Developing RFP Systems that Unseat Incumbents & Win Contracts – with Amy Schuman of Myers and Stauffer - EP002
Episode description
How does Amy Schuman’s RFP team unseat incumbents to land an impressive 70% of the contracts they ship? And how have they kept that winning percentage consistent over the past 20 years, even as the firm—and its number of proposals—has grown exponentially?
Amy is the National Marketing Director for Myers and Stauffer, a national public accounting firm that specializes in consulting, data management and analysis services for state and federal agencies managing government-sponsored healthcare programs. She has more than 25 years of experience in professional services marketing for the accounting, architecture and education industries, and she is an RFP authority, contributing to more than 500 state government proposals in her current role.
Today, Amy joins me to discuss the scaling of her team at Myers and Stauffer, and the exponential growth in the number of proposals they generate. She speaks to the danger of procrastination in composing an RFP and the significance of proofreading with ‘fresh eyes’ prior to shipping. We cover the value in reviewing the RFP evaluation criteria against the proposal, and Amy offers sage advice around targeting your response to what the potential client needs. Listen in for Amy’s advice for small businesses on creating systems for the RFP process and learn how Myers and Stauffer succeeds in unseating incumbents to win contracts!
Key TakeawaysHow Amy’s RFP team has grown from two to ten in the last five years
The exponential growth in the number of proposals Myers and Stauffer generates
The necessity of implementing systems in the scaling an RFP team
How Myers and Stauffer procures most of its work through the RFP process
Why Amy cautions against procrastination in composing an RFP
The significance of proofreading the RFP with ‘fresh eyes’ prior to shipping
The value in reviewing the RFP evaluation criteria against the proposal
Amy’s advice around targeting your response to what the client needs
Myers and Stauffer’s policy to ship proposals two days prior to deadline
The importance of cross-training your RFP team
How call-out boxes can be used to highlight important points in an RFP
Amy’s advice for small businesses around creating systems for the RFP process
How Myers and Stauffer succeeds in unseating incumbents to win contracts
The key to Myers and Stauffer’s impressive 70% winning percentage
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