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Do We Need a Capture Manager? Four Key Questions To Ask Yourself
Most businesses that have spent time in Government contracting have a clear understanding of what a proposal manager does. They are the miracle workers who work crazy hours to lead the team in transforming a semi-complete, semi-coherent document full of unsubstantiated declarations of greatness and word sprinkles like “we’ll write about this stuff here” to […]
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Be Open to Feedback
If we learn anything from reality television, it is you need to be firm in your beliefs but open to feedback. Lacking a core constitution is a death sentence – no one wants to hire or invest in someone who has no conviction. At the same time, inflexibility condemns many more candidates to the no […]
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Three Key Ways to Develop Your Solution
Without a strong solution, our proposals are doomed to fail. A good solution explains our solution, focuses our writers, and makes sure we provide value to the client. If we do not have a strong solution, we are basically a rudderless ship. However, we cannot just will a great solution into being. It takes hard […]
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Top Four Takeaways from 2022 APMP BPC
What an amazing week in Dallas! For the first time in 3 years, bid and proposal professionals gathered for a full-blown APMP Bid and Proposal Conference, or BPC. It was my first time in attendance since the 2019 Orlando conference. I have to say I didn’t realize how much I had missed in-person conferences until […]
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Four Tips to Improving Your Proposal Resumes
The right key personnel can make or break a project. It makes sense the Government would require resumes for critical staff positions on their bids. In fact, a GAO protest resolved in December 2021 is among many that specifically target resumes and personnel as grounds for unfair evaluation. So, how can we make our key […]
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Three Top Tips to Working with a Hybrid Proposal Department
The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a dramatic shift in people’s lives. As the pandemic raged, many people took the opportunity to relocate. While everyone was working remotely, location was a minor concern. However, in the coming weeks and months, more firms will begin to welcome people back to the office. As the world continues […]
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Three Keys to Prepare for IDIQ Proposals
Multiple award Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contracts provide large and small companies with a critical tool to long-term corporate success. The limited field and pre-approval provides holders a great opportunity to quickly expand their experience. However, many small firms are justifiably concerned about the heavy lift required to put together a compliant, winning proposal. […]
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Top 4 Tips for Virtual Reviews
Proposal professionals have learned a great deal on how to handle remote bid development and management over the past year. I expect the changes made as a result of COVID-19 will remain with us even when we return to our new normal. One of the most important changes, in my view, is the increased acceptance […]
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BZ Opportunity Management Offers APMP Foundation Level Certification Course
We are super excited to offer our first LIVE, online training course for APMP Foundation Level Certification on Monday 12 April from 9a to 4p. As an APMP Approved Training Organization, you know you are getting the best possible training that aligns to APMP’s best practices and body of knowledge. This interactive online class covers […]
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BZ Opportunity Management Named APMP Approved Training Organization
We are excited to announce BZ Opportunity Management is now an APMP Approved Training Organization (ATO). ATOs provide training to those interested in achieving APMP Professional Certifications at the Foundation level. In the coming weeks, we will be rolling out online live and recorded training options to help you achieve your APMP Foundation level accreditation. […]
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Three Tips for a Successful Remote Conference Call
Recently, I posted a piece about key tips to set yourself up successfully to work from home. As COVID-19 continues to wreak havoc on our economy and professional environment, we have an increased need for online group conversations. Luckily, there has been a dramatic increase in the number and reliability of video teleconferencing (VTC) options available […]
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Three Keys for the Day of Your Oral Presentation
The Federal Government continues to explore ways to garner bidder information beyond from the traditional written proposal. A popular approach is to have the offerors provide an oral presentation to Government evaluators. These can take many different forms, from a traditional presentation to a rapid response scenario to a question and answer session. No matter […]
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Four Ways to Survive Remote Proposal Management
The spread and concern over COVID-19 has dramatically altered every aspect of our lives. From the global cancellation of major sporting events to runs on meat and paper goods at the supermarket, there is no part of our daily lives that has been untouched by this pandemic. For many companies, the requirement for social distancing […]
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Four Keys to a Successful Proposal Kickoff
A good proposal kickoff provides your team with the information and motivation to begin a winning effort. It sets up your team for success throughout the development cycle. A poor kickoff, on the other hand, delays content creation and results in more work later in the process. So how can you make sure your proposals […]
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Three Tips to a Successful Stand-up
There are several small components that are important for proposal success. To me, one of the most critical is the proposal stand-up. To have a successful bid, proposal leadership must have insight into how the bid is progressing and how the team is doing. Stand-ups are the best way to avoid being surprised during the […]
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Is There a Place for the War Room Any More?
We live in an interconnected world. When I have to travel to support my clients, I take some small comfort in being able to FaceTime to say good night to my children. I regularly use text messaging and WhatsApp to communicate with consultants and clients across the country and around the world. I recently led […]
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Kevin Switaj to Speak at Two APMP Regional Events
Kevin Switaj delivering his Ignite! talk at the Bid and Proposal Conference 2017. BZ Opportunity Management President and CEO, Kevin Switaj, has been picked to speak at two upcoming APMP regional conferences. Both presentations will build on Kevin’s “Lessons from the Mouse: Adding Creativity to the Proposal Lifecycle” presentation at the 2019 APMP Bid and […]
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Preparing for STARS III: Five DOs and DON’Ts
STARS III is a critical bid opportunity for any 8(a) certified small business. Missing out on a spot on this GSA vehicle can make the difference between explosive growth and struggling for opportunities. So, what do 8(a) firms need to do, and avoid, to successfully win a slot on the vehicle?
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Three Keys for a Successful USPTO BOSS RFI Submission
The acquisition cycle for the next iteration of the US Patent and Trademark Office’s (USPTO) IT contract feels like it has gone on nearly as long as the 130-year construction of Antonio Gaudi’s Sagrada Família cathedral in Barcelona. Called the Business Oriented Software Solutions (BOSS) contract, its release has been impacted by a new administration […]
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Adapt to Survive: Keeping Ahead of an Ever-Changing World
It’s an age old business adage – if you don’t change with the times, you get left behind. In today’s interconnected global economy, it happens faster than ever. While in graduate school, I worked at Borders Books and Music, which fell victim to an inability to sense the trend of internet sales. Kodak initially developed […]
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Be Confident: Three Tips to Project Strength in Your Oral Presentations
It happens all too often to those on business reality television. It might be the bright lights, the star power across from them, or the gravity of the moment. But no matter the cause, the loss of confidence during a pitch has doomed many people on Dragons’ Den or Shark Tank.
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Know Your Market: Three Free Ways to Gain Market Insights for Proposal Professionals
This post continues our Lessons from Business Reality TV series. Click here for the entire series.
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Embrace Solutions, Not Excuses: Three Approaches to Handling Challenging Situations
Like all reality television, business reality shows are built on drama. Many of these programs focus on helping failing and struggling business turn their operations around, usually with a heavy dose of “tough love.” For example:
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Know your Numbers! Three Key Steps to Having the Information You Need
It’s always the most dramatic moment in a pitch on Shark Tank. The entrepreneur has done a great job talking about his revolutionary new product and how it will take the world by storm. Then one of the business heavyweights asks the critical question: “What are your numbers?” <Crickets.>
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Seven Lessons to Learn from Business Reality Television
I have a problem. I am addicted to business reality television. You can keep the Bachelor and The Voice. Instead, I am drawn to the real-life struggles and lessons from shows like Shark Tank, The Profit, Undercover Boss, Bar Rescue, and more.
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Doing It Yourself: Three Tips to Leverage Your Experts
In our Better Proposal Writing series, we have covered Proposal section introductions, approach narratives, substantiation, and benefit statements. As we conclude our series we answer the age-old question: what do I do if my team just cannot write?
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Give Them a Reason To Care: Three Tips to Better Benefit Statements
So far in our “Better Proposal Writing” series, I have articulated the need for a strong, client-focused introduction; a well-constructed approach section; and hard-hitting substantiation. However, the one thing I have not discussed is how to gain the “bonus points” from an evaluator to get your proposal from Good to Outstanding.
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Kevin Switaj Selected to Present at SPAC 2018!
Kevin Switaj, President and CEO of BZ Opportunity Management, has been selected to present at the 21st annual Southern Proposal Accents Conference (SPAC). Hosted by the Georgia, Carolinas, and Florida APMP chapters, the conference focuses on APMP professionals across the Southeast region and beyond. This year’s conference theme is “The World of Proposals — From Start […]
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Shattering Proposal Myths: Myth 7 – We Only Need Proposal Professionals at the End
The company has been targeting an opportunity for a year. It has gone through all the necessary step reviews, has had dedicated capture resources, several client meetings, and the team has even developed win themes and solutions. The solicitation drops. The capture lead then poses the question: ‘who is our proposal manager?’
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Prove It! Three Tips to Creating Strong Substantiation Statements
In our “Better Proposal Writing” series, we have covered how to create a strong section introduction and how to craft compelling content to articulate an approach. Good proposals do not just state the work a company will perform. It also backs up the approach with proof statements explaining why it is the best option for the client. This […]
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Shattering Proposal Myths: Myth 6 – We Need to Tell a Story
Upon receiving the solicitation, the proposal manager develops an outline based on the requirements. After circulating it to the bid team, the capture lead sends a reply. He writes the structure “doesn’t flow” and demands changes because the outline does not allow him to tell the story he wants.
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Top Three Takeaways from 2018 Bid and Proposal Con
We are excited to launch a new feature on our blog – a video blog entry! Today, our President and CEO, Kevin Switaj, shares his top three takeaways from the 2018 APMP Bid and Proposal Conference in San Diego.
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Top 4 Tips for Writing Strong Proposal Narrative
In my last post, I wrote about the importance of a strong introduction and how it sets up each proposal section for success. The next component of a proposal section is the most important to the evaluator – the approach. In short, this is where you are scored. A poorly written or poorly structured approach leaves […]
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Four Tips to Make Your Proposal Introduction Stand Out
To quote a song in the classic film The Sound of Music, bid writing needs to “start at the very beginning, a very good place to start.” A good introduction to a proposal section can make the difference between winning and losing a bid. A strong opening catches the reader’s attention and makes him/her more likely […]
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The Three Key Components of Proposal Writing
Many people struggle with proposal writing. Even those who normally can develop strong narratives have difficulty putting together good proposal content. As proposal professionals, we are constantly helping people write and rewrite (and rewrite and rewrite) their sections. Why is that the case?
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Four Tools to Help Your Proposal Writing
Proposal writing is a tricky business. The ability to craft a compliant, clear, compelling narrative is the number one challenge facing almost every organization. Whether a company competes in the Government or commercial sector, everyone seems to have trouble getting enough people to contribute, and to put together high-quality content.
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SPAC 2018 – A Great Trip and Conference
The theme for SPAC 2018 was “Proposals from Start to Finish.” Much of the imagery chosen by the organizers revolved around travel. Little did they know the challenge those of us from the DC area would have getting to Atlanta!
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BZ Opportunity Management’s Kevin Switaj to Speak at 2018 Bid and Proposal Con!
BZ Opportunity Management President and CEO, Kevin Switaj, has been selected to present at the 2018 APMP Bid and Proposal Conference. Held 15-18 May in San Diego, CA, the conference is the largest gathering of opportunity life cycle professionals in the world. More than 900 people attended the 2017 conference, held in New Orleans.
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Three Key Tips to Winning at Orals
On 22 February, the National Capital Area chapter of the Association of Proposal Management Professionals hosted a roundtable discussion entitled “Winning Orals: Tips and Tools for Effective Oral Presentations.” Today’s federal marketplace is at a crossroads. Some clients still require traditional oral presentations. Others have moved to the “demonstration” approach, in which you develop a […]
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Three Lessons for Government Contractors from the 2019 Trump Budget
The President released his budget request, but Congress has the ultimate authority On Monday, the Trump Administration released its budget plan for the 2019 Government fiscal year. In its introduction, the President writes, “the Budget reflects our commitment to the safety, prosperity, and security of the American people.” (Efficient, Effective, Accountable: An American Budget, Office of […]
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Top 5 Reasons to Keep Color Team Reviews
Recently, there have been a lot of proposal professionals questioning the value of color team reviews as part of the proposal process. They argue the field needs to move to an Agile development process. Proponents of throwing out color teams view the traditional Blue-Pink-Red-Gold process as outdated, a dinosaur due for retirement like the smoke-filled […]
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Lessons from the Real World 3: Applying Business Examples to Opportunity Development
NOTE: This post is the third and final in a series of three posts expanding on ideas in a recent webinar I conducted for the APMP California chapter with the same title. be known for something When you are known for something, you create a better connection with the customer and increase satisfaction. Companies look […]
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Lessons from the Real World 2: Applying Business Examples to Opportunity Development
NOTE: This post is the second in a series of three posts expanding on ideas in a recent webinar I conducted for the APMP California chapter with the same title. customized standardization In today’s fast-paced world, being able to provide high-quality, repeatable processes can be the difference between success and failure. Nowhere has that trend […]
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How Humanities Graduates Excel at Communications
In anticipation of the release of my upcoming book The Well-Rounded Professional: Translating Humanities Skills to Career Success, I am writing blog posts about four of the critical skills developed in a humanities education. This week, I look at what might be the most obvious skill: written and verbal communications.
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Lessons from the Real World 1: Applying Business Examples to Opportunity Development
NOTE: This post is the first in a series of three posts expanding on ideas in a recent webinar I conducted for the APMP California chapter with the same title. Many people working in proposals think proposal development has little if anything in common with other professions. How often, for example, do you feel at […]
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Churchill and Orwell: A Review
I know this is a departure from my normal blog content, but I felt I needed to post a review of a book I just finished. George Orwell is my favorite writer. Every year I re-read Animal Farm (usually in a day or so) and 1984 gets re-read every 2 or 3 years. And anyone who attended my Ignite […]
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Being a Well Rounded Professional
As many of you know, I have a non-traditional background for someone engaged in senior management in business. When people find out that I have a PhD in history, they respond with either (or both) of the following reactions:
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Lessons from the Real World – Webinar Notes
On 30 August I had the pleasure of delivering a webinar for the APMP California chapter entitled, “Lessons from the Real World: Applying Business Examples to Opportunity Development.” I plan to write a couple of blog posts later in September that detail what I presented. Those posts will build on the main theme – that […]
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Shattering Proposal Myths: Myth 5 – Anyone Can Run a Proposal Effort
Scenario 1: The Government releases an opportunity worth about $5m annually. It aligns directly with Government Contractor ABC’s core work. With annual revenue of $70 million, senior management considers submitting a bid. They have a single proposal manager in the organization, and she is involved in two live bids. Senior management decides to bid, but […]
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You ARE an Expert!
At this year’s Bid and Proposal Conference, APMP hosted a workshop for chapter leaders for collectively solving issues that run across our local organizations. I took part in a discussion concerning how we can increase the number of people interested in speaking at our events, including conferences. As we discussed some great ideas to cast […]
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Shattering Proposal Myths: Myth 4 – We Need to Ask Lots of Questions!
After a solicitation has been released, the opportunity team reviews the documents and focuses on everything that is wrong. The solution lead develops a massive list of questions that includes every last piece of information they feel is needed to execute the contract properly. The capture lead tries to make up for a lack of […]
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Building from a Solid Foundation – Additional Information
First, I want to thank everyone who attended my webinar, presented by APMP-NCA, on 9 May. I really enjoyed the experience, and hope the attendees got relevant, actionable guidance out of it. I am putting together this post to be “show notes” for the webinar, and to answer the questions from the attendees that we […]
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SPAC 2017 a success!
I really enjoyed attending SPAC 2017. The entire conference was a great success. There were a number of engaging, informative speakers, and I know I came away with a lot of “a ha” ideas that I cannot wait to implement on my upcoming bids.
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Shattering Proposal Myths: Number Three – “I Know What the Client Wants!”
Overcoming proposal myths, one at a time! Proposal development continues to suffer from several key misperceptions from people both inside and outside Government contracting. This post is the third in a series that will seek to dispel these myths and, in the end, shed light on what we do and how we do it most […]
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Shattering Proposal Myths: Number 2 – We Don’t Have Time to Solution!
My new post is now available on LinkedIn. Click here to read it!