Do It It’s at this stage that your proposal becomes a game plan for this project, rather than a recounting of projects you’ve done before. The Technical How Satisfy all the technical requirements of the proposal: > Show that you understand the technical tasks as the client sees them. > Identify all the skills and disciplines required to do each task. > Present sound, proven technical solutions to perform the work. > Commit to your approach without wavering. > Include informative, pertinent technical details (but don’t get carried away with jargon). > Identify risks the client perceives and provide solutions and/or contingencies for them. The Management How Show how you’ll control project logistics: > Identify organizational and management responsibilities. Your Proposal Strategy

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> Show how you’ll organize the project through a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS). > Show your organization can mirror the client’s for seamless communications. > Show your plan and control measures for keeping the project on track. > Show that you’re prepared to deal with the unexpected. Step 5: Explain Why You Selected That Approach Detail why your method is best. For each how, give a why: > Discuss choices you considered. > Substantiate methods you know the client prefers. > Show why you chose a subconsultant for a specific task. > Identify previous experience where the method was successful. > Tell about other situations where you learned lessons that led you to propose this solution.

Proposal Themes Themes are the public face of your strategy. They’re your opportunity to turn features into benefits. They’re the reason a client will choose you. So boil down your strategic analysis into a few themes that hit the client’s hot buttons and that recur throughout your proposal. An extensive proposal for a complex project might have six or seven major themes, along with minor themes that support them. A theme can be a recurring thought, a major disclosure, an advantage you offer, a strength of your firm, a good reason for 58


A Hot Button/Theme Chart As you prepare your proposal strategy, make a table like the following, fill in the blanks, and give it to everyone involved in preparing your proposal. Hot Button 1

Hot Button 2

Hot Button 3

Feature Benefit Proof

Then prioritize the themes: A. _______________________________________________________________ B. _______________________________________________________________ C._______________________________________________________________ D._______________________________________________________________ E. _______________________________________________________________ F. _______________________________________________________________

hiring you, a unique feature that offers unique benefits, a weakness of a competitor, a different approach, a point of emphasis, or a specific viewpoint. Themes come in three types: > Response themes respond to the client’s stated and unstated needs and desires. > Attack themes undermine your competition and show your contrasting strengths. > Secret-weapon themes describe what makes you special. Using Themes You can use recurring themes to accomplish a number of purposes, to, for example: Your Proposal Strategy

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> Prove to clients that your approach is convenient; will save time, money, or effort; offers high quality; provides cost-sharing and risksharing; or reduces risk. > Educate the client about service benefits you offer; techniques and technology you use; your credibility and trustworthiness; extra efforts you make; or how you are better than your competitors. > Offer to reduce the client’s risk of choosing you through lower rates, performance guarantees, value pricing, charging nothing for the first five changes, free senior consultants’ help if needed, or other special offers or services. Working Themes into Your Proposal Themes don’t generally appear as headings of highlighted statements. Instead, they’re woven into the body of the proposal. The best places to insert them are as introductory sentences to subsections or paragraphs or as bullet points in a summary. The most important part of writing a proposal is to think strategically before you begin to put pen to paper or fingers to keyboard. Strategic thinking helps you to focus, enabling you to bring all the people and all the required elements together in a successful proposal-writing process. When you do this, everyone understands why you’re pursuing this project, how much effort you’re devoting to it, and the key themes that will dominate your proposal and convince the prospective client to choose your firm over the competition. 1

Thomas N. Sargent, P.E., DEE, PSMJ Resources consultant, Atlanta,

Georgia.

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Your Proposal Plan, Your Team, and the Process

7

Once you’ve defined the themes that will appear throughout your proposal, the next step is to devise and follow a plan for writing it. This plan brings order and structure to the process; and it is this plan for writing the proposal that wins the business. Don’t leave anything to chance.

Purpose of the Proposal Plan The process and the plan itself bring focus and direction to the proposal-writing process. Following a formal process offers your firm a number of benefits: It focuses everybody on the tactics of winning, while it confers discipline on the process. It establishes clear objectives for action and responsibility. As you follow your plan, you’ll be able to make sure you cover all the bases and meet the deadline. Finally, the process of following a strong proposal plan convinces principals, as well as internal and external team members, that you can win the business. 61

Elements of the Plan Your plan should include: > Objectives > Names of those on the proposal team > Detailed task list > List of responsibilities assigned > Schedule It seems obvious: your objective is to win the business, isn’t it? Maybe not. Sometimes a proposal is an opportunity to introduce yourself to a new client for future work. Or maybe you want to maintain contact with a current client while taking a pass on the particular project. If the proposal is wired for some other firm, you might still feel obligated to propose because the client expects it. Make sure everyone involved in preparing the proposal understands what you’re trying to accomplish.

> Budget > Measurements and benchmarks by which you’ll assess your progress and success

The Proposal Manager and the Team In an ideal world, the proposal manager is the project manager. And often it works out that way. But many project managers don’t have the skills to write proposals. And sometimes a “doing” mind-set interferes with a “selling” mind-set (though, ideally, it shouldn’t). Proposal writing is a marketing activity. The best proposal manager is someone who thinks intuitively and creatively, has no vested interest in the way projects have been done before, and understands the technical aspects of doing a project. He or she should also be a good organizer, understand marketing, recognize good writing and good design, and be able to think like a client. The proposal manager has a number of basic responsibilities: > Devises the proposal plan. > Manages the proposal effort. > Participates in selecting the proposal team. > Controls scoping decisions. > Prepares the fee budget.

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Proposal Manager’s Preproposal Checklist Use this checklist—or a similar one of your own—for planning and managing the beginning of the proposal process.

Staffing _______ Has a proposal manager been designated? _______ Does this person clearly understand his or her tasks and responsibilities? _______ Has the rest of the proposal team been selected? _______ If yes to previous question, are they available and willing to work on this proposal? _______ Do we need the assistance of upper management to get the best people?

Coordination _______ Are we ready for the RFP when it arrives? _______ Have we made arrangements to reproduce it as quickly as possible? _______ Have we consecutively numbered (by hand) the pages of the RTP (handwritten numbers) to allow us to easily reference specific pages? _______ Are we making enough copies for the proposal team, the project team, senior management, and the Red Team? _______ Have we three-hole-punched all copies? _______ Have all tasks been accounted for and assigned? _______ Have we established a graphic standard for the proposal? _______ Have page limitations been communicated to those involved with writing? _______ (If it’s a large proposal): Have we made provisions for bringing the team to one location? Or for online communications and teleconferences? _______ Do we have all the facilities and equipment needed to produce the proposal? _______ If no to the previous question, do we have access to them in reasonable time and cost?

Communicating _______ Have we decided how to communicate among the proposal team, including outside consultants? _______ Have we established an effective method to distribute information among the proposal team, including outside consultants? _______ Have we confirmed our options (if any) for communicating with the client? Your Proposal Plan, Your Team, and the Process

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If the project manager isn’t the proposal manager, obviously the two should work closely together in preparing the proposal. Should the “Champion” Serve as Proposal Manager? In many firms, an internal “champion” is assigned to each client. The champion knows everything there is to know about the client and is the external strategist on everything related to this client. Should the champion be the proposal manager? Generally speaking, no. First, you don’t want the strategist to get bogged down in details of the proposal process. In addition, the champion should serve on your Red Team, and it’s difficult to critique a proposal if you helped to write it. The champion should partner with the proposal manager, sharing all information. He or she should also continue marketing activities with the client. Who’s Responsible for the Proposal in an Alliance? Many A/E/C firms choose to form joint ventures, collaboratives, or alliances with other firms. Joint ventures and collaboratives are usually short-term relationships, often focused on a specific project. Alliances take a long-range view, each partner making a long-term commitment to work with the other. In any case, one of the firms must take the lead if the relationship is going to succeed. The lead person in the lead firm should also lead the proposal-writing process. The “lead person” is the one who knows the most about the client, the one who has (ideally) been building and nourishing a relationship with that client. The lead person should write the cover letter. 64


In many firms, the cover letter is written after the rest of the proposal, almost as an afterthought, and with predictable blandness. But the most successful firms write the cover letter first. (See the “Cover Letter” discussion in the next chapter.) From the client’s point of view, the letter represents your first and best opportunity to capture attention and win the business. From the viewpoint of the people preparing the proposal, the letter lays the strategic groundwork on which to construct the proposal. The lead person should continue to be closely involved throughout the proposals process. The Proposal Team The number of people on your team depends on the extent of the proposal and the effort you’ve decided to put into it. You’ll need, at minimum, the proposal manager, a technical editor/writer, a graphics expert, and a production coordinator. An individual can fill more than one role, but it’s a tough job, and there aren’t many people who possess all the skills necessary to write a good proposal. Besides, proposal teams benefit from brainstorming and collective thought. A group nearly always comes up with something more creative and exciting than one person working alone. Choosing the right people to work on the proposal team is almost as important as choosing the right project team. Ideally, the professional staff and the technical staff should work together. This results in a high-quality proposal with maximum commitment to the project scope, schedule, and budget. Include members of the clerical staff on your team, especially for larger proposals, to get their input on production processes and time. For smaller Your Proposal Plan, Your Team, and the Process

Who’s on the Team? A good rule of thumb: Have no fewer than two people, but no more than six, on your proposal-writing team. Avoid having just one person write all your proposals. Your proposals will all look and sound alike.

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proposals, make sure they understand what will be required.

The First Preproposal Meeting Before the proposal team meets, each internal and external member should review an annotated version of the RFP, minutes of any meetings you’ve had with the prospective clients, plans or other background materials on the project, and client contact information. In addition to that material, members should bring to the meeting old proposals that might be relevant to this one, boilerplate that will apply, and any other information they have about the client or the project. In preparation for the meeting, the proposal manager should draft a schedule and an organization chart for developing the proposal. The agenda for the first meeting should include: > Critical issues in the strategy and preparation of the proposal > Schedule > Assignment of team members to client contacts, research, responsibility for attending preproposal conference with the client, tasks in the proposal-preparation process > Questions for the preproposal conference > List of other needs in the process (clerical assistance, for example) Assigning Tasks Usually you can do this during the first meeting. For a very complex proposal, the proposal manager might discuss the project with each individual. 66


The proposal manager should detail to members the project budget and level of effort, then give them time to think about their assigned tasks and report on how they intend to handle them. Team members should be encouraged to think in terms of solutions to problems. Each team member’s approach should include specific deadlines and allow enough time to prepare the proposal document. It’s a good idea for the project manager to challenge people on their estimate of the hours and other resources needed to complete each task: people tend to overestimate at first. A good project manager checks progress regularly and is prepared to modify assignments that fall behind schedule. He or she also creates an environment where the work continues, even if the proposal manager isn’t there.

Schedule The extent of the schedule depends on the elaborateness of the proposal. Here are some guidelines for its establishment: > Work backward from the due date to the Red Team review (the Red Team review is discussed later in this book). Allow a week for making changes they suggest. > Work backward from the Red Team review to schedule work on the proposal. Allow the Red Team a week to review the proposal. > If the project is complex, create a chart that includes each task, the person assigned to each task, and the deadline for each task to be complete. Your Proposal Plan, Your Team, and the Process

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The “War Room” Designate a space devoted to the proposal, the “war room.” This could be as big as a conference room or as small as a corner in someone’s office. Give some thought to security; this should be a private area with limited access, where you collect the material and meet to brainstorm. Make an oversized copy of your task chart and post it on the wall in the war room. That enables team members to quickly see how all the pieces of the project relate to all the other pieces. Include a place for them to check off completed tasks.

Storyboarding To prepare their proposals, some firms use a technique borrowed from the movies, called storyboarding. This means you sketch out the information that will appear on each page of the proposal, spread the pages out (preferably, tape them to a wall), and update them as you fill in the information. The storyboard ensures that your proposal tells a coherent story and that all the pieces fit together and flow logically. As you create your storyboard, you’ll be able to identify any gaps in the proposal. The storyboard also allows you to: > Walk people through the proposal. > Use it to mark your progress. > See, at a glance, the image your proposal will create for the client. Some tips on storyboarding1: > Do it in hard copy, not electronically. > Use stick-on notes to make comments on the drafts. 68


1

Use Your Intranet

Doing so will save hours and paperwork, especially if team members are in different locations. Use it to:

> Post schedules, calendars, assigned responsibilities, deadlines. > Post forms or templates to collect information. (On a large federal project, use SF 254/255.)

> Create chat rooms for real-time discussions. > Create electronic view rooms, so all team members can follow the proposal progress.

> Exchange drawings between offices. Use your work authorization and staff planning software to help create your scoping and fee strategies. You need the same data on the operations side as you need to calculate the fee. Once you’ve thought through the work process and made initial decisions about timing and staffing, ask what-if questions (for example: What if we spent more time on this element, less on that? What if we use different personnel on different levels?). As you come up with a proposal fee, you’ve already done the strategic thinking that becomes the basis for negotiating the fee with the client once you’ve got the job. 1

Pat Rosenzweig, Marketing Principal: OWP&P, Chicago and Phoenix.

> Limit the number of people who can actually update the drafts. Today, more and more often, clients specify the maximum number of pages you may include in your proposal. When this is the case, allot space according to the weight you expect each section to carry in the scoring process. Construct your storyboard accordingly. 2

Proposals in a Hurry

The prior discussion about proposals assumes you will have three or four weeks, or even more, to prepare your proposal. But what if you have only two or three days? The secret is to be prepared. How? Your Proposal Plan, Your Team, and the Process

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> Encourage clients to send RFPs directly to the person in charge of writing proposals, so they don’t end up sitting in someone else’s in-box. > Create an efficient proposal-writing system. > Encourage proposal writers to use downtime (when they’re not working on a specific proposal) to gather information (for example, research past projects to determine what worked and what didn’t) and to research industry trends. > Make sure everyone understands the firm’s strategic focus and its differentiators, so you already know which themes to emphasize. > Know your clients and your markets so well that you already understand the likely requirements, questions, and hot buttons. > Have a marketing team (not a designer or project manager, for example) write the proposal. They’re more comfortable with the writing process and will be able to do it faster. But insist that other professionals provide input. > Design a standard format that you can customize. > No matter how fast you have to work, take care to address the client’s stated—and unstated— needs in the RFP and to discuss your differentiators and how you bring value to that specific project.

Brainstorming: A Strategy Planning Tool As mentioned earlier, it’s preferable to work with a team to develop your overall proposal strategy, because one person working alone can easily miss an 70


opportunity or a key strategy. Decision-making and thought-stimulating tools, such as brainstorming, can help get the most out of group participation. Brainstorming generates numerous ideas about a specific problem or situation. If you follow a few basic rules, you’ll have a productive session. > Gather the team for the specific purpose of brainstorming. > Define the goal of the session. > Through a brief discussion, make sure everyone understands the issue. > Have each person offer an idea. Either go around the table so that each person speaks in turn (anyone who doesn’t have an idea can “pass”) or encourage people to introduce ideas as they think of them. Continue until no one has anything new to add. > Don’t judge, evaluate, or discuss ideas. The point is to collect as many ideas as possible. > Assign one person to record all the ideas on a flip chart. > After the flow of ideas has ceased, group similar ideas together on the flip chart. > Prioritize ideas. > Discuss pros and cons of each idea, then decide which merit follow-up. > Assign members to research ideas further, if necessary. > Set a date to reconvene. > Reconvene, decide what action you will take; make additional assignments as necessary. The discussion in this chapter assumed a firm large enough to support various staff members, each Your Proposal Plan, Your Team, and the Process

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with his or her separate roles in the proposal-writing process. But what if your firm is small, and you’re the principal-designer-writer-graphics-production person with, if you’re lucky, some clerical help? That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t devise a workable plan and a schedule for yourself. Regardless of the size of your firm, use the suggestions in this chapter to develop guidelines for how you’ll approach all proposals. You won’t always have as much time as you’d like to prepare a proposal (is there ever enough time?), but having a system that everyone understands will help you make better use of the time you do have.

1


2

Tamara Goff, Hnedak Bobo Group.

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Proposal Elements

P a r t II

Up Front: Cover Letter, Table of Contents, Executive Summary

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As you write your proposal, make maximum use of your marketing intelligence to target your discussion specifically to this particular client and to these particular hot buttons. Tailor every item of your response, and don’t present information that’s unrelated to the requirement. > Know your major themes and say them in all the ways you can think of. Your purpose is to guide your client’s perceptions. > Don’t bulk up your proposal with unnecessary boilerplate. Clients don’t necessarily perceive size as the sign of a good proposal. > Follow the order of the RFP, even if it doesn’t seem to make sense. (If you’re writing a government proposal, following the RFP is generally mandatory.)

The Cover Letter Your cover letter may be the most important part of your proposal. Everyone on the selection committee 75

Elements of a Complete Proposal Whether you’re writing a major, complex proposal or a simple one with only a few pages, and whether you’re submitting on paper or electronically, the basic elements are the same:

> Cover letter > Table of contents > Executive summary > The project team résumés

> Scope and approach > Schedule and budget

> Fee > Related experience > SF 254 and 255 > Appendix > Management proposal (sometimes required)

will probably flip through your proposal, then at least skim your cover letter, so keep in mind that in 20 seconds to one minute, they’ll form their first impression about your firm—on the basis of your proposal’s physical appearance and the cover letter. Boring, Ineffective Cover Letters Most cover letters are alike. They do nothing to distinguish one proposal from another. That’s because most proposal writers don’t think the cover letter is important; they write it last, and without much thought. The following trite phrases are common in typical cover letters. These sentiments waste your space and the client’s time. “We’re pleased to submit this proposal.” “We are very interested . . .” “The project is very important to us.” “We are confident . . .” “This proposal is fully responsive to the RFP.” “We’re excited about the opportunity to do the work.” “We look forward to your favorable consideration.” “We’re uniquely qualified.” “Call us if you have any questions.” If all those statements weren’t true, you shouldn’t be submitting the proposal in the first place. But they’re probably just as true for your competitors as they are for you. Besides, when you take this approach, you’re talking about you. Clients want to hear about them and their project.

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Make Your Cover Letters Stand Out Instead, take a bold, aggressive stance. Follow these guidelines: > Address client “hot buttons” immediately. > Treat the cover letter as a “mini” executive summary. > Make it personal to the client and specific to the project.

Cover Letter First Draft your cover letter before you create the proposal. Identifying the client’s hot buttons and benefits up front will help you organize your proposal around those selling points.

> Keep it short. Aim for one page—certainly not more than two full pages. > Make it readable: use bullets to highlight key points. > Don’t let your lawyer or your insurer write the cover letter. They throw cold water on good ideas. > Clients (like everybody else) like to read about themselves. Include more “you” and “your” than “us” and “our.” > Use present-tense, action-oriented verbs, short sentences, and a conversational tone. > Bind your cover letter into the proposal document. It’s part of your overall strategy to get the business. You can’t afford to have it go astray. Parts of the Letter Name and Address While you’re putting the client’s name and address at the top of your letter, you might want to include the phone number(s) and e-mail address (fax, too, if you’re likely to use it). Then, when you follow up about the proposal, all the contact information will be right in front of you. Up Front: Cover Letter, Table of Contents, Executive Summary

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Use Your Letterhead Print your cover letter on your letterhead. This reinforces your name and logo in the client’s mind. It also provides an easy reference for contact information.

Regards or Subject Line Use this to set your proposal apart immediately. Hit one of the client’s hot buttons. If you were a client, which subject line would grab your attention? > RFP No. NS100003: New County Courthouse > 10 Percent Reduction in Construction Costs They already know their RFP number and the name of the project. Show them something they don’t know. Encourage them to keep reading. Of course, your whole letter won’t be only about cost reduction. This is a tactic to capture their attention. Now you’re talking about what’s important to them. Salutation Should you write, “Dear Joe” or “Dear Mr. Jones”? Generally speaking, if you don’t know the person well enough to use his or her first name, you have no business submitting the proposal. If you don’t know any of your potential clients well enough to use their first names, you should be doing more marketing. Sometimes, though, you might be on a first-name basis with the person to whom the proposal is addressed, but the proposal process is very formal or the proposal will reviewed by someone you don’t know. You might sense that your client will be uncomfortable with an informal greeting. And some A/E/C firms think it’s disrespectful to address anyone informally in a proposal. Use your judgment and your marketing intelligence. Body of the Letter Follow the PSMJ Resources formula for a winning cover letter: Answer what, how, why, when.

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What. Start with a paragraph showing that you understand their key issues and that your priority is to address those issues. How. Next talk about how you will solve the specific problem. This shows, or reemphasizes, the benefit from your approach. Refer to proposal page numbers that offer more information. A selection committee member who has a favorite hot button will immediately turn to that page. You’ve captured his or her attention; you have him or her reading into the proposal. Why. Promise more benefits—“How you will benefit from this approach” or “What you will get from this plan.” Use bullets, each presenting a new benefit and referring to a page in the proposal. When. Demonstrate your enthusiasm, that you’re ready to get started. Say you’ve set aside a specific week in which to meet if you are selected for an interview. Or say you’ve scheduled a design team kick-off meeting for a certain date. Promise to call within a short, specific time to go over details and to ask if they need more information (then do it). Thank them for considering you. Take the “Us” Out How do you take the “us” out of your cover letter? Look at this example: We believe our commitment is clearly exhibited in the strength of our integrated approach. I have personally charged John Doe, vice president, Process and Industrial Group, with line management responsibility for developing Acme’s on-site organization and for closely monitoring our progress. Up Front: Cover Letter, Table of Contents, Executive Summary

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Sample Cover Letters 1

Outstanding Letter

January 10, 2003 Elizabeth Hoover, CEO The Client Anchor Plaza Parkway Anywhere, USA 12345 Re: Open the Barnard School before August 16, 2004, by choosing Outstanding Design Firm Dear Elizabeth: Anywhere needs to have the Barnard School ready for the new academic year. Our plan ensures that the school will become fully operational before August 16, 2004. Meeting your needs: Outstanding will place a design team on-site with your staff, full-time. The team will include (names and positions). (See page 23 of this proposal.) What you will get from this plan: > You will save on construction materials. Our selection process consistently places school costs 12 percent below the county average per square foot. (See page 28.) > The children will benefit. In schools we design, children’s grades typically increase by 4 percent. (See page 5.) > Your school board will know exactly what they’ll spend. Before the budget approval meeting, we will tell them the maximum costs for the project. (See page 33.) In the event that you decide to interview us, we’ve set aside the week of March 3 to meet with you. In the meantime, I’ll phone in two weeks to see if you have any questions about our proposal. Thank you for considering Outstanding Design Firm to be part of your team. Sincerely, John Williams Principal P.S. You can reach me on my cell phone at 123-456-7890, or at my private e-mail [email protected]. 1

Thanks to Barry Yoakum, PSMJ Resources consultant, for the original version of this proposal letter, which appeared in PSMJ Best Practices, November 2000.

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Also-Ran Letter January 10, 2003 Elizabeth Hoover, CEO The Client Anchor Plaza Parkway Anywhere, USA 12345 Re: RFP 872-6810 Dear Miss Hoover, We are pleased to submit this proposal for the construction of the Barnard School. Also-Ran Design is uniquely qualified to work on projects of this type, and we’re excited about the opportunity to work with you. In the past few years, we’ve focused on several elementary schools in this part of the state, and we’ve gained a great deal of experience in completing such projects on time and within budget. Our proposal is enclosed. It’s fully responsive to your RFP. We appreciate your consideration of our proposal, and we look forward to talking about it with you further. Sincerely, George Barnes Principal Also-Ran Design


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Now look at this version: Your assurance of a committed team comes from dedication to a strong, integrated approach. Your project will directly benefit from the personal attention of John Doe, vice president of our Process and Industrial Group. John will provide you with line management responsibility, developing an on-site organization to provide you with quality feedback on the progress of your project.

Study a few of your recent cover letters. Add up how many times “you” appeared versus “we.” Aim for a five-to-one ratio (or better). The Signature Some clients are impressed with imaginative, gutsy signatures, like: “Yours, in the interest of cost control” or “Let’s get rolling” or “Budgetingly yours” or “In the spirit of service.” Other clients find those too cute and prefer an old standby like, “Yours truly” or “Sincerely.” Know your client and use your judgment. The letter should be signed by the project manager or another lead person, who will take responsibility for the project. This person should sign in a bold, clear signature to reflect his or her pride in what the firm has to offer. The Postscript Almost everyone—including those who only skim the letter—will read a P.S. It’s the most-read part of any letter. (The next time you get a direct marketing piece in the mail, see if you can prevent your eyes from being drawn to that P.S.) You might use the P.S. to give the principal’s home phone, cellular phone, or pager numbers. By 82


doing this, you’re reemphasizing your enthusiasm for the project. And you’re letting the reader know that you’re available at all times for his or her convenience.

Table of Contents If your proposal is more than 10 pages long, you need a table of contents to guide reviewers through it. > Keep it short and concise. If the table of contents goes more than one page, you probably have too many separate items in your proposal. Consolidate them. > Organize the material so the logic is obvious, and follow that logic throughout the proposal. As you write the proposal, start each new major subject on a new page. The table of contents should indicate the section number, section title, and the page number where each item can be found. Avoid complicated numbering systems. Too many sections, subsections, and sub-subsections confuse and alienate readers. Include the appendix in your table of contents, listing each item and its page number. In large proposals, supplement the table of contents with an index at the back of the book.

Executive Summary An executive summary is not always a requirement. For small projects, you might incorporate it into your cover letter. For most medium to large projects, the summary should consolidate all the important aspects of the proposal. In writing your executive summary, aim for two pages or fewer, certainly no more than four. Think of Up Front: Cover Letter, Table of Contents, Executive Summary

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this element as a stand-alone, condensed version of your proposal, designed for key decision makers who might not have time to read the entire proposal. Assume you’re explaining it to a nontechnical, “bigpicture” person. Consider having the first draft be written by the client “champion,” a top strategist, or someone else who understands the big picture.1 (Of course, the summary will also help selection team members prepare to read your proposal. Include all major points, so they’ll find no surprises in the body of the proposal.) Be aware that in multiphase selection processes, some proposals are eliminated on the first reading by individuals who study the entire proposals, in which case reviewers in the next phase read only the executive summary. The executive summary is your proposal in miniature. It should include: > Introduction: the purpose and scope of the proposal > Your understanding of the project > The approach you will take > The results your approach will produce As you write the summary, touch on all the themes woven into your proposal, but don’t try to include the technical details. Here, too, use presenttense, active verbs. Address the top hot buttons. Don’t use boilerplate. Convey a positive attitude, but not so upbeat that you give the impression of being cocky. Even though the executive summary might be used as a stand-alone document, cross-reference page numbers where the reviewer can find further detail on each key point. This leads executives with 84


Executive Summary Checklist Use this checklist to prepare the outline for, or review the draft of, your executive summary. Tailor it to each RFP; avoid inappropriate or unnecessary items; and focus on the client issues and the benefits of your approach. This is a lot to cover in one or two pages, so be direct and concise. Does your executive summary: ❑ Adequately summarize the problem to be solved? ❑ Touch the client’s hot buttons? ❑ Outline your technical solution? ❑ Show how your solution addresses the key technical requirements? ❑ Address key alternative approaches? ❑ Reflect your understanding of the client’s key issues, both technical and managerial? ❑ Summarize the important areas of the proposal? ❑ Describe the project deliverables and the expected end result? ❑ Introduce the team and present the roles, responsibilities, and suitability of each team member for his or her assigned role? ❑ Show that you have the right project team organization and personnel? ❑ Present a realistic project plan? ❑ Identify the risk areas and describe how you will deal with, minimize, or eliminate them? ❑ Communicate your firm’s commitment to the project and the client? ❑ Show the benefits of this project to the client’s other projects and their short-term and long-term business objectives? ❑ Show your capability and capacity to carry out the work? ❑ Reference the themes you address in the proposal? ❑ Reference the client’s criteria for evaluation? ❑ Reference page numbers? ❑ Present an attractive, easy-to-read appearance?


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particular hot buttons directly into the body of the proposal. For example: In order to deal quickly and effectively with your project, ACME Engineers has assembled a highly specialized team of recognized experts. This group previously cooperated on six projects with the same high-profile and delicate funding issues as you now face. The team is lead by John Doe, a veteran project manager who recently won an award for his outstanding contributions to environmental remediation projects just like this one. (See pages 5–9.)

The up-front portion of your proposal will determine whether your prospective clients are sufficiently impressed to read the rest. Therefore, it has to be part marketing and part sales. It’s your opportunity to show clients that you understand their needs better than anybody else, and to convince them that only you can help them meet those needs. To do that, the cover letter and executive summary must be as creative and focused as the project itself.

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Résumés

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Clients want brief résumés tailored to the specific job at hand. The résumés in your proposal are a marketing tool. They’re an opportunity for you to convince clients that your team is exactly right for the job. You do this by focusing on how your team’s qualifications will benefit the client. As you write, pretend you’re the client: What impression would this information leave with you?

Focus on Capabilities, Not Experience Clients don’t really care about each individual’s experience (“I worked as project manager on this project.”). They want to know his or her capabilities (“As project manager, I learned these lessons and now I bring these benefits to you.”) Compare these two examples: Mr. Smith was project architect on the Fairfield Apartments and Hillside housing development. Mr. Smith is a recognized expert in state and federal housing codes and requirements. In both the 87

Fairfield Apartments and the Hillside development, he was instrumental in obtaining the same 20 percent density increases you seek on this project.

Which Mr. Smith sounds like the person a client would want to work with? Throw out the boilerplate résumés. Rebuild them to highlight the capabilities that each person brings to this specific project. When you do this, each résumé becomes a marketing statement, one more reason that the client should hire your team for this project.

Writing Résumés It’s a good idea to restrict résumés to one page each. This forces you to be concise, and encourages readers to peruse each one all the way through. Other guidelines to follow include: > Make all résumés in a proposal the same length. If one is shorter than the others, reviewers wonder what’s wrong with that person. > List only current awards, articles published, and so on. Anything more than five years old is too old. > Describe four or five projects on each résumé and explain how they’re relevant to this project. Show how the person met a challenge similar to one in this project, what value-added services he or she provided, how he or she contributed to the strength of the team. A Method for Writing Résumés A good résumé has five basic components. > Introduction > Project anecdotes 88

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> Testimonials > References > Conclusions With precise writing and judicious design, you can fit all this information onto one page. (By the way, if a client insists on receiving full résumés of team members, you could write résumés in this abbreviated way for the body of your proposal, then include the full résumés in the appendix.) > Format items in bulleted lists to save space and invite readership.

Be Selective As you write your résumés, resist the urge to tell everything about everybody on your team. Think like the clients. Which information will hit their hot buttons?

> Use your team members’ names and titles as the headline for the page. Introduction (One Paragraph) Use an assertive tone and active verbs. Describe your team member’s past relevant experience in a general way (you don’t need all the dates) and his or her current responsibilities within the firm. There’s no need to list all his or her registration numbers or professional affiliations. Include only what’s relevant to the project. For example, mention community service only if the client asks for it or if you know it to be a hot button. Project Anecdotes Tell a story about a relevant project, one that offers insight to your team members’ capabilities, character, and work habits. Clients will infer that they can expect the same. If you’re describing more than one project, put the most recent first. Keep the description to one or two short sentences. This is a good place to use bulleted lists. Résumés

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Testimonials Testimonials are powerful marketing tools. Any statement, written or spoken, that can be used to show how other clients feel about your team member, is an acceptable testimonial. Request one from every client. (Most clients won’t mind if you offer to write it yourself. If they’re happy with the project, they’re happy to sign your testimonial.) The best testimonials discuss some specific way in which your team member contributed to the project’s success. Don’t use the whole letter; pull out the most telling sections. It’s effective to have one testimonial for each anecdote, but in any case, the more you can fit, the better. You might also consider including a quotation from your team member. Such quotations give clients some insight into how your team will operate on the job. For example: When you choose clients as references . . . try to match the personality of the prospective client with the personality of the referral. If the potential client is detail-oriented, he or she will be frustrated talking with a bigpicture type and might feel that he or she can’t get his or her questions answered. The big-picture type could be equally frustrated with details when he or she has a broader vision.

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“Your team becomes as important to you as your family (well, almost).” “It’s been great to see their major expansion program come to life.” “Consulting is not an 8-to-5 job.” “This team has worked together for so long that we’ve begun to anticipate each other’s moves.” “Each project is like a challenging game of chess.” References Make the connection with other clients immediate by inserting references directly into the résumés. Be sure to explain why each person should be contacted. Give the reference’s phone number (with permission, of course). Résumés

Résumé-Tailoring Questionnaire Use these topics to prompt yourself and others to target your résumés to the needs of the specific project.

> The position for which you are being proposed. > The skills you bring to this position. > Challenges you’ve met that demonstrate your capability and technical competence to perform in the proposed position.

> Projects you’ve served on that are relevant to this project. How they are relevant.

> Value-added services you’ve provided on projects that are relevant to this one; for example, cost savings, innovations, management techniques, and the like.

> Recent performance awards or recognition received on projects you’ve worked on (quality, safety, etc.). Describe your involvement in earning these awards.

> Your experience being a team player; your involvement in team building; strengths you bring to the team concept. Illustrate all by your experience on specific projects.

> Three reasons why you should be the preferred candidate for this position, assuming your competition has the same technical skills.

Conclusion Conclude by describing your team member’s fitness for this position on this project, and his or her availability. Should You Include Photographs of Your Team Members? This isn’t always an easy question to answer, because it depends on your market research and how well you know the client. If the client knows you well, consider including the photographs. If you’ve worked for them before, and enjoy a good relationship, a team member’s familiar face will make a positive connection. Résumés

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But when in doubt, leave photos out. If you don’t know the selection team well, you don’t know what prejudices they might bring to their deliberations. You don’t want your proposal to be eliminated because someone on the team doesn’t like your hairstyle, your glasses, or your moustache, or, more serious, your gender or ethnicity. If you decide to use photos, you might try an approach other than headshots. Show people in a work setting, or maybe even with their families or involved in their hobbies, and include a one-sentence description highlighting an interesting tidbit about the person (“Ken teaches engineering part-time and jogs to keep fit.”)

Draw Attention to Your Team Experience A matrix is an easy-to-understand (and space-saving) way to display your team’s accumulated experience. On one axis, list the disciplines required for this project; on the other, list your team members’ names and titles, and put checkmarks in the appropriate boxes opposite the disciplines. If some of your key people are subconsultants, don’t make that distinction here. The point is to reinforce the perception of a unified team. Introduce the Extended Team Many A/E/C firms use the services of other consultants, subcontractors, or joint venture partners, combining parties who have complementary skills or resources. Under the heading of “Extended Team,” describe the other firms that will be involved in the work. 92

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Give each firm a single-page profile. Don’t name the individuals within the firms: the résumés of their key individuals, if any, should appear with your own, in the same one-page format. Clients don’t really care how many firms are working together. They just want the job done with the least amount of hassle. Complexity will make them nervous, so your proposal should show a cohesive, focused team, whose skills complement each other, in a seamless organization. Make sure the client understands the strategic role you, as well as every other firm, will play. Otherwise, the client will wonder why they shouldn’t hire the other firms directly, instead of working through you. You can counteract this reaction in three ways, all of which should be reflected in how you construct the proposal. First, show the truly distinct and valuable contribution that you, and only you, can make. Focus the proposal on your particular capabilities with respect to this specific project. Generic capabilities won’t help. If local presence is your only unique capability, the client will resent your fee, and negotiations will be much more difficult. Make the association with the other firms appear so seamless, and the team so integrated, that it’s the obvious solution. All résumés should look the same; the project organizational chart should mention individuals, not firms. Finally, set up your role as “master coordinator” of a group of talented, but disconnected, experts. Focus on your project management capabilities. The project organization chart should reflect the various firms, all working through you to connect with the client, approval agencies, funding sources, and so on. Résumés

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Lay Out Project Team Organization Use a graphic project organization chart to most clearly identify your project team and how all the members will work together. Proposals usually show a tree diagram, with the client at the top, followed by the project manager, then all the team members. Consider your client, the project, your firm, and your team: maybe you can think of a more creative way to present this information.

Avoid Common Errors in Proposing a Project Team A/E/C firms sometimes make mistakes when they put together a project team, which can discourage clients from hiring them or cause problems later as they try to complete the project. The most common are these: > The proposed project manager doesn’t have a rapport with clients. > The proposed project manager doesn’t make a good impression. > The organization chart is too complex. > The role of the principal in charge is unclear. > Biographies are not tailored to the client’s needs. > The proposing firm hasn’t done a reference check on subcontractors. When it comes to describing your team’s experience, the challenge is to provide prospective clients with just the information they need, and no more, and in a format that makes it easy for them to find what they’re looking for. Also, it’s essential to assure 94

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clients that, no matter how many people or how many firms will be involved on their project, everyone will work together as a team. The unified way in which you present the proposal can provide this reassurance.

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Scope of Services and Approach

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Clients care more about what you can do for them than what you’ve done for somebody else. Explain the specific tactics you’ll use on the project, paying particular attention to the client’s hot buttons. Most of the problems experienced during a project can be traced directly back to the scope of services, so a well-defined scope is key, not only to winning the project but to doing it as well. The description of the scope of services has three main elements: > Statement of understanding > Detailed scope of services > Project approach

Statement of Understanding Show that you understand what the client wants. Focus on two to four very specific needs or desires of the client. (“Replace the old pumping station with a new one sized to handle current and future project flow.” Or, “Salvage the existing station for future use.”) 97

> Avoid generic statements. (“The client desires a high-quality project delivered on time and within budget.”) Be Original When you write the Statement of Understanding and the Project Approach, it is no time to use boilerplate. Take an aggressive leadership stance, writing as if you have the project already (for example: “We have determined that these projects fall into three categories…” or “Our immediate focus upon starting with the project is…”). Show your knowledge of the issues. Hit the hot buttons. Describe what makes your approach different and better.

> Briefly state how you’ll fulfill the needs of the project.

Detailed Scope of Services Describe the specific tasks you’ll perform. This is critical, since, in many cases, the scope becomes a portion of the final contract. Clearly outline, step by step, how you intend to do this project. Don’t put “experience”-related language in this part of your proposal. Use a Work Breakdown Structure to organize a large, complex, overall project into logical work packages, and then into detailed task lists. You can assemble the packages on the basis of functionality, phase of the project, or any other basis that makes sense in this project. The Work Plan A good work plan doesn’t have a lot of text. Rather, it spells out the details of your approach in lists, diagrams, budgets, schedules, and brief comments. It shows: > What needs to be done, through the project definition and Work Breakdown Structure. > When it needs to be done, through the schedule. > Who is responsible, through a project organization chart. > How much it will cost, through the project budget. > How quality will be assured, through a qualitycontrol plan.

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Examples of work packages might include, for environmental work, “monitoring well installation” or “data validation.” For design work, a package might be “conceptual design” (phase-based package) or “preliminary sewer design” (phase- and functionbased package) or “traffic analysis” (function-based package). Work packages can be based on your project approach or they can respond directly to task lists or deliverables outlined in the RFP . Do whatever will make the most sense to the client. Once you divide the overall project into logical work packages, list each item required in that portion of the project. Briefly describe the work packages and tasks (don’t lose the client in details), but cite enough specifics so that both you and the client are clear on the services included. For example, if you’re proposing on a feasibility study, you don’t have to say that the report will contain a table of contents, but specify that you’ll develop three alternatives. Use bullet points, not numbers. Numbers could be misconstrued as suggesting priorities. And be sure to emphasize services that you provide the client free of charge. This doesn’t mean you’re giving away the store. It means that you can make marketing points by highlighting items you typically provide on any project. Make this list as long as possible. For example, you might include coordination of all subcontractors, chairing of meetings, or preparation and distribution of meeting minutes.

Project Approach Tell how you’ll fulfill the client’s needs as expressed in the statement of understanding. While the scope Scope of Services and Approach

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of services describes what you’ll do, the project approach describes how you’ll do it. Structure the approach so that it matches the statement of understanding paragraph for paragraph. You might use corresponding numbers in each section to reinforce this format. Be specific. If the statement of understanding requires you to work with citizen groups, say something like, “Three meetings with ABC citizen’s group will be held at the work-plan, preliminary, and final report stages.” Approach Checklist Use this checklist as you describe your approach: > Relate the client’s expectations to the scope of work. > Unfold the approach as a series of overlays, adding layers of detail and complexity as you go. > Justify the work plan as the most logical, effective, economical way to proceed. > Clearly state the performance objectives. > Use a Work Breakdown Structure to graphically illustrate your approach. > Satisfy every requirement before you begin to offer exceptions or options. Adding Optional Services If you have other ideas that would add value, offer them as options; that is, elements not required by the RFP but items that you think would enhance the project. If you think the client really doesn’t understand what they’re asking for, point out their options in your proposal. For example, if your marketing intel100


ligence shows your client doesn’t have the in-house capability to administer or inspect this type of project, offer to do it as an optional service. Make sure the client understands that these are optional. Otherwise, either they’ll assume the service is included in your base fee or they’ll dismiss an all-inclusive fee as too expensive. (“The Caldwell Company might also want to consider the following services, which are optionally available…,” followed by a bulleted list.) When Scope Is Difficult to Define Sometimes you don’t have enough information to write an aggressive, coordinated proposal. Maybe you’re working through a prime consultant or through an environmental firm heading into a project with an uncertain outcome. Or perhaps the project isn’t yet at the stage where you can define exactly what needs to be done. In this case, there are three ways to write a quality proposal and protect yourself at the same time: > Create likely scenarios. Make clearly defined assumptions about what needs to be done. Lay out a likely scenario and follow it through to its logical conclusion. Make it clear that you will change the proposal if the client chooses a different scope of work. > Propose a preliminary project. Its objective is to define the larger project. This approach gives the client the opportunity to wait to define the ultimate project until preliminary work is complete. Taking this leadership role sets you apart from competitors. But it’s risky, because some clients might resent the intrusion. Good clients will welcome the advice. Scope of Services and Approach

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> Develop a mini-scope. Break typical tasks into “menu items” that the client can choose from. List each service, with a price range. For example: zoning, site analysis, marketing needs, funding, cost analysis, existing conditions, construction estimate, or environmental impact. The client can choose the necessary services. Thus, the client is responsible for scope. And down the road, if more services are required, it’s obvious who made the decision to leave them out in the first place. Other ways to avoid vagueness in scope include: > Describe the deliverables for each step of the project. > Show how the deliverables satisfy the performance objectives. > State assumptions, to weed out vagueness and ambiguity. > Justify your technical assertions. > Focus on the project at hand, and be specific. > Identify potential problems that you’ve seen in the RFP. The Concept of Lowest Credible Scope Don’t give clients a Cadillac if they ask for a Ford. Pay attention to the RFP. In writing the Lowest Credible Scope (LCS), you address all your client’s issues, identify the lowest-cost method of solving the problem, and price only the activities required to solve the problem. LCS should be used to show your knowledge, provide your client with a true baseline scope, or provide you with a marketing advantage. It should not be used to omit any task you believe to be essen102


Common Errors in Preparing the Scope of Services

> Omitting assumptions. Clearly define any assumptions you’ve made while preparing the scope of services.

> Making the scope too vague. This is the leading contributor to miscommunication between A/E/C firms and clients. Include all pertinent facts you’ve uncovered in your research, as well as project limits, assumptions, descriptive items you might have been expected to include but didn’t, and any other limiting parameters.

> Failing to identify who provides what. Clarify what information will be provided by you, the client, outside agencies, and consultants not under your control.

> Failing to address all items in the RFP. Before you submit the proposal, double-check it against the RFP to make sure you’ve addressed everything.

tial, lowball the price in hopes of making it up on change fees, or deceive the customer on any subject for any reason. As you prepare an LCS proposal, define project objectives and outline the LCS. Have one person write the scope and have someone else, who’s not involved in the project, review it. Tell the client you’ve proposed a “baseline” or “most economic” scope. Reduce the Scope, Not the Price Where cost is a hot button, consider lowering the cost by proposing a different scope. The two keys to bidding an alternative scope are knowing the difference between what the client wants and what they need, and being sure that the client will accept something different. For this, you need good marketing intelligence. To reduce scope, you might suggest: a limited number of design alternatives, preengineered package systems, or a reduced level of detail in drawings. Scope of Services and Approach

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You might also propose that the client contract directly for surveying, geotech, and other tasks; that some design be done by the contractor, based on your performance specs and subject to your review; or that the client print the final documents. The Scope of Services and the Approach provide a plan for the project. Being thorough here increases the likelihood that the project will go well. Thoroughness requires imagination: you must envision every step, and take into account the most likely what-if scenarios. Regard this section of the proposal as another opportunity to show that you understand the clients and the project. Help them envision what it will be like (what a joy it will be) to work with your firm.

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Schedule, Budget, and Fee

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Clients measure the success of projects on the basis of schedule, budget, and deliverables. The promise you didn’t keep, the communication you didn’t deliver, the milestone date you didn’t meet: all these say “poor quality” in the client’s mind.

Schedule Always relate the schedule to calendar dates (not numbered days). When can you start? Which months will be devoted to design? When will you touch base with clients? How much time do you allot for approvals? When do other consultants come into the project? While it’s not always possible to develop a detailed schedule for the proposal, provide a preliminary one as a basis for discussion. Put your schedule in graphic form, perhaps a one-page bar chart, keeping it as simple as possible. Reflect only the major tasks, including those involving the client. Show the significant milestones for submissions and reviews. 105

Clients want to know your record in maintaining schedules. If you finished ahead of schedule on previous projects, describe how you did it. If a project fell behind, describe how you brought it back to schedule. Briefly explain your schedule tracking method. Scheduling software? Weekly meetings? Critical path or milestone tracking?

Budget Cost control is a priority—if not a hot button—for every client. Be prepared to address this in your proposal. A client’s comfort level is built on your level of confidence in your own methods and procedures for staying within (or below) the budget. Describe your past experience in budget savings. Provide a bold, one-paragraph summary of your approach. For example: Outstanding Design has established a firmwide policy of achieving construction cost objectives that are 10 percent below those budgeted by the client. We use the following to achieve this goal. . . .

List specific techniques you’ll use for cost control. For example: > Use a cost consultant. > Strictly control procedures for subcontractors who are bidding. > Maintain a current and accurate database for estimating software. > Train project managers to control costs. > Review cost estimates at milestone dates (specify when). 106


> Regularly review current construction cost estimates with the client and suggest costreducing alternatives. Clients concerned about cost are often also worried about changes. Describe your approach to change orders. For example: In order to control the cost and schedule impact of change order forms, Outstanding Design includes on its contemplated-change order forms: • Reason for the contemplated change • Impact on project schedule • Impact on budget To minimize impact, each contemplated change will be reviewed with the client in light of these criteria. To expedite the project, Outstanding Design is committed to a change order turnaround time of less than 48 hours. During the last five years, cost increases due to changes on all Outstanding Design projects have averaged only .05 percent.

Your Fee: Pricing Strategies Pricing is one of the most important parts of the proposal. You can lose the project on price, so make pricing a carefully thought-out and carefully managed part of your proposal strategy. There are four basic types of pricing. In general, the higher risk you take, the higher your financial reward should be. > Firm Fixed Price > Time + Material > Cost + Fixed Fee > Cost + Base Fee + Award Fee Schedule, Budget, and Fee

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Be Creative in Pricing Weigh your potential profit against the other benefits of capturing a strategic client. Charge less than you would normally if you have a strategic reason to do so. But don’t give away the store. This could come back to haunt you when you do other projects for this client.

Firm Fixed Price You and your client agree on a lump sum for the project. This is the riskiest pricing type for the A/E/C firm, and therefore potentially the most profitable. To succeed with a firm fixed price, you need good internal management systems to make sure that everyone working on the contract understands the specifics. You also need a well-defined, very specific scope. If you do less, you make more; if you do more, you can negotiate for the additions. It’s also a good idea to have a “buffer” on your pricing to take to contract negotiations. With a firm-fixed-price contract, you usually don’t have much freedom in executing the work. The project requires little documentation as you go along; halfway through, you bill for half the cost. Earned Value as Part of Firm Fixed Price Under the traditional firm-fixed-price contract, you assume that at the halfway point you’ve done half the work and used half the money, so you bill half your price. With “earning value” as part of a firm-fixed-price contract, you measure your progress more closely and get paid for the work you’ve done to date. List each task. Define the interim milestones and the interval (probably every month) at which you’ll measure your progress for each task. When, for example, you’ve finished half the task, you bill half your fee for that task. Earned value has a couple of advantages for the A/E/C firm. Everyone knows what you’re billing for each task. And it’s a good measure of progress: if a task isn’t on track, the monthly review raises a red flag and you can figure out why.

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And, note, clients like the terms “earned” and “value.” Time + Material Here, your fee is based on the effort you expend, usually within an agreed-upon limit. In this type of contract, there’s less exposure for the A/E/C firm, so your fee is less. To succeed with a time-and-material fee, you need to carefully document all assumptions and make a “best effort” to complete the project within the scope. This fee structure gives you more freedom in doing the work than you would with a firm fixed price. Cost + Fixed Fee Cost + fixed fee contains elements of both firmfixed-price and time-and-materials fees and is attractive if your firm is risk-averse. You’re guaranteed to cover costs, but there’s less chance to make a significant profit. Negotiations are easier. You’re required to make a “best effort” to complete within the scope. Cost + Base Fee + Award Fee Cost + base fee + award fee is a relatively new form of pricing in our industry. To your costs you add a small base fee (usually around 4 percent of costs) and an award fee of an additional 10 percent. You earn the award fee depending on how well you do the work. The contract specifies how quality will be measured. For example, you might agree to send all meeting minutes to the client within 24 hours after the meeting; when you comply, you earn the extra award. The advantage to the client is that you have an incentive to do a high-quality job according to their Schedule, Budget, and Fee

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definition of quality. The advantage to you is the opportunity to earn more money.

Recent Developments in Pricing One fairly recent change in pricing in the A/E/C industry is the use of multiple overhead pools; that is, you use a different overhead figure for office and field staff (and maybe others). This allows you to tailor the cost to the client. Another is contracts that contain multiple pricing requirements. Government agencies, especially, are now likely to require audits to determine the financial stability of A/E/C firms and the quality of their work. And negotiations are more apt to be handled by key staff who are experienced negotiators, people who were not on the selection team, and nontechnical people.

Other Pricing Considerations Is there only one opportunity to submit your price? Or will there be negotiations and a best and final offer (BAFO)? The RFP or your marketing intelligence will tell you that. If there’s a BAFO, don’t start with your best price. Take special requirements into consideration. For instance, if research is required, and you can do it in-house, charge for it. Also consider whether there’ll be joint funding, any nonreimbursed work, or a large, up-front capital outlay.

Reduce Cost (and Therefore Fees) Show the client how you can reduce fees by reducing costs. You might provide fewer samples, for example, or use lower-level staff members or outside con110


tractors for certain tasks. Suggest deferring work to a later phase. Will using technology reduce people’s time? Can you take advantage of economies of scale? Let the client handle large subcontract invoicing? You might also consider giving the client a discount, but be aware that you might not be able to charge the old price in the future.

Justifying Your High Costs and Fee Show how your firm brings value to the project. Focus on what you know about the client’s hot buttons and their real concerns for this particular project, and build on the strengths that you bring in these areas: > Quality. If this is an issue, perhaps because of an unfortunate experience with another firm in the past, remind the client of your reputation for precision and quality and share with them your quality control system. > Safety. If the project is in a dangerous environment, point out that your expertise in this area will help them contain the costs of health and safety. > Regulations. Remind the client of the complex regulatory program in force and emphasize that you know how to deal with it. > Unusual circumstances. Perhaps there’s a high level of uncertainty in projects like this one, and it’s risky for you to take the assignment; or it might be a one-of-a-kind job for which you’ll need to invest resources to develop special capabilities that you’re not likely to use again. > Hidden benefits. There are probably some services you would provide as a matter of course Schedule, Budget, and Fee

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Presenting Your Fee Follow these guidelines for presenting your fee to the client:

> Don’t put your fee in your cover letter or the executive summary. If reviewers don’t like the fee, they won’t read any further. Give yourself a chance to tell your story.

> Use terms like “value,” “stewardship,” “earned value.” Avoid “price,” “cost,” “fee.”

> Look for ways to reduce or remove the client’s risk with regard to your fee. Think about guarantees (for example, if you don’t return phone calls within six working hours, you deduct $100 from the invoice).

> Relate your fee to value received (for example, finish ahead of schedule).

> Consider trade-offs: a lower price if they agree to early payment terms; relax the schedule; agree to your use of junior staff; reduce your risk, the scope, or project quality.

> Include management tasks in your fee for technical tasks. > Show the level of your risk. > Present group or average rates. This conceals justifiably higher rates that might raise questions.

> Think of a different way to present large numbers (for example, $25,000 might be three-fourths of a cent per square foot over the life of the project).

> Be particularly sensitive to indirect costs. > Show enough detail to support your cost estimate. > Show summaries instead of detailed calculations. > Quote a preferential rate if possible and explain why (for example, if they give you more than one project, you can reduce the rate because you have a lower marketing cost).

> For the private sector, consider a new way to present your multiplier.

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that the client might not see directly and might not even be aware of. Give them a list of services that they will receive “at no charge.” > Senior staff. Make it clear that you’re dedicating senior staff to work on the project, if that’s the case. > Training. Explain how your firm’s expensive training program provides the client with lower turnover, better attitudes, and greater stability of project staff. > Later savings. Show how spending now will save them money later. Clients want the most value for the least hassle and at the lowest cost. You, as an A/E/C professional, want to make as much profit as you reasonably can on every project. Therefore, as you reassure clients that you know how to minimize the hassles of missed schedules and uncontrolled costs, you also have to highlight the special value you bring to the project, in order to justify your fee.


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Related Experience

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Just as with résumés, the difference between experience and capability is important here, too. Clients don’t care what you’ve done. They want to know how you did it, what you learned, what you did that was special, or what you bring to their project as a result. Related experience means that you’ve been involved in a project that is somehow comparable or related to the work needed for this project. A classic definition comes from a government RFP: [T]he accomplishment of work which is comparable or related to the work or effort required for this procurement. Programs or projects of a comparable magnitude that have technical, cost, schedule, and management elements or constraints similar to those expected to be encountered in this procurement are relevant.

Also from a government RFP, a definition of “past performance” suggests some elements to include when you talk about your experience: 115

How well you did on previous work and how you are performing on present work can be a very significant indicator of how well you can be expected to perform in the future. Resilience in the face of trouble, resourcefulness, management determination to see that your organization lives up to certain commitments or standards, and skill in the development of key people are examples of characteristics that persist over time.

List Five Projects Only Clients don’t care . . . what you’ve done in the past. They only want to know what you can do in the future for them.

It’s tempting to produce an impressive list of all your past projects. But you’re not going to sell the client on this proposal with endless pages of projects they know nothing about and that might, or might not, be relevant to this one. Instead, choose five (or six) projects that are as close as possible in scope to the current one. Then list six or seven elements that address this client’s hot buttons. How were those projects similar to this one? How did you deal with these hot buttons on previous jobs? If a client is concerned about local experience, talk only about local projects. If you’re including projects done by associated companies, don’t reinforce the different sources of work by including them in a separate section.

Should You Include Project Cut Sheets Many firms preprint single sheets of project experience (called cut sheets), each containing photos, statistics, and descriptions of a single project. When they’re writing a proposal, they collect the relevant sheets and include them in the proposal. The prob116

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lem with this method is that the comments must be generic; they won’t necessarily apply to the issues a particular proposal needs to address. Some cut sheets include photographs, drawings, site plans, and even working drawings, but no text explaining why the client should look at these images or what they might conclude from them. Neither approach helps sell your client on your proposal. Here’s a better way: Develop an attractive, professional cut-sheet template. You might want to hire a graphic designer to do this. Design places for the following, but leave plenty of blank space on the page: > Project title > Basic statistics: date, size, cost > Locations and sizes for project photos > Brief descriptive text You can use this template in one of two ways. First, you could have some printed for each project on high-quality paper with all the basic information, but without the text you’ll write for this proposal. When a proposal is due, write a custom paragraph or two, insert it in the template on your computer, and print the text on the preprinted page. The alternative is to not have anything preprinted. Instead, store your template in your desktop publishing program, and your scanned images on a disk. When you’re writing a proposal, choose the precise images and text that suit this client and print the custom-designed cut sheet on a color printer. Compare the following two versions of the same related experience: Generic This project required both project design and specifications, along with construction management of Related Experience

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extensive cleanroom and microelectronics support facilities. Upon completion, this facility set the corporate standard for all future cleanroom facilities, which included over 10,000 square feet of 100-class cleanrooms in conjunction with 23,000 square feet of less stringent cleanrooms and support facilities.

Specific (Client hot button: schedule) The challenge was to complete over 10,000 square feet of standard-setting, 100-class cleanrooms and 23,000 square feet of less stringent facilities in a very compressed time period. John Roberts, who will also be project manager on your facility, developed an aggressive, modified fast-track schedule. His personal, but no-nonsense style kept the team motivated through a grueling six-month design and documentation period, and construction was completed three weeks early.

Show All Projects You’ll concentrate your main discussion on a few carefully chosen, focused, and clearly described projects. But there’s one way to create an impression of experience by showing all your projects. Collect the name, location, and date of every project you’ve ever done. The more the better. Do the same for projects your staff have worked on, too, and “asterisk” them. Then, on a single sheet of paper, in three or four columns, list all the projects. Reduce or increase the font size so that you fill the entire page. No one will read the whole list (no one would read 20 pages of product descriptions, either), but it certainly gets across the fact that you have lots of experience. At the bottom of the page, tell the client that you’ll be happy to provide information and refer118

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ences on any of these projects, but that, knowing they have limited time, you’ve chosen five to represent your work. With a highlighter, mark the five you discuss in your proposal.

Use an Experience Matrix Arrange your experience using the same type of matrix you used for your project team. On the left side, list the names of projects. Across the top, list specific capabilities gained or responsibilities taken. Put dots or checkmarks in the squares where the project matches the experience.

Include References List three or four references on a separate sheet with that title. Then make the references even more powerful by including them with your project discussions. At the bottom of the project sheet, or within the text, provide one or two references, with each one supporting a particular element of the current project. For example: Feel free to contact George Armstrong, vice president of Facilities for Benton Manufacturing at 123456-7890. He was involved on a daily basis with the project schedule and would be pleased to discuss the challenges and successes of this project.

This gives the client some idea of the difficulties you’ve worked through with Mr. Armstrong. And as a mini-introduction, it makes it easier and more comfortable for the client to call the reference, and suggests topics the two could discuss. Of course, it’s a good idea to ask for a former client’s permission each time you want to use him or her as a reference. To make that easier, make a habit Related Experience

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of keeping in touch with your best references even when you don’t have a specific project in mind. If you’re pressed for time, however, and the relationship is in good shape, it’s probably safe to list a reference’s name without asking first. But if you have any doubts, call. Never submit old boilerplate references without checking them. It could kill your chances if a prospective client phones to find that the person is no longer with the firm or has changed his or her opinion about you.

Use Testimonials

When you’re creating a related experience matrix chart, use checkmarks rather than dots. Checkmarks are more powerful: they’re action-oriented and suggest accomplishment.

The same rules apply for firm testimonials as for team member testimonials. Use them whenever you can. Don’t, however, use a client’s whole letter. Extract the sentence or phrase that shows you in your best light, and insert it in your project experience section where it’s most relevant. It can accompany your story, be set in a margin, or put in a section of its own. You don’t have to have one for each project, but the more you have, the better, as long they’re relevant to the issues your proposal addresses. The best testimonials mention some specific action you took, a detailed description of your capabilities, or how well you’ve handled some common hot buttons. For example: We’ve found Community Tectonics to be very knowledgeable about schools, school systems, and current trends. They’ve communicated well with the board of education. Most importantly, they’ve helped us design and build schools based on the people who use the facilities most often.

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Don’t limit yourself to written testimonials. If the client says something good about you or your firm, write it down. Make a collection. Ask every client to either write or say something about your performance. At the end of each job, ask for reference letters. The “related experience” section of your proposal is not really about you and your firm; it’s about your prospective clients and their needs. Resist the urge to tell everything. Instead, focus on showing that you have the specific capabilities to do this particular job at this particular time.

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Additional Materials: SF 254/255 Forms, Appendix, and Management Proposal

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To avoid disrupting the flow of the main body of the proposal, include at the end any required material or optional information that will help persuade the clients that you’re right for the job.

SF 254 & 255 Forms You have to fill out Standard Forms (SF) forms every time you propose on a federal government project. They’re designed to present your firm, your extended team, and your related experience in a manner that levels the playing field and allows the selection committee to view you in an unbiased light. A preselection committee typically reduces dozens of proposals down to half a dozen. There are a number of things you can do to make it past the preselection committee and increase your chances of getting the work: > Before you even have an opportunity to propose on a project, get to know the agency. Ask what, in their 123

SF 254/255 Unless you’re required to make the form the body of your proposal, write the proposal your own way. Put the completed form in the appendix.

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view, constitutes a good SF 254/255. This increases your “institutional knowledge” (which they frequently ask about). Besides, studies show that if you’ve previously made contact with selection committee members, you’re more likely to make the short list. > When you submit, submit on time. The government doesn’t make exceptions. Better yet: hand deliver the proposal a day or two early. You might have a chance to say hello, and you’ll show yourself to be proactive. > Include a cover letter, following the suggestions earlier in this book, that presells the proposal. Within the proposal, follow the order of the RFP. If you don’t, and the reviewer can’t find the information easily, you’ll score zero points for it. You’ll also lose out if you don’t stay within the specified page limit; extra pages might be ignored, or even thrown away. > Use good 254/255 software instead of copying or printing onto old forms. Input is easier and output looks more professional. The forms are in the landscape format. If you use this format for your whole proposal, reviewers will appreciate the fact that they don’t have to switch back and forth between vertical and horizontal pages. You can reduce the amount of text by using these features to present information: bulleted items, charts, graphics, pictures, matrices, tables, diagrams, and photographs. You might consider using color photographs or color graphics; it’s also helpful to highlight the most important sections of the text. One of the best ways to stand out from the crowd is to avoid using any kind of standard form. You have to use the SF 254/255. But unless your submission Additional Materials

will be rejected if you don’t make the form the body of your proposal, fill it out, and put it in the appendix. Ideally, you’ll convince the reviewer to interview your firm before he or she even gets to the form.

The Appendix Here’s where you put optional and supporting material and all those forms you have to include but that don’t play a role in influencing the client that you’re right for the project. Unless the RFP requires otherwise, put the following elements in the appendix.

A new federal form? As this book goes to press, the U.S. government has drafted a new form, SF 330, a single form that will eventually replace SF 254 and 255. The draft has not yet been approved.

Insurance Certificates, Professional Licenses, Affidavits, and Other When reproducing these documents, make them look good—no fourth-generation, crooked copies. The appearance of the whole proposal reflects on your professionalism, and this includes the appendix. Financial Data on Your Firm More and more, clients want to be sure of the financial stability of their consultants. If they ask for financial information, question whether it’s absolutely necessary. If they insist, give them the minimum amount required. Standard Client Forms or Questionnaires Some clients format their RFPs as questionnaires, with numbered questions that you must answer, and in that order. Fill out the form. Unless the RFP specifies that this is the only way the client will view your proposal, write the proposal your own way and put the form in the appendix. Additional Materials

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Résumés Though unusual, some clients insist on résumés of the entire project team. Put the key players in the Project Team section and the rest in the appendix. Occasionally, a client will request “traditional” résumés, rather than the project-oriented ones you’ve included in the proposal. Put those in the appendix. Reference Lists As discussed earlier, put references in the Project Team and Related Experience sections, where they’ll do you the most good. But since clients are used to looking for reference lists in a separate section, it doesn’t hurt to include them in the appendix also. Include a sentence or two about each person on the list. Describe the individual’s role in the project, your working relationship, and the issues on which he or she might comment. Firm History An abbreviated, one-page history of the firm might be interesting to a new client, but include it only if it’s specifically requested. Include the age of the firm, the type and number of projects you’ve done, and your relevant experience. Don’t use too much boilerplate or filler. Don’t include an organization chart, as these change all the time. Besides, a client might infer that you’re too big, too small, or have the wrong setup. Philosophical Commentary Sometimes firms request comments on your philosophical approach to the project. This happens especially in the educational market. If this is the case, 126

Additional Materials

restrict your comments to four paragraphs and keep them focused on the project. If your firm has published any comments or given any presentations on this subject, you might answer this request by including high-quality copies or reprints of the article. Index As the last page, include an alphabetical index of the 20 to 40 items most relevant to the client hot buttons, with page numbers. Include the names of the key project participants.

Management Proposal

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Government agencies often require a management proposal. Even when it’s not required, you might want to insert a paragraph describing how you will manage the project. A management proposal addresses several typical client concerns: > Transparency of the team. How will you manage subcontractors, vendors, and consultants so the client perceives you as one team? > Program status. How will you keep the client informed? > “Plan the work and work the plan.” Will you follow the plan the client has agreed to?

Management Proposal It might not be required, but including a management proposal helps to set your proposal apart from the others.

> Infrastructure compatibility. How will you avoid systems hitches among all the parties involved? (Buy compatible software for subcontractors if you have to.) > “Bait and switch.” It was once common for A/E/C firms to send people to the presentation, especially top-level people, whom the client never Additional Materials

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saw again once the contract was signed. This is rare now. Clients hate it. > Project manager’s ownership of the team. Show that the project manager is committed to, and capable of, keeping all members working together. > Corporate commitment. How important is this project to your firm? The management proposal can be a serious discriminator, so an experienced staff member should write it, using all of his or her marketing intelligence. He or she should describe the focused qualifications of your staff, the people involved in managing the project and how to reach them, and the support you’ll get from others in your firm who aren’t directly involved in the project. Clients will want to know about parallel relationships: for example, that your project manager works with their project manager. They’ll also want to see clear lines of authority in your team. Finally, they’ll want to know how you’ll manage policies, procedures, and your work with subcontractors and vendors. For some reason, human beings, when presented with a document in book format, tend to flip through it back to front, so keep in mind that the end of your proposal could form the clients’ first impression. And though it may be tempting to make the end a catch-all, resist this temptation; limit the selection to what’s required or to items that you believe will have a positive impact on the client. And, as much as possible, make the end of the proposal as graphically appealing as the rest.

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Georgia.

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Proposal Development

P a r t III

Giving Your Proposal Finesse: Writing and Graphics

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You’ve strategized. You know the client’s hot buttons. You’re ready to write. Make your message readable and inviting, reflecting the professionalism of your firm. You’re cramming a lot of information into a small space, so use tight writing and informative graphics.

Writing Aim for a direct, active, friendly writing style. Make it easy and enjoyable to read. Use terms your client uses. Edit for uniformity. If different people are writing various sections of the proposal, have your best writer edit the whole document for style and tone. Follow the “3, 7, 11, and 10” Rule Keep it simple. Here’s a guideline: > No paragraph more than 3 sentences. > No sentence more than 7 words. > No word more than 11 letters. > No paragraph more than 10 lines. 131

Use Present Tense, Active Verbs Instead of writing, “We are experienced in” or “We could offer…” or “The following services would be offered by us,” write, “We offer you…” Write as though you already have the project. Determine the Reading Level: Calculate the Fog Index Calculate the Fog Index, an indicator of how difficult the text is to read. The right Fog Index for your proposal depends on your audience. If you’re writing for the general public, such as churches or school committees, aim no higher than the eighth grade. Even for highly technical proposals, written for specialists, you shouldn’t write at higher than grade level 14, or the second year of college. As a comparison, most consumer publications aim at the sixth- or seventhgrade level. If you’re in doubt, ask a young teenager to read your proposal and highlight the words he or she doesn’t understand. Revise accordingly. Compare the following paragraphs Fog Index of 13.9 The staff is readily available to support ACME’s first phase to retrofit two gas compressors. Ace Engineering’s key personnel include four engineers with an average of 30-years-plus experience in compressor station design and operations. They will be committed to the first phase. It is our intent that these key personnel will remain assigned to the NOx program for the entire project. However, it is unrealistic to state that all key personnel will all remain available for the entire project. We will gradually add experienced replacement personnel to the project staff if these key individuals become unavailable. This will provide the continuity and qualifications required for the long-range project. 132


Is Your Writing Hard to Read? Calculate your Fog Index: 1. Select a representative passage of 100 words or more. 2. Count the number of words and the number of sentences, then calculate the average number of words per sentence. 3. Count the number of words with three or more syllables. (But don’t count proper names or words that end with “ed” and “ing” if the word has only two syllables without the ending.) Divide this by the total word count to get the percent of difficult words. 4. Add the average number of words per sentence to the percentage of difficult words and multiply by 0.4. This gives you the grade level of your writing. For example, for a text with 110 words, 7 sentences, and 21 difficult words: 15.7 words per sentence 19 percent difficult words Fog Index = 0.4 (15.7 + 19) = 13.9 Someone who reads at the midcollege reading level should have no trouble understanding your text. Calculate the Index for several different sections to get a complete picture of the reading level, especially if you’ve had different people write different sections of your proposal. Some word processing software will calculate the Fog Index for you.

Fog Index of 11.4 Our staff is ready to move on Phase 1. We’ve assigned four engineers with an average of more than 30 years’ experience in compressor station design and operation to your project. This staff will remain for the life of the NOx project. It’s unlikely a dedicated team member will become unavailable. But just in case, we’ve put together a back-up staffing plan to provide experienced team members for this long-term project.

What’s the difference? The second has a more relaxed, conversational style, with more active verbs, Giving Your Proposal Finesse: Writing and Graphics

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a simpler sentence structure, shorter words, and shorter sentences. Know the Right Uses for Boilerplate Boilerplate makes your life easier. After all, you’ve spent some time coming up with the right language to describe your team, your experience, and your firm, and you don’t want to reinvent your prose every time you write a proposal. Boilerplate, though it is sometimes acceptable for résumés, firm histories, project descriptions, experience matrices, project lists, and some project approach statements, has serious downsides: > It looks like boilerplate. > It doesn’t allow you to focus on a specific client and proposal. > You can end up showing the same client the same paragraph over and over again. > You can easily forget to update it. Strike a balance between the convenience of boilerplate and the effectiveness of customized writing, by inserting references to the current client and project within the body of your boilerplate. Compare the following paragraphs: Boilerplate The role of the architect-engineer extends much further than that of innovative design. He [or she] must have design and technical capabilities that enable him [or her] to help the owner make realistic judgments about which systems and assemblies to include, and what they should accomplish. His [or her] evaluative process must result in an efficient, pace-setting project, built at reasonable cost and operating at maximum economy. We implement a structured Quality Assurance Program, 134


1

Use Your Technology to Speed the Process

Rather than create everything new for each proposal, edit what you already have in your database. Use directories in your word processing or office management software. Maintain different versions of resumes, project descriptions, and project lists. Ideally, project databases should integrate records from throughout the firm, identifying:

> Fees > Services > Projects > Original bids > Final costs > Change orders > Staff > Prior and recent staff experience and licenses > Associated firms > Contractors and construction managers Graphics software allows you to view scanned images easily so you can choose the appropriate ones for each proposal. Use diagramming software for clear process diagrams. As diagrams evolve for different types of projects, use them as templates that you can easily edit for future projects. If you’re in a remote office without the capability to achieve high-quality output, have the proposal produced at headquarters or in a larger office and saved on a disk, then have a local printer print and collate the copies for you. 1

Pat Rosenzweig, Marketing Principal, OWP&P, Chicago, Illinois, and Phoenix, Arizona.

along with Value Engineering, on each project to make certain that these goals are met.

Customized Version [Client name] will be hiring an architect-engineer whose capability extends much further than that of innovative design. You will hire design and technical capabilities that will help you make realistic Giving Your Proposal Finesse: Writing and Graphics

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judgments about which systems and assemblies to include and what they should accomplish. This evaluative process will provide you with an efficient, pace-setting project, built at reasonable cost and operating at maximum economy. To accomplish this for [Client name] we will implement a structured Quality Assurance Program and Value Engineering Program.

One good use for boilerplate is when you know you have to bid because the client expects it, but you know you won’t win the contract. Maybe it’s wired for someone else. You don’t want to put a lot of effort into the proposal. That’s the time to use boilerplate. Write Short One way to reduce the size of your proposals is to write shorter text. Eliminate unnecessary words. For example, instead of writing: One of our primary objectives in producing bidding/construction documents is to minimize the potential for change orders.

Write: A primary objective of contract documents is to minimize change orders.

Replace complicated words with simpler ones. Instead of: Our experience has been that change orders are most frequently associated with latent existing conditions, poor soil conditions, owners’ requests for change, and owners’ unrealistic compressed time schedules.

Write: Change orders usually result from hidden existing conditions, owners’ requests for changes, and overly optimistic schedules. 136


Use bulleted lists. Instead of: More recently, she started a business in soil science consulting and has gained extensive private-sector experience evaluating plant/soil/water systems— both surface plant/soil communities and subsurface soil and water phases, including wetland systems. She has training and field experience in applying wetland delineating techniques, in the design and implementation phases of building constructed wetlands, and has been a team member providing soil physics expertise and advice on wetland reconstruction and renovation projects.

Save time and space by writing it like this: Since beginning her own soil science consulting business, she has gained extensive experience in: • Evaluating surface and subsurface plant/soil/ water communities, including wetland systems. • Applying wetland delineation techniques. • Designing and implementing phases of building constructed wetlands. • Providing soil physics expertise on wetland reconstruction and renovation.

Layout A well-designed layout accomplishes a number of objectives. It shows your firm’s sophistication and professionalism. It enhances the readability of your text. And it makes it easy for the reader to find information. Good word processing software packages offer graphics capabilities, and good graphics programs often provide word processing. A caution, however: Once people discover all the gizmos available in their graphics programs, they sometimes go overboard and try a little bit of everything, with the result that Giving Your Proposal Finesse: Writing and Graphics

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their proposals look cluttered and confusing. (You don’t have to be a graphic designer to produce a professional-looking piece, but it doesn’t hurt to have a graphic designer take a look at what you’ve done.) Keep it simple. Because of Web sites and e-mail, we’ve all become used to receiving information in short chunks, so divide your text into short bits of information. Use various guideposts to help people navigate through the proposal, such as headings and subheads; rhetorical questions; boldface, italics, and underlining (but consistently, and not too often); highlighted text, and bulleted items. Page Layout Lay out your pages on an imaginary grid. One, two, or three columns work well for proposals with a vertical format; two is the best choice. Use two to four columns in a horizontal format; three columns are easiest to read. If you’re using only one column, make it no more than four inches wide. Conform all text, graphics, photos, and white space to this grid, and be sure the grid is the same on every page (except for the cover letter, which will be on your letterhead). Set your text “ragged right,” as that is the easiest to read: the left side of the column lines up, the right side doesn’t. If you try to justify the right column, you’re likely to end up with weird letter- and wordspacing, as your word processing program tries to equalize every line. Also, ragged right creates white space, which helps makes the text easy to read. Experiment with the location of page numbers, headings, quotations, and testimonials, to create an interesting look and provide relief for the eyes. Once 138


you’ve decided on the design that works best, use it consistently throughout the proposal. White space is not wasted space. Think of it as a graphic element, as much as a photo or a chart, and place it carefully along with your other elements. White space helps guide the reader’s eye through the text. The page layouts shown in Figure 14.1 on the next page are all attractive and easy to read. Typefaces Word processing programs provide hundreds of typefaces (fonts). You’ll never use 99 percent of them. There are two basic font types: serif and sans serif. A “serif” is a short line, stemming from and at an angle to the upper and lower ends of the strokes of individual letters. Serif fonts have these lines; sans serif fonts don’t. For example, in a serif typeface, the lowercase “l” has a line at the top and a base at the bottom. In sans serif type, it’s a simple vertical line. (The text of this book is set in serif type; most of the headings are sans serif.) As a general rule, serif type is better to use for running text. Studies show that it’s easier to read; somehow, the serifs seem to ease the movement of the eyes along the text. Sans serif type works in headings, titles, and short passages of text. Use one of the conventional serif typefaces for your text. You might choose another sans serif type for your headlines. Or you can use the same serif typeface throughout. But don’t use more than two typefaces in your document. Serif (for text) Century Schoolbook Garamond Giving Your Proposal Finesse: Writing and Graphics

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Figure 14.1

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Sans serif (for headlines) Arial Univers Avoid novelty typefaces, which are often too cute or too ornate, and difficult to read in large doses: Novelty Typefaces Jokerman Broadway Paisley Chilada Depending on the typeface you’ve chosen, the font size for the body of your text should be 10-point to 12-point. For headings, try sizes from 14 to 18. Experiment and print a few pages to see which sizes are easiest to read. Within the same font, you can get variety by using all capital letters, small capitals, boldface, underlining, and italics. These are useful for heads and subheads. Here, too, be consistent. For example, decide which typeface you’ll use for heads and subheads, and maintain that choice throughout. Another way to vary text is to use different leading, that is, the amount of space between lines. Below is a paragraph set at both the default type size of 10 point and the default leading at 12 point. Steve is no newcomer to on-time and on-budget delivery. He has more than 19 years of project management experience. In Steve’s words, “Since joining ACME in 1995, I’ve had an opportunity to work on both airport and environmental design programs.”


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Here’s the same paragraph, same type size, set with 14-point leading. Steve is no newcomer to on-time and on-budget delivery. He has more than 19 years of project management experience. In Steve’s words, “Since joining ACME in 1995, I’ve had an opportunity to work on both airport and environmental design programs.”

Again, be consistent. If you’ve decided to use different leading for a quotation or a testimonial, for example, use it for all the quotes or all the testimonials.

Graphics Graphics add to the appearance, content, and readability of your proposal. They help you convey a lot of information in a small space. Replace text with a graphic at every opportunity—provided that each graphic is clear, simple, and relevant, and that all your graphics work together to create an impression of professionalism. Choose from: > Line charts, to show trends > Bar charts, to show comparisons between two or three elements > Pie charts, to show relationships among the parts of a whole > Tables, to present a lot of data > Diagrams > Drawings > Maps > Organizational charts 142


> Flowcharts, to show the steps in a process > Illustrations > Photographs > Callout boxes Graphics should be as simple and concise as possible. Don’t cram in too much information; let each graphic convey only one message. Design each graphic to respond to a specific client hot button and illustrate the benefit you offer the client. Most graphics need a brief explanatory caption. If a diagram includes symbols or is color-keyed, include a clear legend. Provide a scale if the graphic needs one. Label illustrations and diagrams. Number your graphics. If there are more than a few, include a separate listing following your table of contents. When you refer to a graphic in the text, place the graphic after the paragraph that includes the text reference. Placing it before the reference confuses people. Develop a collection of graphics that you can use like boilerplate text (minding the same precautions, of course). Maps of office location, organizational charts, experience matrices, some illustrations of processes, and so on can be used repeatedly. You can draw graphics by hand and scan them into the computer, use drawing software, use your CAD program, or create them on a spreadsheet program. Another possible source for graphics is clip art. You can buy thousands of predrawn illustrations on CD or from the Internet. Import or “cut and paste” them into your proposal. A word of caution: Clip art isn’t as impressive as custom graphics. Giving Your Proposal Finesse: Writing and Graphics

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Color Color used to be a differentiator. Now everybody uses it. That doesn’t mean every proposal has to be a full-color production. But clients expect to see some color in graphics or photos. Color printers and color copies aren’t very expensive. But if you don’t need one except for proposals, you can always prepare your proposal and take the disk to your local on-demand printer for high-quality copies.

Photos Use photos only when they relate to the project and support your message, and follow these guidelines: > Always include a caption. > Locate the photo as near as possible to the relevant text. > Don’t show before-and-after illustrations or photos in your proposal: this assumes a solution, before you and the client have discussed the problem.

The Package According to the old saying, you never get a second chance to make a first impression. Your proposal’s external appearance sends a loud message about your professionalism and the quality of your work. It can set your proposal apart from all the others or it can make it blend in with the crowd. Be sure to pay attention to each of the following elements. 144


Binding Aim for maximum class and maximum flexibility. Your binding should enable people to add and remove pages, stack proposals vertically, protect the material (don’t crush the tabs), and lay the material flat for review. Three-Ring Binder This is your best choice. It fulfills all the requirements. You can print custom binders, but you’ll create almost the same custom look with plain binders and a custom cover inserted into the slip cover. Remember to design a spine cover also. Some firms have binders printed with the firm name and logo. Even if the client doesn’t like your proposal, reviewers will throw away the contents but they’ll probably keep the binder, and your marketing continues. (This assumes that you don’t retrieve the copies, of course.) Binders come in plastic, cloth, or with a leatherlook finish. Metal Wire Metal wire binding looks classy, and it’s neat and inexpensive. You can get the binding in different colors, though black is the most common and most professional-looking. Its disadvantage is that once you’ve assembled the proposal, neither you nor the client can add anything to it. Plastic Spiral This isn’t as good-looking as metal wire, and it has the same drawback. Giving Your Proposal Finesse: Writing and Graphics

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Plastic Comb Binding This is inexpensive and has the advantage of flexibility: You can add and remove pages, though it’s not as easy to do as with a binder. Its disadvantage is that it’s so common that using it won’t do anything to differentiate you from the competition. Staples Staples work on only very small proposals, and of course you can’t add anything once you’ve done the stapling. Perfect Bound This type of binding is not recommended because the material won’t lie flat. This drives people crazy. Cover The purpose of the cover is to lead the client into the proposal. What will appeal to this particular client? Design your cover accordingly. Clients expect A/E/C firms to incorporate good visuals, and these should show up on the cover. Use some interesting graphics, color, even photos if they’re high-quality and relevant to the project. Basic information on the cover should include the client’s name, the name of the client’s project or the title of your proposal, and your firm’s logo, name, address, phone and fax numbers, and e-mail and Web site addresses. (Don’t use a client’s logo unless you’ve received permission to do so. Firms are very protective of their logos.) On titles: Consider giving your proposal a title that pushes one of the client’s hot buttons. What did you write in the “Regards” or “Subject” line of your cover letter? 146


Tabbed Dividers If your proposal is more than 10 pages long, you should include tabbed dividers. Readers appreciate anything that helps them find their way through the document. Guidelines for use include: > Tabs should bear the names of the sections they precede. Don’t use generic numbered or alphabet tabs. Don’t hand-print the titles on blank tabs. > Use software, your printer, and your color copier to design and print custom tabs, or have them done at a local print shop. > If the sections of all your proposals are typically the same, keep a supply of professionally printed tabs that incorporate your firm’s graphics. > If you’re really going to customize your dividers, print them with the client’s name: “Prepared for. . .” Paper Normal copy paper is 20-pound stock. Choosing 24or 28-pound conveys the impression of higher quality. Textured stock, or a light-colored stock, might work well, also. Make sure it will work in a laser printer and will still look good if the client has to make black and white copies of it. The Copies Numbering helps you keep control of the copies. Many A/E/C firms ask to have the copies back, whether they get the job or not. Not only does this keep copies away from competitors, but it gives you Giving Your Proposal Finesse: Writing and Graphics

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another contact with the client when you go to pick them up.

Electronic Proposals On the CD If you’re submitting your proposal on a CD with a paper copy, design a label and jewel-case cover for the CD to complement the design of your proposal cover; or print generic labels with your logo.

At the time of this writing, only about 10 percent of North American A/E/C firms were being asked to submit electronic proposals, either on CD or via the Internet. It’s much more prevalent overseas. But sooner or later, every A/E/C firm will have to learn how to prepare and submit electronic proposals. E-proposals offer a number of benefits over paper versions:1 Flexibility. Multimedia integration and dynamics allow you to reach people with different work practices, reading habits, and knowledge levels. Control. The proposal is no longer a “dumb” document; you now have a much more dynamic interface with your prospective clients than ever before. The challenge is to encourage the kind of interactivity that will deliver control into the audience’s hands. Specificity. You can customize your proposal according to the specific needs of both client and project, using the audio, video, and graphic elements that best suit the experience and expectations of the potential client. Access. Your e-proposal is delivered directly to the desktop, making it easier and faster for individuals within the potential client organization to retrieve information. Efficiency. The productivity of your team is greatly enhanced as you assemble the base documents.

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Integration. E-proposals seamlessly integrate the input and effort of the entire design team with speed and efficiency. Accessibility. Because a proposal prepared electronically is inherently geographically nonspecific, the size of your overall marketplace, and your firm’s access to it, are automatically increased. Level Playing Field. The electronic format allows for greater diversity in the process. Smaller firms can compete almost on an equal footing with larger, better-financed organizations. In many ways, the flexibility and dynamic of response probably give an advantage to the less bureaucratic firm. Speed. It is possible to achieve up to a 50 percent decrease in proposal preparation time, which fits nicely with typical client demands to shorten bidding and proposal periods. Equality. Because proposals can be accessed equally by all team members, the barriers of space, time, language, and rank become irrelevant. Special Challenges of E-Proposals The basic principles for proposal writing and the elements of the proposal remain the same, no matter which format you’re using. It’s easy to forget that technology is only a means, not the proposal. Don’t let technology control the content. For your electronic proposals to be successful, you must meet some special challenges. Make Them Easy to Navigate People are people, whether they’re reading material in a binder or on a computer screen. You still need to Giving Your Proposal Finesse: Writing and Graphics

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lead them through the proposal, not let them wander around “inside.” The biggest problem with electronic proposals is this: Readers can click anyplace and go anyplace, but they can’t always figure out how to get back where they started. So carefully map out your links so that people can easily find what you want them to see. Meet High Expectations If you’re doing electronic proposals, your competition is Hollywood. People expect you to create the equivalent of what they see on TV or at elaborate Web sites. Unless you use high-impact, high resolution graphics, you’ll look like an amateur. Be Organized Preparing electronic proposals requires you to be superorganized and to retain tight control. Categorize all marketing material and keep it up to date, so the people writing proposals are using, from your database, exactly what you want them to use. Accept the Opportunity, Face the Danger The power of electronic proposals is found in the capability to incorporate video clips; to link to sites you control and sites you don’t control (for example, to sites offering free software that might be useful to a client; to your own Web page); and to tie in to computer graphics (for example, you can do a flythrough or walk-through of your design from your CAD system). The danger is overkill. Firms that do e-proposals sometimes get caught up in the possibilities and inundate people. 150


Make E-Proposals Printable Even when clients ask for e-proposals, keep in mind that they probably will still print hard copies. So print it yourself and send a hard copy to the client in addition to the electronic version. When you design the proposal, design it to be printed. If it’s full of dark colors—for example, blacks, purples, reds—it might look terrific on the computer screen but look like mud on paper. Prepare to Hurry E-proposals will collapse the amount of time you have to prepare a proposal. Even though it might take you longer to do an e-proposal than a printed one, clients will expect instantaneous return. So be ready to meet that expectation. Devise a system, a structure, and a plan for how you’re going to create your e-proposal. Word processing and graphic design software are readily available and easy to use. But they sometimes offer too many choices. If you don’t have a graphic designer on your staff, it might be a worthwhile investment to hire one to help make basic design decisions about your proposal. If you’re preparing an electronic proposal, look for a designer with Web experience. You might also consider hiring an editor to check the writing for grammatical and spelling errors (computer checks don’t catch them all), redundancies, awkward writing, and other text problems that could detract from the professionalism and polish of your proposal. 1

Edward Lynch, Director, Groups GSA, Sydney, Australia.


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The Red Team Review

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The Red Team comprises a group of people— though it might be a single individual—who can think like a client and review your proposal from the client’s perspective. The Red Team provides constructive, objective feedback on the proposal before it goes out. Specifically, the main task of the Red Team is to make sure the proposal responds to the RFP. This step in the process is essential. Proposal teams in large firms that bid on megaprojects develop complex evaluation processes involving many stages of review and feedback. In a smaller firm, with a smaller project, an hour’s brainstorming over lunch might do it.

Who’s on the Red Team? Look for people in your firm who meet three criteria: > They didn’t help write the proposal. > They know the client well. > They have the ability to act as surrogate client reviewers. 153

What the Team Does The job of Red Team members is to pretend they’re the client and react to the proposal as the client would. They: > Study the RFP and identify the hot buttons. Firms that have 1 many offices . . . might access a common network—via an intranet or outside service—so team members can review a proposal simultaneously. For a fee, you can use a dedicated, secured Web site (a service offered by several companies) to access any information that can be stored in an electronic file. Decide whether people may only access the information, or may also edit it online. The site can hold any information, text, or graphic that would be included in a paper project file. So, for example, someone can review drawings and diagrams without having the software on which they were created.

> Compare the proposal with the RFP. > Score the proposal as the client would. > Point out weak, strong, and deficient areas in the draft. > Suggest how to fix the problems. > Put their comments in writing (see Figure 15.1). > Make sure the proposal writers understand the comments. > Make themselves available for consultation with proposal writers after their review.

Material for the Team Before they consider the proposal, the team should receive all the material that’s relevant to their deliberations. This includes: > The RFP and any other documents provided by the client > A copy of your proposal strategy > Your draft, including all the color graphics > background on the client > Information on the client’s evaluation criteria

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Pat Rosenzweig, Marketing Principal, OWP&P, Chicago and Phoenix.

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RFP versus Proposal When the Red Team compares the RFP and the draft proposal, they should emphasize: The Red Team Review

Figure 15.1

The Red Team Review

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Understanding the RFP requirements IFBP analysis part of the proposal strategy Whether the proposal themes work Whether the proposal complies with RFP specifications > Thoroughness of the proposal > Quality of the technical and management plans > Effectiveness of the writing and graphics > > > >

Following the Critique When they’ve made their recommendations, the Red Team, as an entity, is dissolved. Some of its members do, however, remain available to consult with those revising the proposal. When the revisions are complete, those members review the final draft to make sure all the changes have been made. By the time you’ve spent long hours preparing a proposal, you have an emotional investment in it, and you might find it unsettling to realize that it now will be reviewed by people whose purpose is to be critical. The point is, those who prepared the proposal are too close to be objective, and an outside viewpoint is essential at this point.

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The Red Team Review

It’s Ready: Now What?

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The Red Team has reviewed the proposal and the proposal writers have made the final changes; you’re ready to make the copies. But before you do, make one final check.

Make One Final Check Assign an alert, picky, detail-oriented person to take one last look at the proposal. Ideally, find someone who hasn’t been involved so far. Ask that person to check for details that can slip by because everyone else has been concentrating on the big picture.

Make Copies Provide about one-third more copies than the client requests. Otherwise, if they need more copies of a color proposal, they’ll make black-and-white copies, in which your beautiful colors will look muddy, meaning that some reviewers will not see the proposal as you intend it to be seen. Point out in the cover letter that you’re sending extra copies, and that you’ll come by to retrieve all 157

The Final Check Give this checklist to a hawk-eyed person in your firm who hasn’t been involved in the proposal to take a final, close look at it. This person should concentrate on the nitpicky details. (Presumably, the big picture has already been taken care of.)

> Correct spelling of the client’s name > Correct, sequential page and section numbers > Correct page references in the table of contents > All contents included > Key resumés included > Captions on all photos and diagrams > Imaginative title > Cover letter signed > Everything right side up > Business cards included > Correct number of copies, numbered correctly > Anything else that’s likely to trip you up the copies after the selection process. (Then do it. As mentioned previously, win or lose, this gives you another opportunity for contact with the client and to show your professionalism.) Once the copies have been made, check to make sure that each copy is complete: verify that all the pages face in the right direction and are in the right sequence.

If It’s an Electronic Proposal If the RFP requires an electronic submission, but isn’t restricted to that format, deliver a paper copy also. The main reason for this is that, when you submit only electronically, you depend on the recipi158


ent’s technology to reproduce your material. Computer screens produce color differently. Printers vary in typeface and copy quality. The appearance of your proposal is a major selection criterion. You don’t want to lose control of it. Another reason is that if the client can’t open the document, or it’s so large the system crashes, you won’t be winning any points.

Deliver the Proposal Deliver on time. If you don’t, you might be disqualified. Or, if the client agrees to accept a late submission, you’ll be at a disadvantage because they’ll wonder whether you have trouble meeting deadlines, likewise completing projects on time. Delivery is best done in person, if possible. You’ll be sure it arrives on time and you’ll have a chance to make personal contact and maybe learn a little bit more about the client or the project. If you do handdeliver, send someone who’s familiar with the proposal, in case that person has an opportunity to answer questions or learn more about the project. If you’re not close enough for hand delivery, don’t send the proposal by regular mail, especially if the deadline is near. Though it will probably arrive in two or three days, you can’t be sure, and you’ll worry all the time. Send it by Federal Express, Airborne, or some other overnight delivery company that has given you good service in the past; or, if you use the United States Post Office, send it Express Mail. Phone the client after the deadline to make sure they received the proposal package. Ask if everything is clear, if they have questions. It’s Ready: Now What?

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What Now? Sit and wait? No. Now’s the time to activate your marketing intelligence activities: > Gather information on the competition. You can usually learn about some or all of the shortlisted firms by talking to the client, vendors, suppliers, and competitors. > Find out whatever you can about the decision schedule and the process. > Be ready to modify your proposal if you hear anything that would cause you to do that. Strengthen any areas of the evaluation criteria where you are weak. > Find out everything you can about your competitors’ tactics. > Finally, let the client know you’re continuing to review the project to find other ways of reducing budget or schedule. Submitting the proposal is such a milestone that it might feel like the end of the process. In fact, it’s only the end of the beginning, because you of course expect to be invited to present, and you expect to get the job. So you’ll continue your marketing intelligence and start preparing your winning presentation based on your winning proposal.

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Proposal Presentation

P a r t IV

Your Presentation Team

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Congratulations! You’ve written a dynamite proposal. You’re among the four or five firms chosen to present ideas directly to your potential client’s decision makers. Don’t stop now. The job still isn’t yours. Give as much attention to preparing your presentation as you gave to writing your proposal. Maybe even more, because now you have more intangibles to deal with—the personal impression you make on clients, and how your presentation team interacts with one another and members of the client’s team—in short, the client’s emotional reaction to you and your team. If you’re going to be chosen for the project, the “chemistry” among you must feel right. Clients—like all people—want to work with individuals they know and trust. Your proposal showed that you can do the work. Your presentation is your opportunity to make sure that you and your team are the consultants the clients know the best and trust the most. Your presentation should be as thoughtful, professional, and polished as your proposal. This takes 163

preparation and practice. Most of what’s going to happen during the presentation is determined by what you do before you go into the room. The most dangerous assumption is to think that you can “wing it.”

Key Presenter: The Project Manager

The Project Manager Is Key Clients want to hear what he or she has to say. Your PM should be your lead presenter. He or she is also responsible for deciding the messages, structure, and order of the presentation (along with the principal-incharge, the marketing director, and others, as appropriate).

There was a time when you and your client could expect that your key presenter would be a marketing vice president or another senior person known for his or her personal presence and who was capable of giving smooth, impressive speeches. That’s no longer the case. Clients want to hear from the person who is actually going to do the work. So the key person in your presentation team should be your project manager. After all, that’s the person who will work most closely with the client throughout the months’-long, maybe years’-long, project. Clients want a sense of the project manager’s personality, expertise, and understanding of the project; the quality of the communications between the project manager and the client’s team; and how the project manager interacts with members of your own team. They also want to believe that the project manager can manage the team and will stick with the project until it’s finished. Many project managers don’t look forward to being a key presenter. Like most people in any profession, they’re a little bit afraid of public speaking. Assuming you’re the project manager, combat that fear through focus, preparation, and practice: > Focus: keep your eye on your ultimate goal, which is to win the business, and on this partic-

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What Do Clients Like and Dislike in Presentations? They like:

> Customized presentations focused on the specific project > Clear, straightforward language > Visuals that are clear and easy to follow and enhance their understanding of what you’re saying

> A sense of the personalities of the people they’ll be working with in your firm, and of the quality of communications and working relationship they can expect from the project manager and others

> Presentations that wrap up in the specified time limit They don’t like:

> Prima-donna presenters > Generic, unfocused presentations > Unclear visual aids > Overuse of visual aids > Too much time spent reviewing qualifications already listed in the proposal > The main presentation made by someone other than the project manager > Disorganized, carelessly prepared, or unrehearsed presentations ular client’s specific needs, concerns, and hot buttons for this specific project. > Prepare your presentation carefully, imagining the audience and the setting; plan for whatever might go wrong. > Practice, practice, and practice again. You’ll be nervous, but a little nervousness is good. Professional presenters know that those “butterflies” keep them alert and help them perform at their best.

Beware of Dangerous Presenters The overconfident presenter who goes in unprepared and shoots from the hip is the most dangerous Your Presentation Team

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When you schedule your presentation:

> Request the last time slot. People tend to remember best what they heard last. Of course, this places an extra burden on you to be special, to set yourself apart from what the selection team has heard earlier.

> Reconfirm the date, time, and location.

> Request the selection criteria for the presentation.

> Identify the person you should contact if you have questions in the meantime.

> Ask if you may rehearse in the room where you will make your presentation.

for the A/E/C firm, and perhaps the most obnoxious to clients. He or she is likely to waste valuable time talking about subjects that don’t matter, make misstatements about subjects that do, and leave clients with the uncomfortable feeling that no one’s in control of the project. Other dangerous presenter types to watch for: > So-called prima donna personalities can also be dangerous, because teamwork is so important to everyone involved. > The overly pushy and aggressive (the stereotype of the back-slapping salesperson) can turn clients off. > At the other extreme, someone who’s too shy or tries too hard to be the opposite of overly pushy might be perceived as standoffish, not fully involved in the process. > Someone who recites a litany of his or her successful projects and reminds clients of how wonderful he or she is will be perceived as a waste of their time. Clients want to know what will be done for them, not what was done for somebody else. Your main presenter should be knowledgeable, enthusiastic, and friendly, but businesslike, confident, in control, and genuinely and totally focused on meeting the needs of the client.

Presentation Training If the project managers in your firm don’t present themselves in such a way as to win client’s respect and trust, you might consider investing in some training programs, depending on their needs and capabilities: 166


> Formal presentation training: A trainer from outside the company coaches people and videotapes them, so they see how they come across. > Local Toastmasters chapters offer participants many opportunities to give presentations and receive feedback from experienced speakers. > Acting coaches teach people how to express themselves and use body language that makes the right impression. > Trainers who are specialists in multicultural communications teach the subtleties of communicating with audiences from different cultural backgrounds. Very few people are natural presenters. Fortunately, nearly everyone can learn to do an excellent job at it.

The Winning Presentation Team The presentation team has to accomplish a major intangible objective, as well as to present your firm’s ideas clearly, concisely, and convincingly. They have to reassure the client’s decision makers that their team will enjoy working with your team. So choosing exactly the right participants is a crucial step in your presentation preparations. Most presentation teams have three to eight members, depending on the size of the project, the complexity of the scope, and the makeup of the selection team. To build confidence and comfort, it’s a good idea if your presentation team generally matches the makeup of the client’s selection team—in age, gender, personality, style, and number. You wouldn’t want to overwhelm a three-person selection team Your Presentation Team

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For a high-tech project . . . that is, a project defined as “high tech” by the client, the ideal presentation team includes an obviously bright young person (twenties or early thirties) who knows all the cutting-edge systems, software, and technologies, and an older professional (mid-forties and older) who brings some wellrounded experience. Never mind that the older executive knows just as much about technology as the young person; clients often have an emotional sense that the young person will serve them better in that area.

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with an eight-member presentation team, or send a team of thirty-year-olds in thousand-dollar suits to speak to civil servants who are nearing retirement age. Likewise, if your prospective clients tend to be laid-back and mellow, don’t assign your most aggressive, impatient designer to the team. If they have technical people on the team, include your technical representatives who will work on the project. Principals or anyone else who won’t be involved in the project shouldn’t be part of the presentation team. Clients want to get to know the people they’ll be working with. And they hate the tactic firms sometimes use of showing off an impressive principal at the presentation, then never seeing that person again. However, if a principal will actually be part of the project team, bring him or her along. It shows top management’s commitment to the project. Everyone on a winning presentation team should be someone who’s involved in the project and has something to say about it. Presumably, the client is already familiar with their names, because they appear on the organization chart you presented as part of your proposal. Not all team members will be presenters; some will be introduced to answer questions about particular subjects. You might assign one person on your team to watch the selection committee for nonverbal cues; this person can then prompt questions to resolve concerns or clear up items that weren’t understood. One aspect of the presentation that can easily be overlooked is your team chemistry. Of course, clients want to know that their team will enjoy working Your Presentation Team

with your team. But they also want to know that your team members have worked together successfully in the past and that they enjoy working together. Clients know that interpersonal tensions within your team might affect the conduct of their project. You might be able to prevent this from happening once you win the work, but there’s no point in raising concerns by sending people who don’t get along with each other to make the presentation.

Prepare a Schedule for Your Team Set up a schedule, just as you would for any project, showing deadlines and who’s responsible for what. Work backward from the presentation date. Schedule: > A site visit; and take photos, if you haven’t already done so > Brainstorming session > First draft > Review and approval of materials > Rehearsals

Combat the “You’re All Alike” Syndrome Clients tend to think that all A/E/C firms do the same things and know the same things. Consequently, they’re looking for something that sets you apart from your competition. Although this must be substantial, it can be such an intangible attribute as enthusiasm, creativity, or team spirit. Your proposal impressed your potential client. Now they’re eager to meet the people on your team and see what you have to say and how you present yourself. A deciding factor at this juncture in the proYour Presentation Team

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cess could very well be the chemistry between your team and theirs, rather than a particular idea in your proposal. Another deciding factor could be whether the polish and professionalism of your presentation match those of your proposal. These considerations should affect your planning as you put your presentation team together.

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Your Presentation Contents

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There’s no one way to organize a presentation. The “best” way depends on the nature of the project, the level of knowledge your client’s decision makers have about the technical and other aspects of the work, and the style of presentation that best matches your client’s expectations and the personalities of your presenting team. Winning presentations, however, tend to share a few characteristics: > They focus directly on the wants and needs of the clients, addressing their key issues—nothing generic, nothing that looks like boilerplate, nothing extraneous to the client’s concerns about this particular project. > They’re as simple and concise as possible— even slightly oversimplified, where it’s safe to be so. It’s better to let the client’s team ask about details that interest them than to bore them— or even worse, confuse them—with an unnecessary depth of detail. > Visuals support the discussion, not the other way around. 171

Your Preparation Has Already Started

Who’s on the Selection Team? Learn as much as you can:

> How many people? > Does each have a vote?

> Who are they? > Are they laypeople? Architects?

> What are their backgrounds and interests?

> What’s likely to appeal to them? To turn them off?

> Is it appropriate to contact them?

> Which of your competitors will be giving presentations?

Presumably you did your marketing thoroughly before writing your proposal; otherwise you probably wouldn’t have been given an opportunity to present. So you’ve already begun preparations for making your winning presentation. The most important element in any successful presentation is knowing the audience. And because you’ve been doing your marketing, you’re not walking into a roomful of strangers. You’ve been building personal relationships with these clients. You have a pretty good understanding of their business, their market, and their competition. You know what they care about, how they operate, and how they make important decisions, such as which A/E/C firm to hire. You probably know some individuals in the room; you might even know some of them very well. This puts you at a distinct advantage over competitors who might have written a great proposal but don’t have a personal relationship with the client. If client decision makers already know you and like you, they’ll probably overlook minor mistakes in your presentation; otherwise, a minor mistake might put you out of the running. This doesn’t mean, of course, that you can let familiarity cause you to be careless. Clients don’t like to feel that you take them for granted. Besides, your thoughtful, focused presentation will convince them that this professionalism will carry over into your work on their project.

Most Important Messages It’s an unfortunate fact of public speaking that most people in your audience will not remember most of 172


what you say. It’s up to you to make sure that they remember what you most want them to remember. Chapter 6 discussed the importance of identifying and articulating a theme, or themes, that run throughout your proposal. It’s just as important to identify themes that will run throughout your presentation. Unless your ongoing marketing intelligence has revealed new information that would cause you to think otherwise, the themes you used in your proposal will probably constitute the most important messages in your presentation. It’s a good idea to write down these themes and keep them in a prominent place, where you can refer to them constantly as you prepare your presentation. This will help you focus your remarks. Clients don’t want you to share everything you know; they don’t need to listen to you talk about every project you’ve ever done. They want to know what you can offer at this specific time to this particular project. Your theme statements reflect the good thinking you’ve already done in this regard. Of course, what you say is only one part of the message that they’ll remember. The other part is how you say it, through the visuals you choose; your attitude, body language, and dress; and your general behavior before, during, and after the presentation. They’ll remember some of what you say, and they’ll remember how they felt about you while you were saying it.

Getting the Tone Right One of the most difficult challenges in preparing a presentation is to write it in the appropriate emotional tone. Your Presentation Contents

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Left Brain/Right Brain Presentations People tend to assume that others react, learn, and remember the same way they do. This isn’t necessarily the case. Left-brain/right-brain theory can help predict how some potential clients will react to your presentation. Left-brain thinking is logical, analytical, detailed, systematic. Right-brain thinking is innovative, creative, artistic, intuitive. It’s important to remember that people with an extreme left-brained approach often have a subconscious distrust of, and discomfort with, right-brained approaches. Conversely, extreme right-brainers find the left-brained approach unimaginative, boring, and plodding. A characteristic of presentations by “also-ran” firms is that they tend to be heavily left-brained. But emotions nearly always play a key role in the total decisionmaking process, even if left-brainers don’t want to admit it. So presentations that are a mixture of left-brain and right-brain approaches are more apt to win than the traditional left-brain approach. Know the people who are making the decisions, and construct your presentation (and your team) accordingly.

Successful presenters are aware of the emotional tone of the decision-making group and figure out how to match it. For example, if the client’s team is excited about the prestige or other benefit this project will bring them, develop a manner and upbeat tone that echoes their excitement. If they’re apt to be stodgy, factual, and maybe a little cautious, be exacting, detail-oriented, serious, straitlaced. If they’re likely to be impatient and in a hurry, concentrate on being concise and emphasize bottom-line benefits while you touch lightly on details (where it’s safe to do so). Achieving the correct emotional tone is a major reason for honoring the first principle of presentation making, which is to know your audience.

Your Choice of Words Will Matter Highly successful presenters use clear, straightforward, simple language. There’s no point in using a 174


long word when a short one will do; you’ll only appear pretentious and open the door to misunderstanding. Talk about the client’s project in the same terms the client uses, use only the jargon the client uses, become familiar with the terms commonly used in the client’s industry. Just as in your proposal, you’ll want to avoid the dreaded “we” —we’ve done this, we’re experts at that, we’re interested in this. But your proposal should be studded with “you”—when you take this approach, when your priority is such-and-such. You’ll also want to avoid superlatives. Let your achievements speak for themselves. Describe them factually; lean toward understatement rather than overstatement.

Why Should the Client Hire You? Make a list of 10 reasons why the client should hire you. Some of these will revolve around what your firm has to offer, others around your personal and professional qualifications. Take the client’s key issues and hot buttons into account. Keep this list in the back of your mind and draw on it when answering the selection team’s questions during formal and informal conversations.

How Far Out of the Box Can You Go? Many presentations look alike. Doing something unique or very imaginative will separate you from the crowd and give your selection team a reason to remember you. Of course, it’s also risky. For example, four design-build firms were making presentations on a university project. They all came in the afternoon, toured the area, learned about the project, and drew numbers to determine the speaking order for the next day. None had enough detail to totally preplan their presentations. The winning team had arrived with flip charts blank, except for the university colors. That night, they customized messages based on what they had heard during the day. A member with excellent signmaking skills filled in the flip charts. Your Presentation Contents

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For another university presentation, the winning team showed their enthusiasm by giving their presentation dressed in sweatshirts and hats with the university colors and logos. Brainstorm ideas about what you could do that would be different and special, as an addition to your normally excellent presentation. Then test your ideas on the people in your firm who know the client best; include your resident curmudgeon.

Where to Start? For your first draft, you might try building your presentation around the selection criteria, considering how your themes or key messages apply to each criterion. > Decide which of your team members will address which subject. Keep this simple and coherent; you don’t want speakers constantly popping up and down, and you don’t want to make the clients feel as if they’re being bounced around from one presenter to another. > Decide roughly how much time you’ll devote to each major subject. If you find, after working with the material for a while, that your original order doesn’t work, you will at least have a clear idea of what proportion of the allotted time you’ll spend on each important topic. Of course, if the client has given you an outline or a set of questions they want you to address, follow their instructions exactly.

The Beginning The beginning and the conclusion are probably the two most important parts of your presentation. 176


The start of your presentation is crucial for a number of reasons: > It sets the tone for the whole presentation. > It’s where you capture the group’s attention. > It’s the one time that you can be almost absolutely sure that everyone is paying attention. Listening is hard work; minds tend to wander. As you begin to speak, members of the selection team are taking your measure, deciding if you’ll be pleasant to listen to, assessing your confidence and enthusiasm, gauging your grasp of their project. So start with something important: a reference to their most serious hot button—or one of your themes—or a pertinent observation that grew out of your study of the project. You might start by reviewing the key issues and asking for their input; then review your team structure and how your team will address each of these issues. Of course, you want to thank them for the opportunity to make the presentation. But you can do that later (or earlier). You don’t want it to be the first part of your formal presentation. Set your presentation apart by starting with a statement that will make them sit up and take notice. Never start with an apology. If you were a little late, if your main presenter was suddenly taken ill and you’re going with the second string, if you’re using your second-best presentation because your FedEx package went astray, just make the best of the situation and forge ahead. The problem might be something the clients wouldn’t even notice if you didn’t point it out. An apology sets a negative tone that you can do without. And starting with an apology robs you of the chance to impress the clients with your very first statement. Your Presentation Contents

Listening Is Hard Work During any oral presentation, listeners’ minds tend to wander. Even if they manage to stay with you, they won’t remember everything you say. Build elements into your presentation that will help them listen and remember:

> Begin strong, end strong.

> Repeat and restate your most important messages throughout the presentation.

> Use simple visuals containing only the information that’s necessary to support your major messages.

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The Conclusion Many firms carefully prepare their presentations but don’t give any thought or rehearsal time to creating a powerful conclusion; at the end, the discussion just sort of fades away. Yet whatever you say last is likely to be remembered. > A good conclusion leaves a strong impression. > It provides a summary and reinforces the themes and hot buttons you’ve been discussing throughout. > It strengthens the emotional connection you’ve been creating between your team and the client’s team from the moment of your first contact. Excellent presenters prepare carefully rehearsed conclusions. Of course, there’s always a chance that, during the discussion, they’ll sense that they must adapt it or change it. If that’s the case, they compose a new one, so that the discussion ends forcefully.

Transitions Making the Transition If you’ve tried organizing your presentation by selection criteria and can’t figure out how to transition between ideas, maybe you need to try a different organizational structure.

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Smooth transitions between one idea and the next are a mark of a professional presentation. The deadliest transitions (which are also the most common) go like this: “On our next slide . . .” or “Now that we’re done with Section Two, we’ll move onto Section Three. . . .” A dynamic transition closes one section, grabs listeners’ attention, and carries them into the next session while setting the tone of what you’re going to say. For example: “It’s tough to achieve, but here’s how we’ll be able to do it . . . ” Your Presentation Contents

“Although there are clear benefits to design-build, there’s one big problem you really have to watch out for . . .”

Or, to introduce a totally new topic, not “Now let’s talk about quality assurance”

but “Clear and timely communication is the foundation of our quality assurance system.”

The Presentation Agenda Before you attend the presentation, prepare an agenda, which you’ll give to the client’s team before you start your presentation. Include: > Names of project team members who are at the meeting > A brief description of each person’s responsibilities in this project > Bulleted items with eye-catching phrases about each major point in your presentation, in the order in which you address them > Team organization chart, with the names of team members at the meeting highlighted This is the only handout the selection team should receive before your presentation. Save other handouts until the end. Perhaps you noticed that we put the Contents chapter before the Visuals chapter. Presenters who have exciting visuals or graphic capabilities sometimes think of visuals first and build the presentation around them. But strategic thinking comes first when preparing your presentation, just as when you prepared the proposal. This alignment ensures that Your Presentation Contents

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all elements of your presentation are focused on those points that will be most meaningful to the selection team.

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Before you think about visuals, determine what your overall factual and emotional messages should be. Then decide how visuals can support them, in the clearest, simplest, most direct way. The best course is to use as few visuals as possible, but to make them of high quality. A major objective of your presentation is to build a trusting relationship with your potential clients. It’s hard to do that in a darkened room while decision makers look at computer images instead of at you. The most important visual in the presentation is you. Somewhere between 5 and 15 visuals are about right for a typical presentation. These might include flip charts, presentation boards, and computer-generated visuals. The purpose of the visuals is to provide the framework for what you want to say. All visuals should be customized, without a hint of boilerplate. If you create your presentation to reflect the design decisions you made when you prepared your proposal, all your material will work together to present a unified image. 181

Which Technology? The technology you use depends on a number of factors: > Nature of the project > Type of information you need to illustrate > Personalities of the key decision makers > Limitations of the room where you’ll be presenting > Cost to produce visuals (as related to the potential fee), and whether you can produce them inhouse > Logistics of getting them to the presentation, if you have to travel

Flip Charts and Presentation Boards

If schedule is more important . . . than other aspects of the project, create a graphic representation of a schedule and illustrate time-saving alternatives during your presentation.

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If you decide to use these traditional methods of presenting information, choose the standard 30-inch by 40-inch size. On the flip chart, whether you’ve prepared it in advance or write on it during the discussion, make the print large enough and bold enough to be read from 12 feet away. Writing on prepared visuals during the presentation emphasizes that these aren’t generic pieces that you’re trying to save for the next presentation, that you’ve created them just for this one. (Drawing during a presentation is a very effective technique, by the way. Clients who can’t draw are often fascinated by someone’s ability to illustrate his or her point.) On the presentation board, make type as large as possible to accommodate the necessary information. Be critical about what is “necessary” and eliminate data you can do without for this purpose. Visuals

The Room Makes a Difference The room where you make your presentation can affect your success. It can have both physical and psychological implications. If at all possible, ask to visit the room in advance so you can get a sense of your surroundings before you design your visuals and before you rehearse your presentation. You might even ask permission to rehearse there. What should you look for?

> Does the room hold audiovisual equipment that you’ll be expected to use? Are you confident that you’ll be able to run it?

> If you bring your own equipment, how will you set it up? Are there enough electrical outlets, and where are they? Will you need to bring extension cords? > Can the room be darkened enough so that your slides display clearly, yet leave enough light for people who want to take notes? > Is there a place to set up flip charts and foam-core boards so that they will be visible to all the participants? > What’s the furniture like? Barely comfortable? Too comfortable? How is it arranged? Can it be rearranged? > Does the room have an open feeling, with lots of windows and visible sky and landscape, or does it have a closed-in atmosphere? > Do photos, paintings, or portraits of the client’s founders decorate the walls? > What does the décor of the room tell you about this client’s culture, style, and expectations? The importance of the room is this: As you write your presentation, prepare your visuals, and rehearse, you can keep this room in mind. Imagine where your team members will sit and how your visuals will be placed. Imagine your team presenting in this environment. Winning presenters leave as little to chance as possible.

If you’re using boards with several images, such as to show your previous work, use only three to five boards. The projects should relate directly to the one under discussion. Also, use boards to show elements of the project, such as site plots and floor plans. An advantage of presentation boards is that, in many rooms, they can be brought to the conference table so that people can take a closer look. Visuals

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Benefits and Pitfalls of Presentation Software If you take your own audiovisual equipment . . . follow a checklist to ensure that you bring everything you could possibly need. Don’t hold up the presentation while somebody searches for an extension cord.

Presentation software makes it easy to create beautiful, complex images in millions of colors. That’s why it’s so dangerous. Before you know it, the technology is determining the presentation, not the other way around. And you’re spending your time creating dazzling computer graphics instead of planning and rehearsing your presentation. Before you decide to use such software, compare carefully each of these benefits to its pitfall: Benefits

Pitfalls

You can easily create your own high-quality visuals once you master the software.

It’s too easy. People do it whether they have any design sense or not, resulting in a mishmash of graphics.

You may choose from thousands of colors and hundreds of typefaces.

Variety is tempting, but you need only two or three colors and one or two typefaces.

You can maintain a database of all sorts of visuals and insert them in any presentation.

Each presentation should be custom-made. Fight the temptation to use boilerplate.

You can make changes Not a good idea, since you’ve been up until the last minute. rehearsing with another version. Also, this benefit invites people to wait until the last minute to prepare the presentation. When the technology works well, you look very professional.

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When the technology doesn’t work, you look like a bumbler: software crashes or develops a glitch; your equipment’s not compatible with what’s in the room; it’s cumbersome to bring your own if you have to travel. A small thing such as a missing connecting cable can ruin your plans. Visuals

To achieve a professional on-screen appearance: > Aim for consistency and simplicity. > Develop a simple template that includes your logo in an unobtrusive spot, and use it for all the slides. > Choose a couple of complementary colors: a dark color for background, a lighter color for text, or vice versa. You might use your corporate colors, or client colors, or colors that have some particular meaning for this project. Test them on a big screen and in a room that is not totally dark, to make sure they can be read under those conditions. Many colors look fine on the computer monitor, but wash out on the wall or screen. > Choose one typeface—two at the most, one for text and one for headlines—in as large a size as possible. Use the same size throughout the presentation. Test typefaces for readability as you test the colors. > Put no more than six lines of type on any word slide. Three or four are better. > Choose words carefully. Use key words, not whole sentences. > Keep graphics and photos as large and as simple as possible. > Show only data you need for your presentation. > Keep animation and sound simple. Unless you really need them to support what you’re saying, they’re apt to be a distraction. > Design an opening image and a closing image— especially a closing image. At the end, it’s easy to get caught up in the discussion and forget to turn off the computer to remove the final Visuals

The place for glitz . . . is when the client is high-tech, they want to view you as high-tech, and their personalities are such that they get excited by the latest in complex computergenerated audiovisuals. In other situations, decision makers can be turned off if the presentation seems too slick. Match your technology to your audience.

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image. So create one that reinforces the connection between you and this project, or you and this client.

What about Leave-Behinds? Think like the client. What would you want in your hand after this presentation? > A printout of your visuals might be a help. > Some firms leave only what the client has asked for: the management plan, for example, or specific drawings, or quality management guidelines. > Some firms provide something extra, perhaps an article by the project manager that appeared in a professional journal. Whatever you choose to leave behind, bring enough for all members of the selection team. Tuck the material into presentation folders, either your company’s folder or one produced for this presentation. Unless the folder contains material that people will need to refer to during your presentation, give it to them at the end. Otherwise, some people will flip through it during your presentation (it’s human nature). This is very disconcerting to the speaker. As you plan your visuals and the technology you’ll use, review all the presentations you’ve sat through. What worked and what didn’t? What pleased you and what annoyed you? What clarified the messages and what confused you? Imagine that you’re on the client’s selection team. How can you make sure that your visuals will inspire them to react the way you want them to?

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Preparing and Rehearsing

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When making a presentation, you’re on stage from the moment you drive into the client’s parking lot until the moment you leave, not just during the formal presentation, so as you prepare, imagine the entire scenario. Talk through it with the members of your presentation team. Rehearse your presentation.

Set the Tone Decision makers will put trust in you and your firm if you’re warm, fully professional, sincere, honest, confident, and enthusiastic—also powerful, in the sense of motivated, focused, capable, unpretentious, approachable, other-person-oriented, and a good listener. (There’s also a “bad” powerful—overly aggressive, overbearing, pretentious, and self-centered—that turns people off.) Setting this positive tone when you first meet people doesn’t guarantee success, but not setting it erects hurdles that are difficult to overcome later. 187

A handshake . . . seems like such a trivial thing, but it’s an important element in the impression you create. How much business has been lost because the key person betrayed a lack of confidence through a dead-fish handshake? Or acted overconfident (or overcompensated for lack of confidence) with a bone-crunching one? Or tried to dominate you with a double handshake? A winning handshake is medium-firm, relatively brief, accompanied by a natural smile while looking into the other person’s eyes.

How do you know whether you present yourself in such a way as to inspire confidence and trust? As difficult as this might be, ask your colleagues. Then listen, without commenting, to what they say. Practice making changes, if their comments seem valid. Your informal interactions can be just as important as your formal remarks. Setting the tone begins well before you make your presentation. It’s not unusual for a potential client to watch out the window, take note of your composure (or lack of it) as you unpack your equipment, and walk through the parking lot. And how many jobs have been lost when the impression left by an excellent presentation was negated by casual remarks made later at a cocktail party? Of course, this discussion about tone assumes that you really are genuinely enthusiastic about this project and about working with this client; otherwise, why are you doing this? If you perceive things about the project that disturb you, make them discussion items. Probe them diplomatically and professionally. Clients will appreciate your honesty, and you’ll begin with a clear, more focused view of the project.

Establish Your Presentation Style Your Voice By the time you get to the presentation, you’ll know the material very well. In fact, you might even be a little bored with it so you might be tempted to rush through, perhaps in a monotone. Keep in mind that much of the impression you create will be the result of how you use, and vary, your voice. You want your enthusiasm to shine 188


through. Practice how you’ll do that. (Professional presenters know that it takes a lot of practice to appear spontaneous.) The most common problems with the voice are speaking too fast and speaking at the same rate, tone, and volume throughout. > Slow down. If you speak at a rate just a little bit slower than your normal rate, it will seem strange to you, but it will sound just right to your listeners.

Persuasion . . . is a two-step process. First, people react emotionally to you. Then they look for logical reasons to support their emotional reaction; they discount reasons to contradict it. So how you say something can be as important as what you say.

> Vary your voice. If you don’t, even the most fabulous presentation will become monotonous and boring. > Slow down on a point you want to emphasize. Or pause before you make a main point or draw a conclusion. > Don’t be too loud for the room. Loud voices are generally seen as indicating authority, confidence, and knowledge, but monitor the volume. > Maintain your natural pitch. Usually when speakers want to speak more loudly, they also unconsciously speak at a higher pitch. With practice, you can learn to speak louder, but at or below your normal pitch. > Learn to modulate your natural animation slightly. Your voice naturally has some animation. If you’re normally a soft-spoken person, for example, you can learn to exaggerate it; it might sound forced to you, but it won’t to your listeners. > Avoid singsong or repeating patterns. For example, don’t start every sentence loud and end soft. > Learn to avoid interjections such as “uh,” “you know,” “so.” Preparing and Rehearsing

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Gestures Most gestures are spontaneous. Some can be preplanned and practiced; others can’t. Primarily, gestures come as a natural response to what you’re saying and the emotion that you feel. However, each movement should be definite and purposeful. Otherwise, they become a distraction. > Avoid pacing, rocking from side to side, leaning on the lectern, jiggling the coins in your pocket. > If you can’t figure out what to do with your hands, keep your arms at your sides, elbows bent slightly, with your hands clasped gently in front of you (not in a death grip). Encourage Interaction Rather than approaching the meeting with a mindset that says, “I have to give a presentation,” think, “We’re going to have a highly positive, productive, interactive discussion with our future client.” > Ask the client questions so that you understand their concerns. Or restate what you believe the client is looking for and ask if this is correct or if they have anything to add. > Use their names. > Invite them to ask you questions. > Don’t plan to fill up all your allotted time with your formal presentation; leave time for discussion. > Don’t use humor unless: you do it really well; it fits in with your natural presentation style; you know your clients very well; the joke or anecdote exactly illustrates something you want to say; and it’s totally inoffensive to men and women of every age, ethnicity, and cultural background. 190


Tame Those Butterflies Most people are nervous about speaking in public. It becomes a serious problem only if the jitters prevent you from achieving the objectives of your presentation. If that’s the case, you would benefit from training by a speech coach, taking classes, or joining a Toastmasters chapter. Most of the time, you can overcome the butterflies with practice. Look for opportunities to speak in less-threatening situations than a formal presentation to a client’s selection committee. The more you do it, the easier it becomes. But it will probably never be easy. And it shouldn’t be. A little bit of nervousness keeps you alert, focused, and “up” for this audience. Also: > Be prepared. Thorough knowledge of the subject, an understanding of the selection committee, and complete familiarity with your presentation will make you feel more relaxed and confident. > Rehearse the presentation, out loud, exactly as you plan to give it. Ask your fellow team members to critique you, and take their suggestions seriously. Some professional speakers advise that, if you’re intimidated standing in front of an audience, you should imagine them all sitting there in their underwear. This apparently works for some people. Maybe it will work for you. It’s probably more helpful to remember that the client liked your proposal enough to invite you to present, so the decision makers are looking forward to what you have to say; they’ve already decided that you’re capable of doing the job, and they want you to do well. Preparing and Rehearsing

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Don’t tell the client’s team that you’re nervous. They probably already know. If they don’t, there’s no need to bring it up. Besides, you won’t be so nervous if you pretend you’re not. Don’t Memorize, Don’t Read the Text Some people think they might feel more confident if they memorize the presentation. But this is hazardous, for several reasons. If you leave something out, or you make a mistake, or if someone interrupts to ask a question, it can throw everything else off. Also, reciting a memorized text sounds stilted. Other people feel more confident reading the text of the presentation. From the selection team’s point of view, this can be deadly. They want to look into your eyes, not watch the top of your head. And you need to look into their eyes to see how they’re responding to your remarks. Reading a text is effective only if you’ve practiced so many times that you can glance at the text, capture the thought, and look at the group while you speak it. It’s better to speak from notes, as long as you’re very familiar with the notes. Make Eye Contact As just noted, eye contact with your listeners is crucial when you’re trying to establish, or reinforce, a personal relationship. Eye contact should be distributed fairly and evenly throughout the group. It should appear comfortable and natural, taking in everyone, but not spending too much time on any one person. It might seem natural to concentrate on those in the center of the group, but include those on the edges also. Sometimes speakers know, or think they know, who 192


the key decision maker is, and spend too much time talking directly to that person. This alienates everybody else. Avoid spending too much time looking at your notes, your visuals, the walls, the ceiling, or the floor. While other people are looking at your visuals, you can take the opportunity to look at the client, to gauge their interest level, and reaction. Rehearse Real rehearsals are tough. Many firms hate to spend the time, energy, and effort to do full-blown rehearsals. But thorough rehearsals improve the quality and effectiveness of any presentation. Going over it in your mind, chatting through the agenda with your team, practicing in the car on your way to the presentation, trying to rehearse in the presentation room right before the client arrives: these are all “rehearsal” techniques used by firms that don’t ultimately get the job. Rehearse your presentation exactly as you plan to give it, before an actual audience. Make sure team members know when you will call on them to speak; have them rehearse their remarks also. In addition to your presentation team, include in your rehearsal a “mock audience,” others from your firm who will give an objective and helpful critique; you might also invite an independent outside evaluator. Invite people who can think like the client and react like the client.

Ask the potential client if your marketing manager may sit in . . . on the presentation to critique your team. At the presentation, introduce him or her and reiterate the purpose for that person’s involvement. You’ll get valuable feedback, and you’ll show that you’re committed to quality.

> Have someone videotape the presentation, then join in the critique. > Do more than one rehearsal. Two or three rehearsals might suffice; after that, people might get tired and bored, and that’s not the impresPreparing and Rehearsing

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sion you want to create. But keep revising, improving, and rehearsing until everything seems right. If possible, leave a day or two between the rehearsal and the presentation; that way, what you’ve learned at rehearsal will have time to sink into your subconscious, and you’ll be a little more relaxed during the actual presentation. Stay Below the Time Limit If you’re allowed one hour to make your presentation, make it 40 to 45 minutes long; in other words, use 65 to 75 percent of the time you’re allotted. That way, if the client is running late, or interrupts your presentation to ask questions, or some other delay arises, you’ll still have time to finish. As you rehearse, assign someone to keep track of the time. If, at your rehearsal, you exceed the time allowed, you’re going to have to leave something out. Better to discover that now than to run out of time during the actual presentation and not be able to make some key points. Prepare for Q&A With your team members and others who know the client and the project, brainstorm a list of questions they might ask, then practice answering them. Don’t be easy on yourself. The tougher the questions, the better prepared you’ll feel. Start with questions you’ve been asked in previous sessions. It’s a good idea to keep a list of such questions and update it from time to time. Some questions that routinely arise include: > Is the project manager clearly designated as the day-to-day contact? 194


> Is your team competent, proven? > Is your project management team credible? > Do you and your consultants have the resources to back up your team? > Is your track record solid in terms of cost, schedule, and quality control? Presumably, you will have answered most of these questions in your presentation and the client won’t have to ask. If, however, someone asks a question that you’ve answered during the presentation, go back to what you said—return to that visual if you have one—and patiently say it again. Sometimes clients want to know what percentage of individuals’ time will be spent on the project. Answer with a range, from low to high, throughout the time that they’ll be involved. If someone on the selection team becomes argumentative, don’t get defensive or annoyed. Ask the rest of the committee to become involved, to see if others agree with that person’s position. Common Presentation Blunders

> Pressing too hard for a decision. > Selling the wrong job: for example, emphasizing engineering track record when the client’s real concern is access to information.

> Overconfidence, which results in not doing enough homework, having insufficient rehearsal, conveying the wrong attitude.

> Cultural insensitivity to ethnic, racial, or feminist issues. > Repeating information that’s in the proposal. > Including dead wood on the presentation team: bring only people who have something valuable to say.

> Being a pest (contacting decision makers too often before the presentation, trying to go around them in the corporate hierarchy). Preparing and Rehearsing

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Rehearsing: Evaluating the Presentation and the Presenter Use this checklist during rehearsals to help you improve the presentation.

The Presentation ❑ Tone and content customized to the needs and interests of the selection team. ❑ Introduction summarizes the important issues, captures attention. ❑ Organization: ideas are in logical or correct order. ❑ Transitions help listeners move smoothly from one idea to the next. ❑ Content addresses all the client’s hot buttons, key issues. ❑ Touches on all major themes. ❑ Correct quantity and quality of visual aids. ❑ Visual aids support the message. ❑ Conclusion is a strong wrap-up. ❑ Overall, achieves the objectives. ❑ Stays under the time allotted.

The Presenter ❑ Demeanor inspires confidence. ❑ Speaks clearly, smoothly, grammatically. ❑ Speaks at a pace that’s comfortable for the audience. ❑ Maintains interest by varying voice tone, volume, pauses. ❑ Gestures are purposeful, controlled, appropriate. ❑ Maintains proper eye contact. ❑ Conveys enthusiasm, friendliness, openness. ❑ Is clearly knowledgeable about the project and the work involved.

As you rehearse your presentation, have your mock audience fire questions at you. Remember your most important messages and the reasons that you and your firm are right for this project. Use these thoughts in your answers. Practice keeping your cool. 196


Besides considering questions that the client might ask you, prepare questions that you might ask them. This will get the discussion going if they don’t immediately have questions for you.

Remember: You Can’t Practice Everything No matter what you do to envision the room, the selection team, and your presentation, you can’t always prepare for everything—the client runs late and asks you to shorten your presentation. People you didn’t expect are added to their team at the last minute. One of your presenters calls in sick. If you keep in mind what you want to accomplish and the messages you want to get across, if you’re well-prepared, and if you take a “we-can-adapt” mind-set, you’ll have the confidence to switch gears and still make a winning presentation.


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Afterward

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After you’ve made a presentation, maintain contact with the client: write a letter thanking them for the opportunity; reinforce how much you want the job. This follow-up can be a swaying factor in the selection committee’s final decision.

The Debriefing The debriefing is a formal step in the proposalwriting process. You want to continuously improve the process. Whatever you learn this time will help you with the next proposal. If you won the project, how did you do it? If another firm got the job, what could you have done better? Do the debriefing as soon as possible after you hear who got the project, so that all the events are fresh in your mind. Involve the Client Set up a formal meeting with the client, especially if this was a major proposal. If a meeting is not possible 199

Keep Track of Presentation Costs When you have a clear grasp of how much your presentations cost, you’ll have the data to help you make strategic decisions about the time and other resources you should spend on a specific proposal. Include:

> Visits to the site and to the client

> Hours of staff members and principals

> Photographs and other visuals

> Equipment rentals > Costs to reproduce or print written material

or appropriate, set up a phone interview. If you know the client very well, though, you’ll probably learn more through informal conversations. If you won the job, the client will be happy to talk with you. And you might learn how to deliver better services during the project, as well as why they liked your proposal. If they didn’t give you the job, clients might be a little nervous about debriefing you, but if you approach them objectively and professionally—so they know you won’t complain or try to change their minds—they’ll be more open to the idea. There two good reasons for debriefing with the client when you’ve lost the project: > You’ll show that your firm was genuinely interested and would like to provide services to them; they’ll remember that for future proposals. > You’ll hear directly how they perceived the strengths and weaknesses of your proposal. Try to persuade the client to debrief you in person rather than by phone, so you can learn from body language and subtle messages. At the Debriefing Who should attend? The client champion, if you have one, should conduct the debriefing as part of the ongoing process of building a relationship with the client.1 Another executive who has the authority to change the process might also attend. Don’t involve the proposal manager or the project manager: they’re too deeply involved. During the meeting, don’t be defensive. Listen. Write down what the clients say. The important thing is their perceptions, whether they’re accurate or not. Maybe they misunderstood or misinterpreted

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Afterward

something you wrote: in this case, explain it more clearly on the next proposal. Or maybe, when you’ve had a chance to think about it, you’ll decide the client was right, and you need to fix the problem. Also: > Take notes. Compare impressions later. > Whatever you learn, share the information with your staff members who worked on the proposal. You’ll need their support the next time, and they should be kept up to date as members of the team. > Afterward, write a note to thank the “debriefers.” > Keep a proposal debriefing file. A successful proposal process—from initial strategic planning to the final debriefing on a specific proposal—requires time and attention. Too many A/E/C firms approach the job haphazardly, thereby wasting time, energy, and money chasing business that they can’t get or shouldn’t be doing. The best firms define criteria for evaluating opportunities, devise efficient systems and methods for writing work-winning proposals, and continuously evaluate their efforts. By following the suggestions and techniques described in this book, your firm will be among the best.

1


Georgia.

Afterward

201

Index

A Active voice, 77, 84, 89, 132 Agenda, presentations, 179–180 Appendix, 125–127 Award fee, 109 B Bindings, proposals, 145–146 Boilerplate, 134–136, 143 Brainstorming, 70–71 C Checklists: executive summary, 85 go/no-go evaluation criteria, 42–44 preproposal, 63 presentation evaluation, 196 project approach, 100 proposal, final check, 158 red team critique form, 155 203

Client-centered cover letters, 77, 79, 82 Client database, 15, 17–18 Clients: debriefing, 199–201 expectations, 51 presentation likes/dislikes, 165 repeat business, 11–12 Computer software, 15, 17, 124, 135, 137, 143, 151, 184–186 Contact management software, 17–18 Costs: marketing, 19 presentations, 200 proposals, 3, 20–21, 23 Cover letters, 64–65, 75–83 parts of, 77–79, 82–83 samples, 80–81 Critique form, red team review, 155 Cut sheets, 116–117 D Debriefing, 199–201 Delivery of proposals, 159 E Earned value/fixed price fees, 108–109 Editing, 151, 157–158 Electronic proposals, 148–151, 158–159 Evaluation criteria, go/no-go decisions, 42–44 Executive summary, 83–86 F Fees, 107–113 comparison of private-sector vs. public-sector pricing, 30 cost reduction, 110–111 204

Index

guidelines for presenting, 112 multiple overhead pools, 110 scope reduction, 103–104 Flip charts, 182 Fog Index, 132–134 G Gestures, 190, 192–193 Go/no-go decisions, 5, 33–44 evaluation criteria, 42–44 initial review of RFP, 36–39 saying “no,” 40–41 Goff, Tamara, 69, 72 Government contracting, 27–28, 110, 127–128 awards, comparison of, 31 pricing, 30 SF 254/255 forms, 123–125 SF 330 forms, 125 Graphics, 137, 142–144, 146, 150–151 Gross Margin Sold (GMS), 20–21 H Hands, use of, 190 Handshake, 188 Hit rate, 3, 20, 22, 34 Hot buttons, 48–50, 58–60, 78, 84, 86, 106–107, 116 Humor, use of, 190 I Information sources, marketing intelligence, 14, 16 Intranet use, 69, 154 Issues, Features, Benefits, Proofs (IFBP) analysis, 5–6, 47–51 Index

205

L Layout, 137–140 Leave-behinds, 186 Letter proposals, 29 Listening, 177 Lowest Credible Scope (LCS), 102–103 Lynch, Edward, 148–149 M Management proposals, 127–128 Marketing: 75/25 rule, 11, 20 costs, 19 essential functions, 10 responsibility assignments, 12–13 tracking efforts, 22–23 web use, 16 Matrix: experience, 119–120 project team, 92 Multiple overhead pools, 110 O Optional services, 100–101 Outline, proposals, 56 P Photographs, 91–92, 144 Preproposal checklist, 63 Preproposal meetings: client, 52–55 client interview questionnaire, 53–55 internal, 66–67 Presentation boards, 182–183 206

Index

Presentation software, 184–186 Presentation teams, 167–169 Presentation techniques, 173–176, 178–179, 188–193 location, 183 q & a, 194–197 tone, setting of, 173–174, 187–188 Presentations, 163–197 butterflies, 191–192 common mistakes, 195 content, 176–179 cost, 200 training, project managers, 166–167 winning presentations, characteristics of, 171 Pricing. See Fees Private-sector proposals, 25–27 pricing, 30 pros and cons, 27 Project database, 135 Project managers, 62–65, 164–167 Project teams, 92–95, 179 common errors in selection, 94 extended team, 92–93, 116 matrix, 92 organizational chart, 94 presentations, 167-169 résumés, 87–92 Proposal managers, 62–67 preproposal checklist, 63 responsibilities, 62, 66–67 Proposal teams, 65–66 Proposals: delivery, 159 electronic, 148–151, 158–159 Index

207

final checklist, 158 letter, 29 level of effort, 45–46 packaging, 144–148 plan, 61–62 schedule, 67 themes, 58–60 winning proposals, characteristics of, 4–5 Public-sector proposals. See Government contracting R Readability, 132–134 Red team review, 6, 64, 67, 153–156 References, 90, 119–120, 126 Rehearsals, 193–194, 196 Related experience, 115–121 Research, 13–17, 70 clients, 15, 17–18, 39 competitors, 16–17, 160 information sources, 14, 16 selection team, 172 Résumés, 87–95, 126 parts of, 88–92 photographs, use of, 91–92

résumé-tailoring questionnaire, 91 Rosenzweig, Pat, 69, 135, 154 S Sargent, Thomas N., 22–23, 25–28, 30, 38, 46, 68, 84, 127–128, 200 Saying “no,” 40–41 Schedules: presentation preparation, 169 proposal writing, 67 208

Index

Scope of services, 97–104 alternative scope, 103–104 common errors, 103 handling vague scope, 101–102 optional services, 100–101 work packages, 98–99 SF 254/255 forms, 123–125 SF 330 forms, 125 Statement of understanding, 97–98 Storyboard, 68–69 Strategic plans, 9–10, 33–35 Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats (SWOT) analysis, 47 T Table of contents, 83 Teams: presentations, 167–169 projects, 92–95, 116, 179 proposals, 65–66 Testimonials, 90, 120–121 Themes: presentations, 173 proposals, 58–60 Typeface, 139, 141–142, 185 V Value pricing, 111, 113 Visual aids, 181–186 Voice, use of, 188–189 W War room, 68 Web sites, 16, 39, 154 Index

209

Wired projects, 37 Work packages, 98–99 Writing style, 131–137 Y Yoakum, Barry, 80

210

Index

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