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The Black Hole |
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Published in the September 2005 On Target Magazine and in the September 2005 Inside View Newsletter. |
Everyone knows that nothing escapes a black hole, no feed back, no phone calls, no orders, and no visibility. This is the black hole that yawns as you send off your proposal. All you can do is wait! A recent experience illustrates. The customer seemed clear about the purpose and was open to as much exploration as we were willing to conduct. It was a relatively small opportunity however; we invested a little time to get a fair understanding of the situation and needs. There was a clear budget and time table for reaching a decision. The response close date was driven by the holiday schedule of the people involved in the decision. One person returned from their vacation as the other departed for his. As it happened, the following week, I also took a holiday break. A week after my return, we received a polite note explaining that they had selected someone else. With the benefit of 20:20 hindsight, I immediately realised that we had ignored a number of checks and precautions that we routinely teach others to use. The consequences, in this case the loss of a small opportunity, could easily be shrugged off and consigned to the file marked ‘experience’ but that would be missing an opportunity to learn. Putting something in the file marked ‘experience’ is usually just another way of saying c'est la vie, that’s life, let’s forget it and move on. The phrase we use to shrug of a setback, ‘put it down to experience’ should mean that we actually invest some time and effort in learning from it. Avoiding the uncertainty of the post proposal black hole depends on a series of things that must be done beforehand. Once the proposal has been sent, it is too late. Here are some of the rules we normally observe before we agree to do the work a proposal entails. Rule Number 1. Get definite confirmation that you understand the issues that your proposal is supposed to address. Submit your written description of the situation, goals and objectives to the decision maker and key influencers in advance of submitting your proposal. Then ask for a definite confirmation that you have a correct understanding of the needs and that you have not missed anything out. Note: If your proposal is to be a response to a formal tender or will be treated according to public sector procurement practices, you must complete this step before the formal request for proposals is issued. Rule Number 2 Get a definite confirmation from the decision maker and key influencers that your solution truly meets their needs. To do this you must understand all of the criteria your solution will be measured against. If a definite yes or no is impossible, ask for a rating out of ten. If you get a ‘seven’ or less for any aspect of your solution you must change your proposal to improve it, or gain agreement from the customer that it isn’t important. A ‘seven’ is just ‘OK’ and ‘OK’ is not good enough. Rule Number 3 Identify and agree with the customer what performance measurements will indicate if the solution is delivering the expected results. Rule Number 4 Get a definite confirmation from the decision maker that the investment is within their means and expectations. Rule Number 5 Make an appointment to present your proposal to the decision maker and key influencers. If your proposal is to be a response to a formal tender or will be treated according to public sector procurement practices, you must complete this step before the formal request for proposals is issued. The presentation is an opportunity to gauge response and make adjustments. If it is not important enough for the customer to commit the necessary time to make sure that the proposed solution will meet their needs, either the project is low priority or you are not the front runner. In either case, you should consider the wisdom of continuing or devise a way to change the situation. Rule Number 6 Gain agreement that in the event of the customer selecting another supplier, you will be granted a debrief meeting or conversation. This is to ensure that you get an opportunity to learn what you could have done differently to have improved your chances of success. Rule Number 7 Gain agreement that if you succeed in winning the business and all goes well, the customer will make introductions to appropriate business partners, suppliers, or customers who might benefit in the same way. This last rule is more important than it seems. It is easy for you to ask the hypothetical questions and it is easy for the customer to pledge this support - to provide referrals, testimonials, and publicity - before you submit your proposal. If you have obtained this promise in advance, it will be much easier to initiate the conversation afterwards.
So how did we do against our own rules for the example I cited to begin with? We did try to understand their issues although this took place through only three conversations, two by telephone and one face to face. We didn’t seek confirmation of our understanding (Rule 1). Neither did we test the acceptability of our solution, accept in conversation (Rule 2). We did discuss measurement but didn’t define of agree it (Rule 3). We did confirm that the funds were available (Rule 4). There was no time to ask to present the proposal (Rule 5). We didn’t attempt to secure a debrief meeting or a promise of referrals (Rules 6 and 7). We properly observed only one of our seven rules so we didn’t deserve to win. It was a salient lesson and one that I am determined will improve our future engagements. I hope that you can use it to do the same, without having to have the experience. Article by Clive Miller
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