What Type of Capture Manager Are You?: How You Can Improve Your Performance APMP Webinar December 2013 Eric Gregory, CPP APMP Fellow Senior Vice President, Shipley Associates A Few Introductory Thoughts • Knowing your Capture Manager type can lead to more successes Capture • Knowing your Capture Manager type determines what help you need Capture • Knowing your Capture Manager type tells how you should execute your program Capture 2 The Objective 3 The Goal Your Capture Manager type determines how you behave here and how you win. 4 The Capture Manager Types 5 The Capture Manager Box Every Capture Manager Exhibits Some Characteristics of all Types. One predominates. True Capture Cuts Across All Categories Disrupter Visionary Strategic Tactical Technological 6 Missionfocused The Disrupter • Strengths • Creative • Innovative • Energetic • Agile, moves fast and hard • Synthesizer of complex ideas • Weaknesses • Perceived as chaotic, disorganized • Blunt to a fault, hyper critical • Way ahead of the team • Intolerant of questioning • Strategy often unclear 7 Strategies for Improving Performance Team Need stellar organizer on the team (senior proposal coordinator) Need good functional leads who can execute fast, accurately and with personal touch (Solution, Pricing, Contracts, Subcontracts, Proposal, BD) Need solid advisors willing to tell you when you go too far with ideas, pushing, and criticism Need a really good scheduler who can lay out a plan and keep team on track 8 Program Execution Slow down a bit. Not much. Keep the pace such that people can keep up Take time to lay out strategy clearly. Simplify with graphics so people can visualize your solution Encourage questions. “Got it?” “Anybody confused?” “Does this make sense?” Always start meetings with a review of actions and schedule so people can see organization and progress Let functional leads direct their areas. Guide don’t direct their teams. The Visionary • Strengths • Focused on solution • Appreciates risk/reward • Develops clear paths to the future • Articulates the vision • Moves team toward the vision • Weaknesses • Lack of attention to detail • Lack of customer focus • Often selling more internally than externally • Hard to connect dots between mission and solution • Lose sight of cost/price 9 Strategies for Improving Performance Team Need a BDer capable of keeping the focus on the customer Need a Solution Architect and a Proposal Manager to focus on detail Visionary Capture Manager MUST go on many calls with the customer(s) to stay grounded in mission needs and expectations Need a really good PTW and Pricing team to remain competitive Need a dedicated team competitive analysis expert for reality checks Need an independent PTW expert 10 Program Execution Get on the graphics early and use graphics as the principal means of communicating the vision Place more emphasis on call plan and make sure each call has a specific strategy/objective to validate concepts Have more frequent gate reviews to keep customer/competitive focus Conduct multiple Blackhats at reasonable intervals for ground truth check Do internal and external PTW The Strategic • Strengths • Focused on long-term • Balances long-term/short-term goals • Effective long-range planning • Effective delegation • Builds team around specific actions • Weaknesses • Communicating strategy and actions • Connecting strategy and solution to customer benefits • Keeping focus on progress • Expects team to achieve without specific direction • Connecting strategy(what)/tactics(how) 11 Strategies for Improving Performance Team Get a proposal manager early and use them to manage action items Get the proposal manager to issue formal capture or proposal directives providing specific direction Get a conceptual graphic artist as a member of the core team Get a proposal coordinator to capture and display metrics demonstrating real progress Get Solution Architects for each solution: technical, management, past performance, pricing—connects strategy with tactics 12 Program Execution Use Executive Summary drafts to communicate strategy Develop critical graphics early and use them to communicate value and benefits effectively in context Hold effective weekly capture meetings where critical information, thoughts, expectations, and direction are communicated Use a simple table to connect specific strategies with specific actions (action item list labeling) The Tactical • Strengths • Focused on short-term • Driver--gets short-term actions done • Effective day-to-day planning • Measures progress daily • Keeps team moving at good pace • Weaknesses • Strategy not connected with customer needs • Fails to communicate “Big Picture” • Stands outside the team • Focuses on detail to exclusion of changing conditions • Achieving end not win becomes focus 13 Strategies for Improving Performance Team Get a strategist as a partner on your team— junior capture manager as deputy Get a BD person as your communicator Get highly team oriented proposal manager 14 Program Execution Review strategy at every session and put prominently “on the wall” and graphically communicate connection to customer issues Distribute regular updates to Executive Summary draft to vector in on the “Big Picture” Get BD person focused on the win Rotate leading the action item review to gain team integration Get a proposal manager highly sensitive to changes in the customer and competitive field Acknowledge detail orientation and ask team not let you fall into trap The Mission-Focused • Strengths • Knows customer mission inside and out • Can connect strategy with key customer issues, hot buttons, biases, hopes, fears • Understands competitive position • Translates issues into clear solutions • Weaknesses • Not a team organizer • Poor judge of team needs • Prefers hero execution model of capture • Poor communicator to team • Poor driver of day to day activities 15 Strategies for Improving Performance Team 16 Program Execution Get a great proposal manager to run day to day ops. Create the effective team of 2 not 22. Personally keep team focused on customer issues at every team meeting since you’re the expert Proposal manager hand picks coordinator to keep team organized and focused on day to day Work individually with each core team member to impart knowledge of customer and mission Core team must be fleshed out with A players Participate actively in all solutioning Proposal manager designated as team voice and communicator Delegate, delegate, delegate…..do not become the bottleneck Get the best Solution Architect available Do weekly newsletter type update to team to force effective communication. Mark COMPETITION SENSITIVE The Technological • Strengths • Creates leading edge solutions • Solutions appear to have high value • Articulates complex solutions simply • Solutions solve major customer issues • Weaknesses • Solutions have no programmatic backbone • Tends to be on leading edge of risk • Problem solving not supported by data • Alienates team with unrealistic solution expectations • Prices aggressively with little basis 17 Strategies for Improving Performance Team 18 Program Execution Get a great risk analyst who can effectively identify, categorize, and mitigate risks Use facts and data to present solution: modeling, prototypes, test results must be presented for credibility Get a systems engineering oriented Solution Architect who can lay out a realistic implementation plan Design effective communications plan with customer(s). Must have acceptance before submittal Get a true conceptual graphic designer who can simplify visually a complex technologybased solution Use internal and external PTW experts and estimates Get a technology-oriented proposal manager capable of putting the technology-based solution in the customer’s context Develop comprehensive risk identification, management, and closure process early Get your best PTW person wherever Have core team be your design review team and get buy in What have we learned….? Objective 1 • Understanding your Capture Manager type can affect the success of your capture Objective 2 • You should build your core team based on what Capture Manager type you are Objective 3 • You should build your capture program to leverage your strengths and manage weaknesses to increase probability of win Objective 4 • Failure to understand your Capture Manager type puts you and your capture program at risk 19 How do I know what type I am? 1. Look at the strengths and weaknesses of each type presented. Which ones best represent you? 2. Look at your last 3 captures and identify problems that were caused by you. 3. Correlate these in a simple table. The answer will reveal it self quickly. 4. Ask a respected colleague. The answer might surprise you. 20 Wrap up… “To lead people, walk beside them ... As for the best leaders, the people do not notice their existence. The next best, the people honor and praise. The next, the people fear; and the next, the people hate ... When the best leader's work is done the people say, 'We did it ourselves!’” Lao-tsu Knowing your type lets you become the best leader. 21 Contact Information Eric Gregory Senior Vice President, Capture and Proposal Consulting-East Shipley Associates egregory@shipleywins.com