Demystifying the APMP Foundation Certification
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The document outlines a webinar focused on preparing for the APMP Foundation Certification in bid and proposal management, emphasizing a structured approach to studying for the exam. It highlights the importance of certification for career advancement, productivity, and efficiency in the industry, along with best practices for exam preparation. The content also provides insights into the APMP Body of Knowledge, key competencies, and tips for writing effective executive summaries to enhance proposals.
Demystifying the APMP Foundation Certification
- 1. Demystifying the APMP Foundation Certification Host : Abhijit Majumdar CP.APMPThis webinar is sponsored by: 16th June, 2018 Webinar starting at 11 am.
- 2. Demystifying the APMP Foundation Certification – How To Prepare and Qualify APMP Foundation Certification Examination Without Any Stress. Purpose: A planned and structured approach for imbibing the Best Practices from the APMP BOK and preparing to qualify the online certification examination. Audience: Bid and Proposal Management professionals interested in moving up in their professional career path and earning a global industry recognition. Time Slot: a. 40 minutes on APMP Foundation Certification b. 10 minutes on Preview of our upcoming Bootcamp c. 10 minutes on Q&A related to APMP Certification
- 3. Why APMP Foundation Certification matters for Bid & Proposal Management professionals? 3 As per Hiring Managers, certified professionals are 90% more productive and 60% more efficient compared to those without. (source: IDC report) Certification enables an employer to recognize and understand that a potential employee's skills adhere to a certain professional standard. A professional qualification clearly demonstrates a high level of skill and gives an employer instant faith in your abilities. It also differentiates one employee from another in a competitive environment. A certification not only provides a qualification, but also ensures an improved level of knowledge in a specialist area of Bid & Proposal Management. Having a certification that is recognized globally gives a professional chance to move roles to progress their career. A B C D E 3
- 4. How to prepare for the APMP Foundation Certification Examination? 44 Understand the APMP Foundation Certification assessment model Understand the Key skills, competency area, topics related to the competency, best practices related to the topic Understand the structure of the APMP Body of Knowledge (BOK) and Foundation Guide Planned Study and Practice Relate to your workplace situations, roles and processes
- 5. Understand the APMP Foundation Certification assessment model 55 The purpose of the APMP Foundation certification Measure whether a candidate has sufficient knowledge and comprehension of Bid management and Proposal development role to act as an informed and contributing member of a Bid and Proposal team within their professional work or in their organization. High-Performance Definition of a Successful Foundation Candidate The successful candidate should be able to Recall, Recognize, and Demonstrate Comprehension of the Skills, Competencies, Knowledge Areas, Topics and Best Practices outlined in the APMP Foundation Syllabus, Guide and BOK.
- 6. Foundation Exam Candidate Guidance 66 The objective of the examination is to enable you to demonstrate an understanding of the theories, concepts, best practices, genres, and approaches used in Bid and Proposal management. The Foundation exam is a one hour, open book, 75 questions, multiple-choice, pass/fail exam. Uses objective test questions, which require you to choose a response to a question from a set of choices, for which the correct answer is pre-determined. You need to answer 42 questions (56%) correctly to pass the examination. Exam preparation is determined by level of experience, knowledge of best practices, and participation in training opportunities. A B C D E
- 7. Key Competencies Areas 77 Inform ation Research and M anagem ent – IR • Inform ation G athering • Knowledge M anagem ent Planning • Schedule Developm ent Developm ent • O pportunity Q ualification • W inning Price Developm ent • Team ing and Partner Identification • Proposal Strategy Developm ent • Executive Sum m ary Developm ent • Content Plan Developm ent • Requirem ents Identification • Com pliance Checklist Developm ent • Persuasive W riting • G raphics Developm ent M anagem ent • Review M anagem ent • Kickoff M eeting M anagem ent • Risk M anagem ent • Production M anagem ent • Lessons Learned Analysis • Process M anagem ent • Virtual Team M anagem ent Sales O rientation • Custom er Interface M anagem ent • O pportunity Plan Developm ent • Sales Participation Behaviour and Attitude • Com m unicating with others • Q uality O rientation • Building Strategic Relationships and a successful team • Decision m aking and Delegating responsibility
- 8. The Body of Knowledge (BOK) consists of 7 Categories of Knowledge Areas Understanding the structure of the APMP BOK 88 Understand business development Focus on the customer Create deliverables Manage Processes 2 3 41 5 6 7Use Systems and Tools Lead your team Train your staff
- 9. 51 Topics in the 7 Knowledge Areas are structured as: 9 Introduction–Ahigh-level content summary that explains thetopic's importancetotheproposal or business development process. Best Practices–Key points that business development professionals shouldknowabout aparticular topic. ApplicationinDiverseEnvironments–Implications of atopic insmall, medium, andlargesettings; worldwidegeographies; andindustry, commercial, andgovernment settings worldwide. Recent Trends–Emergingtrends or challenges uniquetothis topic, includingnewapproaches that streamlineprocesses andimprove competitiveness. CommonPitfallsandMisconceptions–Anoutlineof commontraps toavoid. 9 Summary–Aquick overviewof themost important informationpresentedinthetopic. TermstoKnow–Terms relatedtoatopic that proposal developers shouldknow. ToolsandTemplates–Templates, charts, andexamples that youusefor your ownwork. SeeAlso–Other sections of theAPMPBOKthat relatetoatopic. References–Research-basedreferences usedtocompilethis information. Further Study–Additional sources readers caninvestigatefor moreinformationonatopic.
- 10. Styles of Questions 1010 There are a number of different test styles used within the test. All test styles are based on the selection of the correct answer from a choice of 4 options. Standard example Negative example What sort of document is a proposal? Youmay chooseonly one a. Inform ative and persuasive b. Inform ative c. Persuasive d. M arketing Which of the following is NOT generally considered as a reason for teaming? You m ay choose only one a. Elim inate a com petitor b. O btain access to m arket c. Share financial risk and cost developm ent d. To find out com petitive approaches Select (list, evaluate) example Who is responsible for ensuring that the proposed solution is capable of achieving the benefits in the Business Case? You m ay choose only one a. The Proposal M anager b. The Program m e / Project M anager c. The Business Developm ent M anager / Salesm an d. Senior M anagem ent
- 11. Styles of Questions 1111 There are a number of different test styles used within the paper. All test styles are based on the selection of the correct answer from a choice of 4 options. When estimating proposal costs, which of the following would you include as elements of the Cost Budget? You m ay choose only one a. Cost of producing the RFP b. Cost for all elem ents of the technical solution c. Expected Revenue for the technical solution d. Contributors, Reviewers, Production and Delivery costs Which of the following are valid techniques for the determining a Price-To-Win? You m ay choose only one a. Com petitive Analysis b. Expert Judgem ent c. Bottom -Up Techniques and Top-Down Techniques d. All the above Select (list, evaluate) example Which of these is a recognized approach to analysis of your capability relative to the competition? You m ay choose only one a. Statem ent of W ork Breakdown b. Scotsm an Test c. SW O T Analysis d. Technical Specification
- 12. How to pass the exam (Self-Study Mode) 1212 (MapKeyCompetencyCategorywithCompetencies, APMPFoundationGuideKnowledgeAreas, Related Topics&Best Practices) Example : Bid Management Lifecycle Phase Key Activities Related Topics Opportunity Assessment Bid / No-Bid Decision • Opportunity Plan (BOK - Use Systems and Tools) • Customer Analysis and Competitive Intelligence (BOK – Focus on the customer) • Gate Decision (BOK – Manage Processes) GroupTopicsinasequenceasper your organization’s real-lifebidmanagement andproposal development lifecycle. WEEK 1 WEEK 2
- 13. How to pass the exam (Self-Study Mode) 1313 Start reading the APMP Foundation Guide in the sequence of the Group of Topics, relate the best practices with your work place situations, get acquainted with the Terms to know and try to use the tools and templates. Start working through the Practice Questions – Focus on the Planning, Development and Management Topics & Best Practices Appear for the examination WEEK 3, 4, 5 WEEK 6, 7 WEEK 8 Phases Bid Decisions Team reviews Major Outputs Market Identification Market Entry Decision Market Assessment - An analysis of market potential and requirements vs. corporate capabilities Strategic Plan Market Strategy Account Planning Opportunity Qualification Decision Account Review - Periodic reviews of opportunity potential within targeted accounts Account Plan Opportunity Assessment Bid Pursuit Decision Competitor Review - An assessment and analysis of competitors' likely strategies and solutions Competitive Assessment Opportunity Planning Bid / No-Bid Decision Opportunity Plan Review - An assessment of the opportunity plan and validation of the win strategy and required actions documented in the opportunity plan Opportunity Plan Pricing Strategy Proposal Planning Bid Validation Decision Proposal Strategy Review - A review of the content plan to validate the execution of the bud strategy for writers and verify compliance with customer requirements Proposal Strategy Plan Proposal Responsibility Matrix Proposal Development Final Review Final Document Review - A comprehensive review of the proposal by independent reviewers who emulate the customers evaluation team Business Case Review / Senior Management Review - Includes all the internal milestones and approvals (internal governance) required to sign off on the solution, pricing, and legal requirements Proposal Outline Response Matrix Style Sheet Content Plan Proposal Budget Executive Summary Proposal Plan Proposal Negotiation Lessons Learned Review - An assessment of the proposal development / management process and results, conducted after completion of a proposal to identify areas for improvement on subsequent projects Best and Final Offer (BAFO) Delivery Project Review - Periodic status reports and performance reviews with customer Products and Services
- 14. Tips 1414 Put some effort into your preparation. Even if you are experienced Bid Manager, without putting some effort into your exampreparations you will likely to fail. If you think that you can just go on the training course for a few days and then do an examwithout any preps or homework then you will be surprised when you get your results. I have seen people much more experienced than myself failing APMP exammiserably. Just my two cents, the choice is of course yours. When studying, think about what do you do at work, how your company or organisation functions, what procedures do you have in place. The more you relate to your work the easier it is to remember and understand things. Think about real life examples and your own experience. Get a print copy of APMP Body of Knowledge or Prepare a Cheat Sheet. Refer to it during you preps when you feel you need more clarification or information. I suggest you to read at least twice sections associated with APMP syllabus. In order to generate ‘list’ for the questions APMP Glossary definitions can be quite helpful/useful. Watch your time during the exam. Skip Questions if you are not sure about and revisit themafter you have reached the last question. A B C D E F
- 15. NO MAGIC OR SHORT CUT LOSING MOTIVATION… THINK THE BENEFITS AND IMAPCT GET IN TOUCH WHEN IN DOUBT Conclusion 1515 Thereis nomagic way or short cut in passingAPMP, I’mafraidyouhave toput someeffort intoit. At theend of theday youcanbecomebetter, moreknowledgeableBidand Proposal Manager whowill makea differencewithinyour own organisation. Whenyouarelosingyour motivation, think about reasons why youaredoingthis examandwhat benefits andimpact it might have onyour career, what doors it might openfor you, what differenceit will maketoyour organisation. If youhaveany questions, please feel freetoget intouchandI will try andhelpyouif I can. I approached quitealot of peoplewhopassed APMPandaskedthemlots of questions duringmy preparationfor APMP, I feel that nowit’s my turnto returnsomethingback.
- 16. A Sneak Preview of Bid & Proposal Management Bootcamp A 3-Day Intensive Workshop for Bid Management Professionals
- 17. How we have structured the Bid & Proposal Management Bootcamp? 17 Based on the Key Skills and Competencies needed for a career progression and professional growth. Covers every Knowledge Area from the APMP BOK applicable across all types of competitive bidding and industry. Structured the Learning Objectives and Outcome oriented towards the APMP Foundation Certification. Mock-test questions related to each topic and knowledge category. Simulated Practice Test and Assessment Scores with identified areas for improvement. Continued guidance till certification, Community Support for professional development and growth. A B C D E 17
- 18. An approach aligned with workplace scenarios and examples
- 19. Bid & Proposal Management Bootcamp Session 2 B&P Management Lifecycle Phase – Proposal Development
- 20. Competency Category – Focus on the customer
- 21. Topic – Executive Summaries
- 23. Create a compelling sales document that addresses the customer’s key issues01 Present a value proposition that shows why your solution is the best choice for the customer 02 Make it easier for the evaluators to digest the key messages in your proposal03 By the end of this topic you will be able to: Learning Objective/Learning Outcomes 23 Create a roadmap for your proposal team to follow04
- 24. Introduction 24 Executive summary is a standalone, concise, informational, persuasive document aimed for the senior management of the customer Assume that your executive summary is the only document the decision makers will read Executive summary is not the summary of your proposal, but a sales document that illustrates that you: § Grasp your customer’s vision § Understand the customer’s explicit and implied needs § Have built a solution that satisfies those needs § Offer better value than any competitor Write the executive summary in the opportunity planning phase, before a kickoff meeting.
- 25. Best Practices
- 26. Best Practice Keep executive summaries customer-focused Your Executive Summary should: 26 Use tools like SWOT analysis and Bidders Comparison Matrix to plan your Executive Summary Demonstrate understanding of the customer’s motivation and vision for a bid Confirm that the solution satisfies each hot-button issue from the customer’s perspective Use the customer name more frequently than the bidder’s name Avoid technical content that obscures customer benefits Articulate understanding of the customer’s hot buttons Focus on benefits to the customer, not the underlying products or services Be written in a concise tone and style that decisionmakers can understand Ghosts the competition
- 27. Best Practice Keep executive summaries customer-focused Draft your Executive Summary by answering 7 key questions 27 01 What are the customer’s problems? 02 Why did these problems arise? 03 What results do they want to achieve by solving the problems? 04 Which outcome or result is the most important? 05 What solutions can you, or your competitors, offer? 06 What results will each solution produce? 07 Which is the best solution and why?
- 28. Best Practice Keep executive summaries customer-focused Define a structured approach for your Executive Summary 28 Opening Paragraph Connect with the customer Next Paragraphs Demonstrate your understanding of the customer’s Following Paragraphs Present your solution with proof points Final Paragraphs Review why the customer should choose you and the roadmap for the proposal organisation with the win theme 01 02 03 04 If a customer does not specifically ask for an executive summary, include one anyway.
- 29. Best Practice Write and review early 29 An early Executive summary provides a baseline to your proposal strategy Test your value proposition on the client before starting your proposal effort and refine it to match the client’s needs. Be careful not to do this after the RFP has been issued or you may risk being disqualified. Prepare your draft Executive Summary early and use it in your kickoff meeting Align your proposal team on the proposal strategy so that contributors link their sections to the overall win themes, where possible Avoid costly rework of your solution at a later stage when mistakes may be too late to correct Give senior management time to review and support your strategy Allow time for better graphics and production methods that will be more persuasive to your client Obtain approval for your executive summary by the relevant person in your organization as soon as possible 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09
- 30. Best Practice Use your executive summary to make an impression 30 Make sure that your executive summary is professional and persuasive, reviewers are likely to expect the same from the rest of your proposal A good executive summary is unique to each opportunity because solutions, client requirements, and competitors differ from one opportunity to the next. Include graphics to add emotional appeal and use a professional layout that makes the key points easy to see. Explain what value your customer gets for investing in your solution, but avoid too much technical detail Focus on benefits and clear discriminators and quantify the payback where possible Exclude pricing only if prohibited by the client
- 31. Best Practice Clearly indicate your proposal’s responsiveness and compliance 31 Implementation Tailor your executive summary to match the priorities of key decisionmakers: Cite the origin of needs or hot buttons you mention in your proposal to provide context and allow your executive summary to stand alone Motivators What the customer is trying to achieve to realize its vision Issues The things that worry the customer. Hot buttons A combination of issues and motivators. +
- 32. Best Practice Assign writing and review responsibilities strategically 32 Implementation Allow time for changes in the executive summary as your proposal effort progresses Make sure you have a good mix of client knowledge, competitor knowledge, solution capabilities, past performance, and executive and writing skills Articulate the customer’s needs and explain how your organization can solve its problems Check the readability statisticsWrite clear, direct sentences in active voice
- 33. Best Practice Mirror your executive summary themes in the proposal cover, title, and cover letter 33 Implementation The title of your proposal should § Describe your recommendation § Start with an active verb that stresses benefits to the customer § Focus on results or benefits, not a product name § Avoid jargon Design a customer-focused proposal cover Include a cover letter
- 34. Executive Summaries > Summary A good executive summary provides a value proposition that helps evaluators choose you. Always include an executive summary as a standalone document unless the proposal is very short. Follow instructions if provided. Write a draft executive summary before kickoff and get it approved early. Use it as a briefing tool to drive the direction of the proposal team. Allow time for changes and be sure to do a final proofread, while keeping production schedules in mind. Plan before writing. Adapt your approach to the time available.
- 35. Executive Summaries > Summary Write executive summaries for nontechnical, upper-level decisionmakers. Tie major discriminators explicitly to customer issues. Match the goals and priorities of the evaluators. Give them good reasons to select you by showing them the unique value of your solution with relevant proof points. Mention the client first and benefits before features. Show your solution’s compliance.
- 36. Executive Summaries > Summary Use a clear writing style and include graphics to add emotional appeal. Avoid too much technical detail. Include high-level pricing and related value propositions unless prohibited or irrelevant. Ask the salesperson (or Opportunity Manager) who knows the client best to write the draft executive summary. Enlist a proposal editor for final edits and a mix of client, technical, competitor, executive, and proposal skills for reviews. Keep your executive summary short. Use a structure that works. Each executive summary differs for each opportunity because the client, evaluators, competitors, and solution are all different.
- 37. Executive Summaries APMP Foundation Certification - Mock Test
- 38. Mock Test Questions – Executive Summary 3838 These questions are in a format similar to the test styles used within the paper. All test styles are based on the selection of the correct answer from a choice of 4 options. An early Executive Summary helps you to : You m ay choose only one a. Com pare your solution with the com petition b. Identify the cost elem ents of your solution c. Align your proposal team on the proposal strategy d. Identify the proposal team m em bers Who is an ideal author of an Executive Summary? You m ay choose only one a. Proposal M anager b. Executive M anagem ent c. Sales person or O pportunity M anager d. Solution Architect Executive summaries should: You m ay choose only one a. Never include graphics b. Start with an introduction to your com pany c. Nam e the seller m ore than the buyer d. Include the prospect’s vision
- 39. Mock Test Questions – Executive Summary 3939 These questions are in a format similar to the test styles used within the paper. All test styles are based on the selection of the correct answer from a choice of 4 options. An Executive Summary focusses on: You m ay choose only one a. Custom er hot buttons, issues, m otivators b. Com petitors weaknesses c. Sellers project team d. Intangible benefits for the custom er Executive Summary once approved by the management should only change when? You m ay choose only one a. New com petitive intelligence arrives b. Scope is defined and frozen c. Proposal editor edits d. Solution approach changes Executive Summary is NOT a : You m ay choose only one a. Roadm ap to guide the evaluators b. Synopsis of your proposal’s m ain points c. Capability statem ent of the seller d. All of the above
- 40. Thank you for your time, Open for Q&A.