Streamlining Proposal Management for Greater Efficiency and Higher Win Rates

Case Study

Streamlining Proposal Management for
Greater Efficiency and Higher Win Rates

Efficient proposal management with i3solutions to boost productivity and increase win rates.

A global aerospace and defense contractor was assembling proposals without version control, without a central library of approved content, and without one view of its bid pipeline. i3solutions built the company’s Proposal Generator and Management Portal on a customized SharePoint Portal, with a proposal site for the team to work in and one searchable home for the material a proposal is assembled from: past performance documents, boilerplate templates, capability matrices, vendor information, resumes, legal documents, and standard pricing. The same portal carries the proposal process management the team had been missing: sections are assigned to individual contributors and a rollup calendar consolidates every due date into one management view. The approval process is shorter because only current, approved content sits in the library, proposals go out faster because sections and due dates are tracked in one place, and bid decisions are better informed because the calendar shows the whole pipeline. With the proposal process streamlined end to end, the engagement records more efficient use of resources, accurate proposal submissions, and a higher proposal win rate.

The Customer

And Their Challenge

The client is a global aerospace and defense contractor delivering innovative solutions and advanced technologies to protect and support nations, governments, and critical infrastructures worldwide. They sought to enhance their information-sharing capabilities to improve their success rate with winning proposals. Previously, this process was hindered by challenges such as limited search functionality for up-to-date information, lack of version control, insufficient security permissions for viewing and updating proposals, inconsistent process management, absence of a centralized proposal pipeline, and difficulty accessing critical information.

The Solution

i3solutions developed a comprehensive proposal generation tool designed to significantly reduce the effort required to assemble and review proposals. This solution incorporated the customization of SharePoint Portal, along with the creation of an initial proposal site tailored to the client’s needs. By implementing these enhancements, i3solutions provided a solution that streamlined document sharing and management while improving the ability to search for critical information essential for developing new proposals.

Central to the solution was a highly customized proposal system specifically designed to optimize the proposal generation process. The system grants the proposal team seamless access to essential resources, including past performance documents,

boilerplate templates, capability matrices, vendor information, process guidelines, resumes, legal documents, and standard pricing. Team members can assign specific proposal sections to individual contributors and utilize a rollup calendar to track timelines and critical milestones, ensuring a more organized and efficient process.

Another key advantage of the solution is the ability to establish portal team sites for various organizations within the company. These team sites enable targeted sharing of information, news, events, and calendars with specific groups or the entire organization. Each site includes document libraries to house all files and documents associated with its respective organization, fostering better collaboration and centralized access to critical materials. This cohesive approach enhances both team coordination and the overall efficiency of the proposal process.

Proposal management software interface showing organized document tracking and collaboration tools.

Technologies

Used in the Solution

Modern data sharing solution for students and institutions using SQL Server.
Modern Office 365 setup for efficient business operations.
Modern Office 365 collaboration tools for digital workplace efficiency.

Measurable Benefits
and Business Impact

i3solutions’ Proposal Generator and Management Portal gives the proposal team a central repository for past proposals, resumes, images and other key proposal components and reduces the time and effort spent on tracking down information needed for proposals. This proposal library ensures that only the most up to date and approved content is being used in proposals, which lessens the approval process, and gets proposals out the door faster. Individual team members are assigned sections of the proposal to complete and status is tracked through the proposal calendar to ensure no deadlines are missed.

The calendar gives management a quick accurate view of the proposal pipeline and allows them to make better, more informed decisions on which proposals to bid on. The Proposal Generator streamlined their entire proposal process, which is resulting in efficient use of resources, accurate proposal submissions, a higher proposal win rate, and growing revenues.

Illustration of proposal management process with gears and brain icons.

Increased access to past proposals, resumes, marketing collateral, images and past performances

Modern office environment with integrated Office 365 tools for efficient workflow.

Streamlined proposal approval process and reduced proposal development costs

Efficient Office 365 environment for seamless collaboration and productivity.

Consolidated calendar of due dates into a single management calendar

Wireless automation streamlines administrative tasks, reducing costs and increasing efficiency in bu.

Eliminated issues surrounding resource allocation for different proposals

Frequently Asked Questions

What did i3solutions build for the company?

A customized SharePoint Portal that works as a proposal generation tool, plus a proposal site for the team to work in. It is the central repository for the content proposals are built from, and it makes that content searchable, which is what the team lacked before.

Which proposal problems does the portal fix?

The ones the company started with: limited search for up-to-date information, no version control, insufficient security permissions for viewing and updating proposals, inconsistent process management, no centralized proposal pipeline, and difficulty getting to critical information. The proposal library also keeps only the most up to date and approved content in use, which shortens the approval cycle and gets proposals out the door faster.

How does the team track proposal sections and deadlines?

Individual team members are assigned specific sections of a proposal, and status is tracked through the proposal calendar so no deadlines are missed. The rollup calendar consolidates due dates into a single management calendar, which gives management an accurate view of the proposal pipeline when deciding which proposals to bid on.

Can individual business units have their own portal sites?

Yes. The solution establishes portal team sites for various organizations within the company, each with document libraries for its own files, so information, news, events, and calendars can be shared with a specific group or with the entire organization.

If your proposal team rebuilds the same boilerplate every cycle, or nobody is certain which version of a past performance write-up is the approved one, the cost lands in the bid schedule instead of a budget line. A first conversation walks through how your proposals get assembled today: where the content lives, who is allowed to change it, and where the approval step stalls. You leave with a written list of the gaps and the order we would fix them in, which is also the before-and-after your capture leads or IT steering group will ask for before they fund the work. Start the conversation

Rebuilding the same boilerplate every cycle is a cost that lands in the bid schedule rather than a budget line, so it rarely gets argued about. A short scoping call covers how your proposals get assembled now, who is allowed to change the content, and where the approval step stalls.