Managing Strategic Proposals

In this online, instructor-led course, you will learn essential skills for managing a proposal in government and other markets. Learn how to lead teams to produce proposals in response to a Request for Proposal (RFP) or other solicitation documents. You also learn key steps in proposal planning and execution, beginning with understanding all requirements to assigning and managing writers/contributors during all key milestones of proposal development.

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Managing Strategic Proposals

Workshop Details

Pricing To Win

This 2-day workshop teaches skills for business development, marketing, capture management, pricing, and finance personnel, including:

  • Understanding customers’ acquisition budgets, including sources and uses
  • Understanding customer assessments of bidders’ proposed prices/Price-capability trade-offs
  • Reviewing competitors’ probable solutions and likely pricing strategies and tactics
  • Iteratively adapting your company's solution, price, and capture strategy to improve win probability
  • Influencing customers to prefer your company's own solution and price over competitors’ prior to release of an RFP
  • Guiding proposal pricing efforts to ensure the offer places your organization in a position to compete and ultimately win
  • Securing the award after proposal submittal by refining and executing pricing strategies

Participants actively engage in hands-on exercises based on a real-world competitive opportunity. This fast-paced workshop builds skills and expands knowledge in this critical aspect of winning business.

Winning in the Cost Volume

Learn skills related to planning and writing sections in any portion of a proposal. Practice a proven process for planning content and layout of winning proposal sections. You will also learn how to ensure your section will score highly during evaluation through a government evaluation.

You will learn to:

  • Plan content using a storyboard to be compliant and implement approved proposal strategies
  • Incorporate effective graphics and captions to better communicate messages
  • Mockup section layout
  • Organize content to be persuasive, write the planned proposal section, and examine the section draft for effectiveness
  • Collaborate and coordinate with other team members writing different sections of the proposal

Managing Federal Proposals

Learn essential skills for managing a full proposal or volume in the U.S. federal market space. Develop detailed understating of federal proposal evaluation processes and their impact on proposal planning management.

You will learn to:

  • Assess your own proposals like a government evaluation team
  • Convert action-based capture strategies into message-based proposal strategies or win themes
  • Assign requirements to appropriate authors for coverage in the proposal
  • Prepare for and conduct an effective kickoff meeting, including providing clear instructions to authors
  • Lead high-performing proposal teams on fast-paced schedules

Writing Federal Proposals

Learn skills related to planning and writing sections in any portion of a proposal. Practice a proven process for planning content and layout of winning proposal sections. You will also learn how to ensure your section will score highly during evaluation through a government evaluation.

You will learn to:

  • Plan content using a storyboard to be compliant and implement approved proposal strategies
  • Incorporate effective graphics and captions to better communicate messages
  • Mockup section layout
  • Organize content to be persuasive, write the planned proposal section, and examine the section draft for effectiveness
  • Collaborate and coordinate with other team members writing different sections of the proposal

Capturing Business

Learn to improve your competitive position before your customer releases a request for proposal. By learning how to select and pursue the most winnable opportunities, you can lower business development costs and increase revenue.

Working with a team representing one of several contractors, you’ll cover topics including:

  • Analyzing and building knowledge about potential business opportunities
  • Understanding competitors and their likely approaches
  • Developing strategically sound solutions to the customer’s needs
  • Influencing customers to prefer your solution over competitors’

Managing Proposals

Learn essential skills for managing a full proposal or volume in the U.S. federal market space. Develop detailed understating of federal proposal evaluation processes and their impact on proposal planning management.

You will learn to:

  • Assess your own proposals like a government evaluation team
  • Convert action-based capture strategies into message-based proposal strategies or win themes
  • Assign requirements to appropriate authors for coverage in the proposal
  • Prepare for and conduct an effective kickoff meeting, including providing clear instructions to authors
  • Lead high-performing proposal teams on fast-paced schedules

Writing Proposals

Learn skills related to planning and writing sections in any portion of a proposal. Practice a proven process for planning content and layout of winning proposal sections. You will also learn how to ensure your section will score highly during evaluation through a government evaluation.

You will learn to:

  • Plan content using a storyboard to be compliant and implement approved proposal strategies
  • Incorporate effective graphics and captions to better communicate messages
  • Mockup section layout
  • Organize content to be persuasive, write the planned proposal section, and examine the section draft for effectiveness
  • Collaborate and coordinate with other team members writing different sections of the proposal

Course Description

This 1-day course is delivered from the perspective of a proposal manager and emphasizes the importance of planning a proposal response, giving clear direction to proposal volume or section leads and authors, and planning conducting effective proposal reviews. It also teaches how to leverage information obtained from pre-RFP opportunity capture activities and lead key proposal operations such as kickoff meetings and regular status meetings.

This 1-day course is delivered in three 1.5-hour segments with 45-minute to 1-hour breaks between segments to complete a brief case study exercise. Participants submit work, including a proposal schedule based on the case study requirements after the course for instructor feedback.

Topics covered in this course are:

  • Creating a high-scoring proposal and how proposals are evaluated  
  • Defining the roles, responsibilities, and key competencies of a proposal manager
  • Converting action-based sales strategies into proposal strategies or win themes based on customer hot buttons
  • Developing a comprehensive compliance checklist
  • Creating a compliant and detailed proposal outline
  • Making assignments to appropriate contributors to the proposal
  • Prepare guidance to writers
  • Preparing for and conducting an effective kickoff meeting, including clear instructions to authors and contributors
  • Leading proposal teams in regular and ad hoc status meetings
  • Preparing for and conducting effective proposal reviews and action plans
  • Supporting interactions with your customer after proposal submittal

OnDemand Advantages

  • Learn at your own pace
  • Revisit prior modules, as needed
  • Practice key principles with case study exercises
  • Test understanding with quizzes and a final exam
  • Work toward Shipley Business Winning Certification
  • Earn APMP CEUs and PMP PDU units

Featured Modules

Completion Criteria

  • Active participation and completion are required to receive a certificate
  • Submission of all  required exercises
  • A minimum score of 80% on the final exam

What you'll learn

  • Creating a high-scoring proposal and how proposals are evaluated
  • Defining the roles, responsibilities, and key competencies of a proposal manager
  • Converting action-based sales strategies into proposal strategies or win themes based on customer hot buttons
  • Developing a comprehensive compliance checklist
  • Creating a compliant and detailed proposal outline
  • Making assignments to appropriate contributors to the proposal
  • Prepare guidance to writers
  • Preparing for and conducting an effective kickoff meeting, including clear instructions to authors and contributors
  • Leading proposal teams in regular and ad hoc status meetings
  • Preparing for and conducting effective proposal reviews and action plans
  • Supporting interactions with your customer after proposal submittal

Benefits of Shipley OnDemand

With no fixed schedule and ample time to go back and review topics as needed, our on-demand course offers you an effective use of your time and training investment. In addition, our OnDemand— Micro Course provides:

  • Reinforcement of key concepts, principles, and best practices contained in Shipley training
  • Access to Shipley’s best practice guidebooks for ongoing reference and guidance
  • Convenient log-in to learning sites wherever you have web access

Who Should Attend?

  • Proposal Managers
  • Capture Managers
  • Proposal Coordinators
  • Sales Professionals
  • Opportunity Managers
  • Proposal Writers/Contributors
  • Business Developers
  • Account Managers
  • Subject Matter Experts Involved in Proposal Wriing

Topics Covered

Certification

This course qualifies as a core course for the Shipley Certification, counts as 8 CEUs toward maintaining APMP certification, and qualifies as 8 hours/units towards PMP PDU requirements. A certificate of training completion is issued upon successful completion of the course.

Below are the credits earned for this course and remaining credits needed to complete Shipley Certification.

  • Earned: 2 Core Learning Units for Proposal Management
  • Remaining: 4 Core Learning Units for Capture Management and Proposal Writing; 4 Elective Learning Units

Cancellation Policy

Change Policy: If you cannot attend a workshop for which you have registered, you may transfer to another workshop of equal value, or you may substitute attendees from your company without penalty.

Cancellation Policy: If you cancel your registration, a $75 processing fee will be charged on all cancellations made up to 14 days in advance of the workshop start date. For cancellations made 14 days or less prior to the start of a workshop, a Cancellation Fee of $400 will be charged. If you do not attend a workshop and do not advise us, the full price of registration will be charged. Shipley Associates may cancel a workshop if enrollment is not sufficient and will coordinate your attendance in another workshop.

Discounts

If you register 30 days prior to the start of this workshop, enter EARLYBIRD at checkout to receive $100 off your registration fee!

Active duty military, veterans, and those with certifications from the Project Management Institute (PMI) or Association of Proposal Management Professionals (APMP) are eligible for an additional discount. Please contact mprice@shipleywins.com for details and discount code.

Workshop Length
Workshop Material
  • All course materials will be accessible through the ShipleyOnline© Learning Management System
  • The Shipley Proposal Guide will be provided with the course materials
  • Shipley Proposal Manager Workbook (MS Office tools)
Module Length
Cost
Course Subscription

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Corporate Training

Looking for private training for your group?

Training Solutions Tailored to Your Needs: We offer comprehensive training programs on any topics in business development, capture management, proposal management and/or proposal writing. Our solutions are customized to align perfectly with your organization's specific business model, processes, and goals. To ensure optimal results, we conduct complimentary needs assessments for all our corporate clients before designing your training program.

Flexible Delivery Options for Your Convenience: Choose the delivery method that suits your team best. We offer in-person training at your preferred location, engaging live-online sessions, or a hybrid approach combining both for ultimate flexibility.

Training Duration Adapts to Your Schedule: Whether you need a focused, short workshop or an in-depth, multi-day program, we can tailor the duration of our training to fit your schedule and desired learning outcomes.

Specialized Expertise for Diverse Clients: With over five decades of experience, we are experts in serving a wide range of organizations, from small businesses and mid-sized firms to large corporations, NGOs, and those working with the private sector. Our proven approach ensures that each training program addresses the unique challenges and objectives of your specific industry.

Rapid Response and Just-in-Time Training for Time-Sensitive Needs: We understand that opportunities can arise quickly. That's why we offer rapid response training services that can be tailored to your specific needs and delivered within less than a month's notice.

Comprehensive Suite of Training Services: Beyond our core training programs, we offer a variety of additional services to enhance your organization's capabilities, including Needs Assessments, Train-the-Trainer (ToT) programs, Organizational Certifications, Curriculum Design/Development, and Internal Employee Career Advancement Training support.

Global Training Solutions: With a large number of Shipley offices worldwide, we deliver training in any language, time zone, or location, with simultaneous interpretation available for seamless communication.

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Real Testimonials

What did you like best about the workshop?

"Bringing it all together. I have seen and been expected to be part of capture plans and proposals but never received training until now. I feel like I can become an expert now! Thank you for the empowerment!"

"Very informative and the instructor’s functional knowledge was really additive to the content that was discussed. I also appreciated that the workshop materials included templates and SOPs that will ease adoption."

"Materials were beneficial, both the presentations as well as the workbook exercises. Going through the exercises was helpful in getting in the proposal thinking."