This section presents the steps required to extract pertinent information from the Request for Proposal and place the information in the Proposal Outline and Requirements Matrix. The purpose of deconstructing the RFP is to separate the wheat from the chaff and ensure that the proposal:
- Responds to each and every RFP work requirement and evaluation criteria (nothing is missed no matter how small)
- Reflects the weighting of the evaluation criteria
- Is compliant with all RFP instructions
The goal of a careful RFP deconstruction is to move everything that is important from the voluminous RFP (frequently 100 to 150 pages) into the proposal outline so it can be written to or acted on. The time consuming process of repeatedly searching the RFP can be eliminated if the RFP is carefully deconstructed by an experienced proposal manager.
The steps in deconstructing an RFP are as follows. First, establish a color scheme for types of information to be entered in the outline. A suggested scheme is shown below.
|
Type of Proposal Information |
Color |
|
Proposal instructions from RFP |
Red |
|
RFP Requirements |
Blue |
|
Proposal Evaluation Criteria |
Green |
|
Selling Points |
Black (Selling Point Tables) |
|
Outline Content (new or boilerplate) |
Black |
