How Proposal Managers Leverage Capture Planning
An experienced proposal manager understands the value of a capture plan and capture management for improving the odds of landing new contracts and business opportunities.
Professional proposal management is a complex, multi-phase process designed to help contracting clients evaluate and pursue lucrative contracts. And while each stage of the process is critical to overall success, an effective plan provides the roadmap and detailed strategies for composing and submitting the winning proposal.
What Is a Capture Plan?
To understand the theory behind capture management, it is important to understand the overall proposal management process.
Proposal managers track opportunities for their clients, and when a potential arises, they help the client evaluate the opportunity through a bid/no-bid analysis. If this detailed analysis indicates that the opportunity is worthy of pursuit — and if the team elects to move forward — the proposal manager designs and implements a capture plan.
The plan provides a detailed outline of the steps that must occur between the decision to pursue an opportunity and the day the RFP (Request for Proposal) / RFQ (Request for Quotation) is due.
How Capture Planning Helps Proposal Managers
Once the capture planning process is complete, the proposal manager puts the plan into action.
This allows proposal management professionals to ensure that every step of the process is assigned and tracked. By assigning timelines and responsibilities to various team members, they can see to it that sufficient resources are allocated to ensure the best possible RFP/RFQ response.
A comprehensive capture management plan typically includes a thorough analysis of the opportunity and the gathering of detailed data about the contracting entity, including hot buttons and pain points associated with the opportunity. The plan may also include a detailed analysis of expected competitors.
The capture plan will also document elements of the strategy for winning (capturing) the opportunity, including the proposed theme of the proposal and a detailed outline of all resources the proposal manager anticipates will be needed.
Finally, the capture plan will provide the outline of the formal proposal, often referred to as a Proposal Directive and/or Compliance Matrix, as well as the page templates in compliance with the RFP/RFQ requirements.
How Can a Professional Proposal Manager and Capture Plan Help You?
Working with a proposal management professional takes the guesswork out of bidding and RFP/RFQ responses.
With a formal capture plan in place, most of the work is already done, well in advance of the RFP/RFQ deadline. By determining ahead of time how you will win the job, all the proposal development team must do is follow the guidelines established in the capture plan.
A proposal management firm helps you grow your business in a number of ways. Selecting appropriate bidding opportunities increases the odds of success. But by implementing a formal capture management strategy and a capture plan, the proposal team will have a specific list of objectives designed to ensure success.
Meridian West Consultants leverages proven strategies for identifying, tracking, pursuing and capturing those contracting opportunities that will help your business succeed. Contact us today to learn more about our extensive experience and winning track record. We can tell you more about our processes, our services and how a professional proposal manager can help you elevate your business to the next level.
