A widely held belief among people doing federal business is that a protest costs far too much and is not good business because the agency will retaliate. I reject both claims as not being factual. Now a protest can cost hundreds of thousands,
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Decomposing a Solicitation can be Fun
The first step in the proposal writing process after receipt of the RFP is a detailed analysis of the RFP and "decomposition" of the RFP into a comprehensive proposal - solicitation compliance matrix.
Proposal Protests - Part 2
We recently wrote about the protest process. Here is more detail. Several places exist to protest. They include the Contracting Office (CO), any federal district court, the Washington, DC Federal Court of Appeals, and the General Accounting Office (GAO).
Proposal Protests - Part 1
This is one of the most interesting subjects regarding the procurement process. Many people dismiss the process as ineffective since only about 10-12% of protests win. But that reveals a lack of understanding. Most protests fail because they are unskillful.
Orals - Hey Coach! Help Me With My Body Language
Many times we forget that over 50% of the communications package that we deliver to our customers, friends, and families is body language. We rarely take the opportunity to explore what the body can do for us in delivering powerful oral presentations and answers to the Government's questions.
Orals - Knowing the Room Improves the Presentation
Knowing as much as you can about the room where you will present will help make your presenters more comfortable, confident!
Sole Source - The Voice of Experience
One of the most interesting subjects in government contracting is sole source. Sole source is so interesting because, it is fairly well defined, has very few court cases, and it is clear as to what is proper (only one firm can perform), but most of the involved parties do not understand how to handle sole source properly. Here are some vignettes regarding sole source.
Planning Proposal Admin and File Structure Saves Money
During the past 18 years, I have worked as a Proposal Manager / Technical Writer for many Fortune 500 companies and numerous medium and small businesses. My work has focused on helping Government contractors to prepare proposals ranging in size from $20,000 to $4 billion. These proposals have primarily been for contracts in the fields of telecommunications, information technology (IT), logistics, and base operations and maintenance (O&M) support contracts.
Tell 'em, and tell 'em, and tell 'em again
When I first heard this, I felt that he was just spouting an arcane cliché that had no real meaning. After all, I was the English major and he was the engineer. I knew about the use of repetition to add emphasis, but favored a more moderate use of the technique. The engineer was adamant, "We're gonna tell 'em three times! If we don't tell 'em three times, they ain't gonna get it!"
When Hunting for Contracts, Never use a Shotgun
As a proposal services vendor, I have been in a position to see how hundreds of companies select their business development targets over the past 15 years. This has included everything from small disadvantaged business to Fortune 50. It has amazed me to see that many companies, small and large, have pursued contracts with a shotgun rather than a rifle.
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