How to Work with Proposal Consultants - FEDERAL SECTOR REPORT

FEDERAL SECTOR REPORT

December 1998
(c) P2C2 Group, Inc.

How to Work with Proposal Consultants

How to Work with Proposal Consultants

How well an organization works with a proposal consultant will affect outcomes--including the success of the proposal. This month, the newsletter focuses on what grantees and contractors can do to improve the relationship and increase their chances of winning proposed revenues. In a future issue of the newsletter, we shall address the other side of the coin--what proposal consultants should do to improve their effectiveness in supporting client organizations. The term "proposal consultant" will be used, regardless of whether one or more consultants are on the team.

Defining the Work

The first task is to define what you want a proposal consultant to do. Examples of some of the dimensions are:

Responsibility: Take responsibility for producing a complete "turnkey proposal" ... or ... support your in-house team.
Duration: Be involved throughout the entire proposal lifecycle ... or ... participate only in one or two phases--such as bid identification, or strategy, or drafting, or "red team" reviewing, etc.
Content: Focus on the overall proposal ... or ... one proposal volume ... or ... a specialized topic in the technical, business, or cost proposal.
Authority: Make decisions ... or ... make suggestions.

You need to define the consultant's "scope of work." You should also agree on working procedures, work places, schedules, security, intellectual property, protocols for accessing your information and people, formats for deliverables, consulting fees, and when the consultant will be paid.

If you use proposal consultants frequently, you should develop and use written procedures and agreements--it will avoid misunderstandings. If you already have these documents, you should review them annually to make sure they are still effective.

Preparing

You will achieve better results if you prepare before the proposal consultant arrives at your doorstep. Here is a brief checklist:

Nondisclosure agreement (where the consultant agrees to keep your organization's knowledge, processes, and proposal confidential)
Consulting contract (if not yet signed)
Government's Request for Proposals
Relevant government background documents
Basic information about your organization, its structure, capabilities, personnel, and a summary of relevant past performance
Identification of your teaming partners (if already known) and basic information about them
Points of contact (phone numbers, fax, e-mail) within your organization
The concept paper outlining your winning strategy and themes (if already prepared)
The proposal storyboard (if already prepared)
A proposal development schedule (if already prepared)
A style sheet for words, graphics and numbers

You will not want to give all these documents to all proposal consultants. Restrict materials to the scope of their task. Strategic documents, such as your plan for winning, should be shared only with consultants who have your highest level of trust.

Expediting

A proposal consultant who is a professional will hate to waste time. Yet there are many times when your help is needed to expedite the proposal development process. Maybe a key piece of information is needed, and someone in your organization fails to return phone calls or answer e-mail. Maybe, if working at your site, the computer or printer assigned to the consultant isn't working properly. Maybe a teaming partner is unavailable. Maybe your photocopy machine breaks down just when the consultant needs to reproduce something.

The proposal consultant needs one or two people to contact for quick resolution of a wide range of potential problems. If the proposal consultant is spinning his or her wheels, your proposal is stalled.

Giving Feedback

Even the best proposal consultants (like yours truly, of course) need regular feedback. What do you think of this strategy? That idea? The outline? The draft? The technical or pricing solution? The graphic? The phrase? The word? The number?

Preparing a successful proposal is somewhat like delivering a missile to its target. The missile depends on continuous feedback from its cybernetic systems to make course corrections ... until it reaches the target. A proposal developer needs constant feedback to make certain that the proposal is on target. Without the feedback, the proposal may miss its target (and lose the competition).

Perfecting the Work

A seasoned proposal consultant should deliver competent work ... even first drafts. But the initial work needs to be perfected. In proposal competitions where one or two points (in ratings by government proposal reviewers) may make the difference between winning and losing, the initial work is only the "raw material" for success. Polish. Perfect. Improve.

Be sure to schedule time and budget consulting time for perfecting the consultant's work. It often makes the difference between winning and losing.

Developing a Relationship

Like a good wine, your relationship with a capable proposal consultant becomes better with age. The consultant who parachutes into your organization for a few weeks and then disappears will have a very limited understanding of your strengths, key personnel, past projects, and qualities that can help you win.

If you are pleased with the work of a proposal consultant, you should develop a long-term relationship. You can both profit from it.