“It’s really about that customer intimacy. The more than you can understand what they’re doing, where they’re going, and dialogue with them well before an RFP really makes the difference.”
--Jennifer Zonneveld
Developing a winning proposal strategy requires that we know opportunities are coming well in advance and build relationships with the organization’s decision-makers. But how do you find out about forthcoming RFPs and then build the kind of customer intimacy that will give you a leg up?
Jennifer Zonneveld is the Director and Site Manager of the Guns Operating Unit and Armament Systems at Northrop Grumman. Her team responds to thousands of RFPs in a given year, and 80% of her business revenues involve international direct commercial sales with end-users in 66 countries. Jennifer has more than two decades of experience in site leadership, business development and project management, and she has a bachelor’s in Mechanical Engineering from Penn State and an MBA from ASU.
On this episode of The RFP Success Show, Jennifer joins us to explain how her business development team creates a proposal strategy well in advance of an RFP. She describes the value of customer intimacy in winning RFPs, discussing how prospective clients weigh technical performance, cost and scheduling in choosing a winning bid. Listen in for Jennifer’s insight on what you can learn from a debrief on bids you lose and get her top tips for differentiating yourself from the competition to win more business with RFPs.
How Jennifer’s team determines what RFPs to bid on
How Northrop Grumman’s business development team creates a proposal strategy well in advance
How customer intimacy helps Jennifer win more RFPs
The value in asking for a debrief on opportunities you don’t win
Why it’s crucial to integrate the proposal and business development teams with your SMEs on an RFP
How much of Northrop Grumman’s business comes from RFPs
Why it’s important to consider customer costs in developing your proposal
How Jennifer’s clients weigh technical performance, cost and scheduling in choosing a winning bid
Jennifer’s top tips for winning more RFPs
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