Welcome to Lohfeld Consulting Group's
Capture & Proposal Tips eBrief
October 2012 Edition!
Happy New Year (FY13)! Amidst low price/technically acceptable (LPTA) controversies, sequestration-related do's and don'ts, trends towards doing more with less in government and industry, tighter B&P budgets, continual technology innovations, RFP quality issues, more competition for less work, and significant concerns about political administration changes, business development, capture, and proposal professionals must continue their day-to-day operations and efforts to maintain existing work and win new business for your companies. Our October Capture & Proposal Tips eBrief supports your efforts.
Check out our Proposal Doctor's prescription for escaping from proposal scheduling hell, and read Bob Lohfeld's latest Washington Technology article on the do's and don'ts of lowering your proposal costs! Be sure to listen to Bob's recent broadcast on business development and capture management on Federal News Radio with Mark Amtower.
Take a look at our latest blog posts focused on lessons learned and our updated 2012/2013 capture and proposal training schedule, webinars, and conferences - all aimed to help you improve your skills and support your team with expert knowledge and insights. We wish you much success in all your endeavors in this exciting New Year! -The Lohfeld Consulting Group Team |
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Proposal problems?
Ask the Proposal Doctor
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Dear Proposal Doctor, I am in scheduling hell. Three proposal managers and a proposal coordinator have vacations planned in the next 2 months. All four need the time off, and all four have already postponed vacations in anticipation of upcoming RFPs (none of which arrived on schedule). Commercial and government customers alike plan to issue an RFP on a certain date and then encounter roadblocks that result in delays of up to a year. How can I plan effectively and still give my staff the time off that they need? Struggling with Scheduling |
Latest Lohfeld Insights blog posts
Enjoy our latest capture and proposal-related blog posts:
Share your requests for future topics with our blog editor
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Lohfeld Consulting Group in the news
Do's and don'ts of lowering your proposal costs
By Bob Lohfeld
I used to think that no one would have the audacity to say you're spending too much on proposals as long as you were winning.
With companies falling short of revenue goals, however, most certainly there will be downward pressure on all operating costs, including proposals costs. There are easily 50 ways to reduce proposal costs, but regrettably 45 of these will also lower your win rate.
The challenge is to reduce proposal costs without reducing your win rate.
We have done a lot of work on win rates and ways to reduce proposal costs. Here are some ideas that work and some that don't.
| Read Bob Lohfeld's article from Washington Technology.
Business development and capture management
Bob Lohfeld on Amtower Off Center
"Amtower Off Center" host Mark Amtower interviewed Bob Lohfeld on various aspects of the business development and capture process.
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Educational opportunities
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Capture Management - How government contractors win business (Multiple dates available)
Nov. 14, 2012, Herndon, VA
Feb. 5, 2013, Herndon, VA
May 7, 2013, Herndon, VA
Register now for Nov. 14, 2012 class!Proposal Management - How government contractors create winning proposals (Multiple dates available)
Dec. 4, 2012, Herndon, VA
March 5, 2013, Herndon, VA
June 18, 2013, Herndon, VA
Proposal Management covers the process government contractors use to create winning proposals for full-and-open competitions and task order contracts. We'll explore Lohfeld Consulting Group's structured process comprising a series of scalable actions and steps aimed at creating high-scoring proposals that result in winning bids.
Join Beth Wingate for this 1-day training course. We'll examine the Proposal Management process from pre-proposal through post-submission activities. ...And, we'll share our industry best practices, tips, tricks, and tools for managing every aspect of your proposals.
Register now for Dec. 4, 2012 class! Register now for March 5, 2013 class! Register now for June 18, 2013 class! Proposal Writing - How to write better technical and managerial proposals that outscore the competition (Multiple dates available)
Jan. 8, 2013, Herndon, VA
April 9, 2013, Herndon, VA
Do you have to write the technical or management sections of proposals? Would you like to learn the process professional writers use to create compelling content quickly for the technical and management sections of a proposal?
Join Brooke Crouter for this 1-day training course. We'll show you how to write better proposals more quickly and consistently receive higher scores.
Register now for Jan. 8, 2013 class! Register now for April 9, 2013 class!
This course trains students in 22 competency areas covering the bid and proposal field. The competencies are classified into five groups: sales orientation, information research and management, planning development and management. The course explains best practices for implementing the competencies and provides constructive exercises and practice test questions.
Join Brenda Crist for this 1-day course to prepare to take the APMP Foundation exam. Sponsored by APMP.
Register now for Nov. 5-26, 2012 4-part webinar!
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 Schedule capture and proposal support now
Make Lohfeld Consulting Group part of your winning solution
Our mission is to help our clients win more government contracts.
When you need help with capture management or creating a winning proposal, let our capture and proposal experts support you.
Our team members average more than 20 years' experience pursuing, managing, and writing competitive proposals for government contractors. We specialize in IT, aerospace and defense, professional services, and other technology-related procurements.
Contact us, visit our web site, or call us today at 703.820.0075.
Some free support
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 Need help with capture and proposal processes and infrastructure?
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We provide capture and proposal process evaluations and develop process-improvement roadmaps to increase your government business acquisition win rate. We can tune up your existing processes and build and implement your business development infrastructure enterprise-wide.
Contact Bob Lohfeld at 410.336.6264 or |
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 Professional training classes | |
Capture Management - How government contractors win business (multiple dates available)
Nov. 14, 2012, Herndon, VAFeb. 5, 2013, Herndon, VA
May 7, 2013, Herndon, VA
Proposal Management - How government contractors create winning proposals (multiple dates available)
Dec. 4, 2012, Herndon, VA
March 5, 2013, Herndon, VA
June 18, 2013, Herndon, VA
Join Beth Wingate for this 1-day training course. We'll explore Lohfeld Consulting Group's 5-phase government business acquisition framework. We'll share our industry best practices, tips, tricks, and tools for managing every aspect of your proposals.
Register now for Dec. 4 class!
Register now for March 5 class!
Register now for June 18 class!
Proposal Writing - How to write better technical and managerial proposals that outscore the competition (multiple dates available)
Jan. 8, 2013, Herndon, VA
April 9, 2013, Herndon, VA
Join Brooke Crouter for this 1-day training course. Learn the process professional writers use to create compelling content quickly for the technical and management sections of a proposal. We'll show you how to write better proposals more quickly and consistently receive higher scores.
Register now for Jan. 8 class!
Register now for April 9 class!
APMP Foundation Level Accreditation Training
Nov. 5-26, 2012 (4-part webinar)
Join Brenda Crist for this 1-day course to prepare to take the APMP Foundation exam. Sponsored by APMP.
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Our presentations at upcoming events and webinars
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APMP SPAC conference
(platinum sponsor/exhibitor)
The Credible Hulk: Fighting Inferior Past Performance - Brooke Crouter and
Add AppMaven's PC/iPad Tools & Apps to Your Superhero Utility Belt - Beth Wingate
Oct. 24, 2012, Atlanta, GA
Top secrets to winning more with analytics The importance of data in your capture process - Bob Lohfeld October 30, 2012 2:00 p.m. Free webinar
APMP Nor'easters - webinar
Best of AppMaven: PC tools that deliver on a shoe string budget - Beth Wingate
Nov. 2, 2012, Free webinar
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 Corporate training classes in capture, proposals, and proposal writing - delivered on-site
| Let us design and provide your corporate on-site capture, proposal management, and proposal writing training programs.
On-site APMP Foundation-level Accreditation training
Train your capture and proposal team and achieve APMP Foundation-level Accreditation for everyone in your organization.
Training Office -
Briana Coleman 703.615.7596 BColeman@LohfeldConsulting.com |
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Let us manage your must-win proposals
Our expert proposal staff can manage and support your proposals.
We provide:
- Capture managers
- Proposal managers
- Volume leads
- Technical writers
- Graphic artists
- Editors
- Desktop publishers
- Proposal coordinators
- Orals coaches
All of our proposal leadership team members are experts in winning government contracts.
Contact Amy Barden at 703.820.0075 or ABarden@LohfeldConsulting.com to discuss your upcoming proposal-support requirements.
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