In today’s design and construction industry, strategic business growth requires a delicate but effective management approach during the bid and proposal preparation phases of procurement. Deployment of critical strategies during the response to a bid or proposal solicitation can mean the joy of a successful project win or the agony of a crushing project loss.
This coaching session will help you focus on the Who, What, When and How when engaging in winning strategies around the Impact of Good Estimating, Interpretation and Understanding of Bid/Proposal Solicitation Documents (qualification-based and/or hard-bid) and the Do’s and Don’ts of Bidding. The presentation along with candid open-discussions are meant to create meaningful and educational dialogue, information sharing and knowledge transfer between the presenters/subject matter experts and the BJC 101 session participants.
The Impact of a good project estimate – Failing to prepare a reliable cost estimate can have disastrous results
For contractors, good cost estimates win jobs. Customers usually select the lowest bid that meets the standards
and specifications they set. In a competitive bidding situation, the time and effort you spend preparing the estimate are a cost of doing business and an investment in winning the job. If urgency is a factor for a project, the speed at which you prepare a bid can also be a differentiator.
Common Estimating and Bidding Mistakes
- Misread or misinterpreted specifications, drawings, or any other contract documents
- Takeoff omissions, overlaps, wrong assumptions, not enough questions or scope validations
- Missing quotes
- Estimating by unit price only
- Using the percentage method to establish the cost of certain systems
- Prorating indiscriminately
- Crumbling under pressure to procure work
The question is “How do you gain a competitive advantage thru demonstrating economies of scale, efficiencies, controlling and managing internal cost?” For small emerging Architects, Engineers and Contractors seeking growth strategies for their businesses, proper scoping, cost identification, scheduling of project deliverables, deployment of staff resources, managing/tracking of labor are just a few elements that protect you during the project delivery process.
“Taking Baby Steps will lead to Leaps and Bounds.” – Cherise Taylor.
