The past is not prologue: Each competition is a new event and you cannot assume that “the usual suspects” will be your opponents. Whether you’re pursuing a new contract or re-competing to win an old one, scanning your competitive landscape is important. This is an oft-discussed challenge, as seen by this sampling of common quotes…
In a previous blog posting, we discussed some of the key questions and priorities to keep in mind when qualifying (or disqualifying) a new lead as a real opportunity. Let’s expand on those basics, digging a little further into the What and How. When making pursuit decisions, knowledge is power. And so is consistency. New…
How many frustrating capture efforts have you watched fail because the functional roles of those assigned to the proposal were neither defined nor embraced? Such disarray is debilitating and avoidable. Every capture effort requires a well-defined team to be successful. While the participants may vary from task-to-task or stage-to-stage over the life of the capture…
As we do every year, many of us are wrestling with the latest array of new or re-competing multiple award IDIQ contracts. No doubt, it’s tempting to pursue each and every multiple award IDIQ contract that seems to be even a slight fit for your business. After all, what is a contract vehicle? It’s either…
Most businesses tend to use an overly simple metric when determining business-development success. It goes something like this: Are you winning contracts? If yes, then things are good and let’s do more of that. If no, then things are bad and “Off With Their Heads!” While this has its advantages (i.e., it doesn’t require much…
Federal business development veterans know all too well about the importance of a solid business development process. We’ve endured the countless classes, seminars, Kumbaya sessions heralding the necessity for 100+ steps from the time an opportunity is a twinkling in your eye until you get a confirmation of a win or the agonizing notice of…
