Tim Birdsall The good hunter goes out loaded and ready for whatever pops up. – Proper dress, weapon, and ammunition. Good location and marksmanship help, but in an open environment, success is framed by multiple unknowns. The farmer, however, prepares for everything in advance. -- plowing, the seed, and the fertilizer. The [...]
During the past 33 years, we have worked too many proposals where there was lack of satisfactory participation from off-site inputters. Sometimes the problem is not like a 3-alarm fire, and you can still prepare a successful proposal. Other times, the problem is more like a 7-alarm fire. This is where the [...]
The FBI’s Information Technology Supplies and Support Services Contract (FBI IT SSS) could have been named, more aptly, the FBI IT $$$ contract, due to its $30B price tag. Interest in this recompete is particularly keen, both because of its high-dollar figure, and the number of expected awardees. The original contract, awarded [...]
Gary Everett There are many management issues that cause proposal development to get off on the wrong foot and the project is behind before it even starts. Some of these problems are as follows: 1. Delay in filling writing positions on the required work schedule causes missed deadlines, long hours, and work [...]
SDI NG2 is how the contractors will help lead the Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) into the frontiers of technology. SDI NG2 Background Although GovWin estimates the RFP will drop this April, the program leads only say it will come out “in FY-18.” This gives aspiring bidders, both large and small time [...]
Bill Kane Orals is high stakes poker. Along with the written proposal, the Orals outcome results in winning contracts of many millions of dollars, or not. The Orals presenters are typically Program Managers and technical experts who must demonstrate good speaking skills as well the confidence to deliver on the contract they [...]
In the spirit of Valentines, our sales team share why they love to help you! It’s very worthwhile working for OCI because it gives me the satisfaction of helping customers meet their proposal requirements. Also, I thoroughly enjoy the interactions I have with customers and consultants on an ongoing basis; it’s rewarding. [...]
Tim Birdsell Over the last 15 years I’ve been in a position to see the kinds of errors companies make in developing proposal response centers. I am writing this article in hopes I can help you avoid these costly and unnecessary mistakes. Background As an employee, I’ve been a Task Order (TO) [...]
For many federal contractors, the past year has been like a trip through the desert where you can never get to the green valley. Based on our exposure to hundreds of programs, there is strong impressionistic evidence that RFP releases have moved to the right more than any other time in the [...]
Last May, DHS cancelled its planned Flexible Agile Support for the Homeland (FLASH) procurement when this $1.5 Billion Small Business (SB) Set Aside IDIQ bid ran into evaluation and then protest turbulence. Soon thereafter, DHS announced it was planning to issue a FLASH 2.0 RFP, which is now expected in April. Failure [...]
