A BiD Masters interview with Charlotte Davies, Head of Defence Commercial at ADS* *ADS is the UK trade association advancing leadership in aerospace, defence, security and space, to enable prosperity and clean, secure growth for our nation.   Whether you’re a small or large company, effective bidding can be an enabler of business success. But it’s more than communicating a great product and knowing what your prospective customer needs. To be successful at bidding, you must have bid management skills…

Bidding for a new contract is hard work. You’ve got to analyse the Request for Proposal (RFP), liaise with your subject matter experts, gather content and evidence, then write the eventual tender documents.   So, if your bid is unsuccessful, it can feel like a waste of time. But only 43% of bids win contracts, so it’s inevitable you’re going to miss out sometimes.   And there’s more to bidding than winning or losing. Much more.   We’ve helped many…

Every business sector has its own language, and the bidding profession is no exception. It’s packed with endless acronyms that can trip you up before you’ve finished reading the RFP/ITT/ITB (see what I mean?)     So, we’ve taken some of the most common bidding terms and explained what they mean to you – in plain English. For extra value, we’ve also provided some practical guidance around each that may improve your bidding process.     RFI (Request for Information)Expression…

Who should write your bid proposal (and who shouldn’t)?   You’re excited about the business opportunity, it looks great. But a bid proposal needs creating and it’s nobody’s regular job.    Quickly turning into a ‘hot potato’ the task gets passed around departments because nobody feels they’re equipped to create it. They may have part of the knowledge but not the writing skills, or the finance insight, or another key aspect of the offer. And they may fear being pulled…

43%. That’s the average bid win rate in 2024. Businesses typically win just less than half of all bids and tenders they respond to.   Imagine if you could improve your odds…   While there’s no magic bullet to help you win bids, the right approach when creating your proposal definitely helps. Evidence from our experience is clear: businesses that use a structured process and relevant resources achieve an above average win rate over time.   What would a 60%…

You need to use your expertise to create a successful bid. That specialist knowledge usually comes from your subject matter experts (SMEs) – those busy, brilliant people who know your products inside out. But that’s just it. They’re busy running your business in their daily roles. And now you need their help to create a bid proposal for potential future work. How do you ensure your SMEs can carry out their usual roles and contribute effectively to the bid?  …