What is project management definition ?
The combination of tools, methods and resources to reach the objectives, respecting the constraints of performance, time and cost. In order word, project management is the capacity to manage a team, to co-ordinate and to obtain co-operation from specialists with different skills.
What is a bid phase?
The bidding process is used to select a vendor for subcontracting a project, or for purchasing products and services that are required for a project. To be more simple, it is a process that you persuade the customer to select your services in a reasonable condition. A successful bid is a won bid in good conditions which is meeting customer demands at a reasonable price and meeting your company goals. This is extremely important to define a successful business model. So, how to easily win a bid?
The key questions for a bid decision
- Understand customer issues
First of all, you need to have an internal meeting with your team in order to define each problems of customer. This includes :
– Customer needs: user requirements, training, documentation, supports, maintenance
– Customer wants: really need- requirements, can afford- highly desiable, nice to have- desirable
– Competitors position: experience, past performance, capacity, products
– Own position: experience, past performance, capacity, products
– Risk/opportunities: schedule, cost variables, quality, sub-contractors, risk management
– Cost: How much ?, quantity benefit, timing, progress, priority, flexibility, trends
– Hidden agendas: unasked question, unansewered questions, internal politics, personal goals
The following step, you need to weight customer issue according to its important aspects. For example from a real case in 2000, Singapore Airline (S.A) is looking for a number of new aircraft for their fleets. You are representative of Airbus, and your nearest competitor is Boeing. S.A will give you a tender that includes everything they want in this project. After a meeting team, your co-workers found out the customer issue as this list.
International image and development of V.A (24%),
Operational cost of use new aircrafts (22%),
Safety of aircraft (16%)
Cost of program (12%)
Easy maintenace and training people (10%)
2. Competitor analysis – Conduct a SWOT analysis
By applying SWOT analysis, your team is able to have a general content of project.
Knowing your company
– Strengths and weaknesses of your products, verusu customer and versus competitors.
– Customer positioning, sponsors, parnerships
– Strengths and weaknesses of your services
– Strategy (partnerships, product line, geographical strategy …)
Knowing your market and your competitors.
– Intelligence data (winner, price, reasons …) or similar deal (same geographical zone, the same type of needs, customers ….)
– Market trend & market fashion
– Competitor’s strengths and weaknesses
After SWOT analysis, you pointed out the strengths and weaknesses of your company at the bellow.
3. Identify the discriminators
Discriminators is different us from our competitors in areas that are important to the customer, they allow the customer to compare pompeting offers and thus sellect one over ther others.
From the case of Singapore Airline, you have the discriminator.
Conclusion
Winning a bid is extremely important to every business model. By good preparation and deeply understand your company, competitors, as well as customers, will increase the proportion of wining contract to your team.
*Note: This order can be applied for every single business model.