2023 Western Region Conference
Our second annual 1½-day event was held at Disney's Grand Californian Hotel location, with presentations on Thursday afternoon 5 October, a reception at the Napoli Ristorante e Bar in Downtown Disney on Thursday evening, and continuing with a full day of presentations on Friday, 6 October. 82 attendees registered.
How to Not Write Proposals Like an Amateur
Have you ever cringed after reading a proposal you submitted... and wondered why did I ever write it like that! Attend this presentation to avoid falling into one of the four traps of the curse of knowledge that makes us look like amateurs! Avoid these traps to win more business. Learn how to structure your proposal sections and communicate the benefits of your offer to your customers. Find out how to write to make your proposal a friendly read so evaluators can easily score your responses and not get frustrated looking for your answers (or fall asleep). Attendees will receive a copy of “The SMA Way: A Style Guide for Proposal Writers.”
Dick Eassom, CF APMP Fellow
Dick Eassom, is Vice President of Corporate Support at SMA, Inc., a certified APMP Fellow, past APMP Chief Executive Officer, Past Chair of the APMP Western Chapter, recipient of the APMP Founders’ Award, and a presenter at 19 APMP Annual International Conferences and numerous APMP chapter events. Dick authored over forty “Wordman’s Production Corner” articles published in the APMP Perspective and has nearly 30 years’ experience developing and leading proposals of all shapes and sizes to a wide variety of market sectors in the USA, UK, Canada, Australia, and Germany. He most recently wrote “The SMA Way: A Style Guide for Proposal Writers,” part of SMA's Program Lifecycle Body of Knowledge series of books.(Panel) Beginning Successful Careers: What Managers and Early Career Professionals Need to Know
This panel discussion will feature early-career proposal/business development professionals discussing the successes, setbacks, and surprises of their first five years in the business. What did they expect, and what came as surprises? What are the most enjoyable and least enjoyable aspects of the work? How have supervisors, colleagues, and APMP set the stage for development and retention of talented professionals? The session will be an opportunity for mid- to late-career professionals to learn about how to be more effective in recruiting and retaining the next generation of professionals and leaders; and, through audience Q&A, will be an opportunity for early-career session attendees to receive career guidance and advice.
Emilia Dronkert, CF APMP (Moderator)
Emilia is a public sector Proposal Manager for Amazon Web Services, Inc. (AWS), where she has been since July 2020. Prior to joining AWS, she was a Contracts Negotiator for Lockheed Martin. Emilia has a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, Magna Cum Laude, from Seattle University. In her free time, she enjoys skiing, horseback riding, traveling, and trying new cocktail recipes at home.
Emily Wilcoxson, CF APMP
Emily began her proposal management career five years ago as a Proposal Manager in the renewable energy sector, where she gained valuable experience in managing complex solar and energy efficiency proposals aimed at promoting clean energy and reducing carbon emissions. She joined Arizona State University as a Proposal Manager in 2022, where she is responsible for managing proposals for high impact research projects in various fields. Emily holds a BS in Geography and Spanish and an MA in Global Management from Arizona State University. She is proposal management certified through the Association of Proposal Management Professionals. Originally from Wisconsin, she moved to Arizona for graduate school and never left.
Kailey Wulfert, CF APMP
Since 2018, Kailey, a Technical Business Development Specialist, has been partnering with Sandia National Laboratories’ Renewable Energy and Grid Modernization Program leadership to create and implement strategic plans, manage winning proposal submissions, and develop customer relationships through marketing/messaging and event coordination. In her role, she partners with management and technical staff to lead the development of strategies that identify high priority program development opportunities and drive internal investment decisions. Kailey manages the creation and submission of competitive proposals to key sponsors, having submitted 300+ proposals to date. In addition, she leads efforts to facilitate customer and partner engagements through site visits, conference organization, discovery and outreach, and development of outreach materials. Kailey holds a BS in Population Health and Psychology and an MBA with concentrations in Strategic Management/Policy and Human Resources/Organizational Behavior, both from the University of New Mexico.Whiteboarding Your Win Strategy: A Better Way to Develop and Build Consensus Around Win Themes and Differentiators
Developing win strategies is often a frustrating process. Salespeople, proposal specialists, and subject-matter experts offer varying, sometimes conflicting ideas for key themes and differentiators. What the client actually cares about often gets lost in rushed discussions and cryptic emails. As a result, we insert half-baked win themes and unchecked differentiators that often get dissected and ripped apart during reviews days before a deadline. Rewriting and cleaning up these messes costs time and money we don’t have.Fortunately, there is a better way to solve many of these issues. Learn how you can combine Lean tools and techniques with virtual technology and proposal management best practices to garner input from stakeholders early in the process, refocus your strategies on your clients, and ultimately, win.
Tobin Spratte, CP APMP
Tobin is a proposal and business development strategist for Haley & Aldrich, an environmental and geotechnical engineering firm. Prior to that, he was a proposal manager at Arizona State University. In both of these roles, he has had to bring together disparate, opinionated stakeholders and subject-matter experts to develop cohesive win strategies that speak to clients’ needs. He is also Vice Chair of the APMP Western Chapter and leads the West Coast Coffee Roast, a monthly, virtual roundtable for proposal professionals to share ideas and commiserate over common tribulations. Beyond his day job, Tobin pieces together his experiences, thoughts, and imagination to author novels that bring readers ever closer to truly understanding what it means to be human.Creative Duality of Ink & Algorithms: Uniting Human Ingenuity and Language Model AI for Proposal Perfection
The world of proposal writing is quickly reaching an inflection point, where human creativity converges with the vast potential of large language models (LLMs). A new era of proposal writing has begun to emerge—one defined by the harmonious collaboration of human ingenuity and artificial intelligence (AI).The Abject Failure of ANGLECHEL-26B-V1: The most important lesson you’ll ever learn about the differences between a human mind and a cognitive neural network/LLM.
The Resounding Achievement of ANGLECHEL-30B-V4: The understanding of how synergies can be achieved between “Ink and Algorithms.”
This presentation delves into the journey of creating the world’s first assistive proposal writing LLM, designed to harness the synergy between a humans ability for creative storytelling alongside the computational power of language models. We’ll delve into the untapped realm of emotional storytelling, where human experiences intertwine with the kaleidoscope of generative language.
Steve Aberle
Steven is the Co-Founder of The Rohirrim, a startup dedicated to bringing Domain-Aware Generative AI technology to enterprises. With 18 years of leadership and executive-level experience in technology, Steven is a renowned expert in processing unstructured data at ultra-large scale. He holds patents for Domain-Aware Generative AI, Generative Stitching, and Vector-Attributable Large Language Models. Furthermore, Steven’s experience in writing thousands of pages of proposals throughout his career has given him first hand insight into the time and resource constraints involved in developing proposal responses. The Rohirrim have developed RohanRFP, the first Domain-Aware Generative Al platform specifically designed for proposal professional. They create secure, customized Large Language Models by processing an organization’s entire data archive, including documents, PDFs, presentations, emails, Slack channels, and graphics. RohanRFP’s Al system understands the intricacies of a customer’s business, their solutions, and past performance which then generates AI models that emulate the company’s voice.Microsoft Copilot and AI, and Implications for Proposal Development
Drawing on three years supporting Microsoft’s Proposal Center of Excellence and this year’s emergence of AI, Marty provides overview of Microsoft’s AI “copilots” and how they will change and enhance proposal development. Amy provides further industry overview, analysis, and strategy along these lines.
Marty Humm, CF APMP
Marty has been a proposal manager, proposal quality specialist, and member of the extended leadership team of Microsoft’s Proposal Center of Excellence (PCoE) since August 2020. This year with the emergence of AI, he has led PCoE’s research and testing AI-accelerated proposal development approaches and techniques as tools and features become available.
Amy McGeady, CPP APMP Fellow
Amy co-presented with PCoE Global Director of Proposals Carrie Jordan at BPC 2023 and sat on the AI expert panel. Amy is Shipley Associates’ Senior Vice President of Strategic Services and a longtime thought leader and successful professional in proposal development.AI in the Spotlight: Balancing Governance and Ethics for Proposal Managers
As AI continues to revolutionize proposal management, the fusion of AI with governance and ethics presents unique challenges and opportunities. This presentation explores these intersections, starting with an exploration of governance principles and their role in ensuring transparency, accountability, and fairness in AI practices. Subsequently, we delve into the ethical dilemmas specific to AI, including data privacy, algorithmic bias, and the responsible use of AI. By doing so, we aim to empower proposal managers with the knowledge and strategies needed to navigate this complex landscape, fostering the responsible and effective application of AI in their roles. Our ultimate goal is to cultivate a culture of informed AI governance and ethical decision-making within the field of proposal management.
Melle Melkumian, CP APMP
Melle serves as the Chief Marketing Officer of AI4CES, a leading-edge training ground for AI readiness for corporations and educators. Her journey includes distinguished stints as Proposal Manager at industry giants such as Hewlett Packard, Northrop Grumman, and JPL, plus invaluable consulting experience with Shipley. Melle’s unique blend of business acumen, proposal management expertise, and deep understanding of AI position her to transform how organizations embrace this technology. At AI4CES, Melle drives initiatives that equip businesses and learning institutions with the tools needed to harness AI effectively and responsibly. Her leadership is instrumental in shaping an AI-prepared future, reflecting her vision of aligning technological progress with ethical and effective business practices. Melle’s work continues to leave an indelible imprint on the intersection of AI, business, and education.Shred for Success: The Value of a Compliance Matrix
A customer RFP document shredded into a compliance requirements traceability matrix (CRTM) provides proposal professionals a tool that ensures all requirements are clearly identified and easily tracked for the creation of compliant response documents that increase the probability of contract awards. Shred for Success is a presentation designed to educate proposal creators about the value of a properly formatted compliance matrix and explores industry tools that speed the document shredding production process. Participants will learn how CRTMs are useful throughout the proposal production cycle and their importance in helping customers and proposal team members understand bidder compliance in deliverables, at a glance, for complex requirements. Easy to understand step by step CRTM creation instructions will be demonstrated using a template available to interested attendees following the session. Use of shredding tools for cross referencing proposal documents that aid customer proposal evaluations and promote favorable scoring will also be explored.
Kevin Conniff, CP APMP, PMP
Kevin Conniff is a certified APMP Practitioner with over 30 years of proposal experience in the Aerospace and Defense Industry. Currently a proposal manager for Northrop Grumman’s Mission Systems Sector in Woodland Hills, California, he provides process and compliance guidance to over 20 proposal teams per year. Kevin also performs production tasks for each proposal effort, assisting with compliance matrix creation, document editing and formatting, and graphics creation to ensure team produced documents are of excellent quality that meet or exceed customer requirements.Panel: Next Steps for Unlocking the Potential of AI
This panel discussion enables a deeper dive into AI assessment and implementation. Featured panelists include APMP speakers Steve Aberle, Co-Founder of The Rohirrim, Marty Humm, Proposal Manager at Microsoft’s Proposal Center of Excellence (PCoE), and Melle Amade Melkumian, Chief Marketing Officer at A14CES. Where does your company currently stand, what are the issues you need to address, what AI tools are available to build or buy, and what is your plan? This session is an opportunity to address your specific questions to create a roadmap for researching, assessing, and implementing tools for accelerating capture and proposal efficiencies to win business.
Anita Wright
CPP APMP Fellow
(Moderator)Northrop Grumman
Steve Aberle
The RohirrimMarty Humm
CF APMP
MicrosoftMelle Melkumian
CP APMP
AI4CESRecording: