Category: Proposals

  • Proposal Tips – Market Position

    Proposal Tips – Market Position

    Your firm’s position is the foundation of your marketing strategy. Positioning is going to help play a role in differentiating your company, helping you generate the right leads and win new business that is in line with your business goals, capabilities, and overall business operations. Positioning is often discussed as part of a branding strategy…

  • 10 steps to evaluate an RFP

    10 steps to evaluate an RFP

    How do you dissect an RFP in a short amount of time to start the evaluation process? We are talking about high-level understanding of the submittal, key points that will go into your decision to pursue or pass. We aren’t writing the outline or developing a compliance matrix (…yet) simply reading the RFP to gather…

  • Using Branding and Graphics in the SF330 Form

    Using Branding and Graphics in the SF330 Form

    At first glance, the Standard Form 330 (SF330) used by architects and engineers to submit their qualifications for a new Federal contract (and sometimes state and local agencies request it too), is terribly boring and limited. For designers, using a standard form to showcase their experience and projects is a contradiction. Design firms, by their…

  • General Rules for the SF330

    General Rules for the SF330

    The Standard Form 330 (SF330) is used by Federal agencies, and several state and local agencies as the format for architecture and engineering firm qualifications. In industry, we call these proposals because the SF330 form is our proposal to do the work. However, the agencies call these forms a “presolicitation” because there is no pricing…

  • Hot Buttons in the SF330 Section H

    Hot Buttons in the SF330 Section H

    Hot Buttons in the SF330 Section H Organizing Section H The synopsis for the SF330 usually contains guidance from the agency – generally written as “Selection Criteria” – on what content to include in Section H, Additional Information. Using the synopsis, create an outline of your Section H, per the requirements they included. Follow the…

  • Top 5 SF330 Tips

    Top 5 SF330 Tips

      Location. Location.Not aligning subcontractor names and locations in SF330 Section C with the locations shown on the resumes (Section E) and projects (Section F) or not including Part IIs for each of the office locations mentioned in C, E, and F. #Protip – crosswalk the firm names and locations in C against the locations…

  • CPARS VS PPQs – Common Questions

    CPARS VS PPQs – Common Questions

    When writing proposals to the Federal government, past performance is one of the most important evaluation factors. Agencies use past performance ratings to understand how a firm delivered previous projects. These ratings cover quality of work, cost control, schedule control, overall management and sometimes other categories that were relevant to that project such as small…

  • Breaking Down the SF330 Synopsis – How to evaluate the opportunity?

    Breaking Down the SF330 Synopsis – How to evaluate the opportunity?

    An SF330 Synopsis is the driving force of proposals in the architecture and engineering industry. At the federal level, firms win work by submitting qualifications before negotiating cost due to the Brooks Act. It is crucial to have a deep understanding of what our potential clients are requesting by engaging in capture activities and by…