March is Women’s History Month: Who Has Influenced You?
March is Women’s History Month, and I’ve seen several articles and posts about women who’ve influenced people for a variety of reasons both personally and professionally. I’m no exception to this. I could tell you the single most influential woman in my life was my mother (cliché but true) or a boss that helped me understand my value or a schoolteacher (more than one), and the truth is each one of these women has, in fact, influenced the person I am today. In addition to these real-life people, there’s a plethora of fictional characters through books, TV shows, and movies who’ve also played a part in who I am. Some of my favorite heroines include: Nancy Drew – As a young girl, I was fascinated by Nancy Drew and her friends, George and Bess. They didn’t wait for someone else to solve the mystery—they took charge and figured things out
APMP BPC ’23: How to Make an Entrance
It’s that time of year again! Time for APMP Bid and Proposal Conference (BPC), affectionately known as BidCon...time for reconnecting with old friends, networking with new colleagues, and discovering what’s new in the dynamic world of proposal management. Last year we talked about meeting new people, and how “always be introducing” helps us thrive at networking. How owning our space helps us own our power. How joining a random lunch table tells people we have
APMP-NCA Capture Power Breakfast Empowers Networking and Strategy
In March, APMP-NCA held its annual Capture Power Breakfast – an informative and engaging morning of strategy and networking with DMV federal and civilian capture management experts. The sold-out event, back in person for the first time since 2019, included eleven speakers sharing insights on today’s most pressing capture topics; everything from competitive intelligence and pricing to Gamestorming. What’s the competition's strategy? What does the program plan need to achieve? What is the most
How Qualification Improves Capture Planning: An Interview with Jennifer Namvar
Originally published on Patri’s website at https://patri.io/blog/2022/12/how-qualification-improves-capture-planning-an-interview-with-jennifer-namvar/ After 20 years of experience leading diverse teams to win $2B large, complex business development (BD), capture, and proposal efforts for the top federal government systems integrators within the United States defense and civilian agencies, Jennifer Namvar founded The Peerless Group. She is now focused on helping her clients succeed in capturing government contracts primarily in technology, engineering, and research and development (R&D) services and integration, up to
So You’re Just Getting Started In Proposals?
I’ve been asked about what guidance I would offer to an individual just starting out in proposal development. First and foremost, become an information “sponge.” © Dr. R.S. Frey. Known as the “Sponge Capital of the World,” Tarpon Springs, Florida, is an area where Greek immigrants settled during the early 1900s. Learn about the Federal acquisition lifecycle or commercial client’s buying cycle, as well as your organization’s Business Development, Capture Management, and Proposal
7 Quality Questions For Sales Calls
Among the many informative sessions at last month’s APMP-NCA Mid-Atlantic Conference, one struck me as especially brilliant. It provided an elegant tool to take along to those client or potential client meetings to accomplish what you need. You know those meetings; when you finally get the attention of the buyer in your target agency, and you know that running through a boring capability briefing is an easy way to fill the time and satisfy yourself
Don’t Make Me Think: 5 Ways to Improve Proposal Readability
This article is reposted from our corporate partner Key Solutions, Inc’s blog. The original post can be found here. In proposals, clear writing is critical to ensuring the evaluators understand your message. Even if you have the most valuable solution, if you can’t clearly articulate it, you won’t have a high chance of winning the work. Why is this the case? Because it’s simply difficult to score a proposals so evaluators can understand your solution
How to Get Your Company On-Board with Better Qualification
There are few things worse than finding yourself working late or on the weekend trying to wrap up a proposal you know your company will not win. Maybe the account executive thought, “why not, it’s worth the shot,” or a go-to-market leader thought your company needed to throw their hat in the ring or that they needed to respond because a competitor did as well. Whatever the case, you and your company are in a
How to Be Part of the Proposal Deadline Solution
The proposal tasks have been assigned for two weeks and a few contributing subject matter experts are overdue. The next Review is in two days. So, it’s probably a good time to pick up the phone. What do we say? If we start by reminding our colleagues about the deadline, they’ll probably tune us out. If we start by explaining the process, they’ll probably roll their eyes. If we start by reminding them about how
Five Reasons Why Your Company Should Be A Corporate Sponsor At The MAC
The MAC is Back In-Person! Ready to Reach Your Audience? Our Team is putting the final touches on the in-person return of the National Capital Area Chapter’s flagship conference, Wednesday, October 12th in Tysons Corner, Virginia. What’s in it for you? Here are five reasons why sponsoring the MAC helps you reach your business goals: 1) Sponsor the MAC and Get Your Brand Out There Industry veteran? New to the industry? Your goal is to
Christmas in July – You Should’ve Been There!
We had a great time at our July in-person meeting with Santa! Check out our video and photo gallery below for a recap:
Three Keys to Prepare for IDIQ Proposals
Republished from our corporate Partner BZ Opportunity Management. Visit their site at https://www.bzopportunity.com/ Multiple award Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contracts provide large and small companies with a critical tool for long-term corporate success. The limited field and pre-approval provide 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. There are three key pieces of advice
Why Recent Graduates are the Perfect Proposal Writers
Companies hiring proposal writers and coordinators should be scouring LinkedIn for recent graduates and jumping for joy when they apply. Why? Because college prepares all students, regardless of their major, to be good proposal writers. But in spite of this preparation, so many college graduates feel they’re not qualified for even entry-level jobs thanks to those six little words on the entry-level job ad: “three to five years of experience.” Hiring managers should consider counting
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