Transform your proposal story.
Transform your impact.
Parkinson’s Law: “Work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion.”
Is this ever so true as when you are working towards a deadline, such as for an RFP response? I feel this from all of the perspectives: Client Relationship Executive, Sales Executive, Proposal Manager, Proposal Writer, Subject Matter Expert (SME).
I especially understand what happens when responding to RFPs is not our primary responsibility. There is the potential for frustration when we have a “day job” and must join a pursuit team.
When we juggle conflicting responsibilities like service delivery and contributing to an RFP response, it is hard to ensure all of the things we do meet the highest standards.
How do we know what needs our attention first? And how do we juggle everything?
Activities that can help include:
- Setting priorities
- Identifying how you can break your assignments up into bitesize pieces
- Scheduling time to make progress on your assignments every day, even if just for a little while
- Attending team calls so that you have the information you need to get your contributions right the first time
- Leveraging template and content libraries, if available
Sometimes it’s just not possible to do it all. If we are lucky enough to have a Proposal Manager running the RFP response, we can reach out to them for support.
If our business does not have dedicated Proposal Professionals supporting our RFP responses, finding support might allow us to better care for our clients and prospects.
At Once Upon an RFP, we write, edit, coach and consult on business writing projects, including proposals and Request for Proposal (RFP) responses.
We’re here to help you develop a strategy and give you the support you need around RFPs.