ten slides in ten minutes - the bid centre
DESCRIPTION
A brief look at what is required for a successful Bid CentreTRANSCRIPT
S S
1
Ten Slides in Ten Minutes: The Bid Centre [Capturing the Hearts and Minds of Prospects & Clients]
Presented by:
Bill Graham APM.APMP
December, 2013
2
Typical Bid Process Failures
• Misalignment of the process to the organisation’s way of working and other processes
• Too complex a process with the perception of little value being added
• Lack of training of the process across the organisation
• Lack of discipline and commitment by staff
• Senior management not enforcing sound governance
• Too cumbersome a process for the average time to compile submissions (overhead)
• Not integrated with other sales support functions.
Sales Services is the glue for all of the sales activities
Sales Services = Sales Operations + Bid Centre
3
Sales Services enables a Salesforce to Win
Sales Services is the ‘coupling’ of Sales Operations and a Bid Centre to support both sales leadership and the entire Salesforce in their endeavours [It is usually a Shared Service]
Bid Centre [Custodians of the Bid Process]
• Bid Managers [actively managing proposals]
• Proposal Co-ordinators [Standard content, Collation of additional content, final formatting , printing etc]
• Content Providers (virtual)
• Quality Assurance [External – Independent]
‘Typical’ Sales Services
3
4
The Bid Process must not be fragmented & needs a Custodian
Sales
Solution/s Architecture
Finance
Prospect Lead gen. Qualify
Design
Craft Bid
Pricing
P&L
Review Submit
Bid Management
Legal Regulatory
Regions Cost/Price
Sales
Technical Design
Finance
Legal
Partners
Specialists *SMM/SME
Expert Involvement
* Subject Matter Master / Subject Matter Expert
5
Bid Centre Resourcing
Bid Centre Manager
Bid Managers Proposal
Co-ordinator/s
Strategically manage bid responses. Key activities are: • Building and managing
the Bid Team & Bid Control Plan (BCP)
• Building the proposal, ensuring customer focus and clear articulation
• Risk management – ensuring all risks are understood, mitigated or accepted
• Ensuring that applicable reviews occur during the bid process.
Resources based in a Bid Centre. Key activities are:
• Submission content
collation • Formatting of
content • Ensuring alignment
to branding policy • Graphical
representations • Lodging of
submission • Update of templates.
QA Consultant
External resource/s:
• Alignment of responses to client’s questions
• Grammar & spelling • Presentable format • Quality deliverable • Trusted advisor.
Custodian of the Bid Process
Final Quality Assurer
Professionally accredited resources
6
Bid Centre – Resource Accreditation
The Three Levels of APMP Accreditation:
Foundation: 1-3 years’ industry experience
Practitioner: 3-7 years’ industry experience
Professional: 7+ years’ industry experience
The Association of Proposal Management Professionals® (APMP®): the global association of record for Bid, Proposal, Business Development, Capture and Graphics Professionals.
7
Bid Centre [Typical Physical Infrastructure]
War Room #1 *
[for
large/complex bids]
War Room #2 *
[for
large/complex bids]
Bid Centre Manager*
Printer/s *
Hot Desks *
Secure Area #1
Secure Area #2
Collation Area
Collation Area
* Equipped with wireless/wired LAN connectivity
Proposal Co-ordinator/s*
Store Room
Bid Centre functionality should not be situated in open plan !
8
‘One Man’ Concern
Small Business
Medium Company
Large Corporation
Global Enterprise
Self Secretary Proposal Co-ordinator
Proposal Co-ordinator
Proposal Co-ordinator
Self Owner Manager(s) External QA External QA
Self Owner Manager & Partners
Business Units & Formalised Alliances
Professional Bid Team
Self Owner Manager Dedicated Bid Manager
Professional Bid Manager
Bid Admin.
QA
Bid Structure
Bid Management
Self Owner Manager(s) Subject Matter Experts
Subject Matter Experts
Content Providers
None Ad-hoc Limited (some documented)
Well Defined and Certified
Integrated & ISO Certified
Processes
Key Focus Area
Bid Process Maturity & Positioning [Key Focus Areas]
Self-Assessment Indicator
9
‘One Man’ Concern
Small Business
Medium Company
Large Corporation
Global Enterprise
Self Secretary Proposal Co-ordinator
Proposal Co-ordinator
Proposal Co-ordinator
Self Owner Manager(s) External QA External QA
Self Owner Manager & Partners
Business Units & Formalised Alliances
Professional Bid Team
Self Owner Manager Dedicated Bid Manager
Professional Bid Manager
Doc. structure
Content Quality
Role Clarity
Winning Potential
Self Owner Manager(s) Subject Matter Experts
Subject Matter Experts
Relevance to Client
None Ad-hoc Limited (some documented)
Well Defined and Certified
Integrated & ISO Certified
Timeous Deliverables
Key Impact
Area
Bid Process Maturity & Positioning [Key Impact Areas]
Self-Assessment Indicator
10
Client Centricity permeates a Sales Organisation
“Developing a clear, comprehensive picture of what the client is seeking is the
single most important part of your whole proposal preparation process - if you
get the requirement wrong, you’ll get the solution wrong.”
- McCann
Courtesy: Kristen L. Sweet & Sales Synthesis
Sales Services is the glue for all of the sales activities
Sales Services = Sales Operations + Bid Centre