1. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Capture Managers and The 10 P’s to Get There
Presentation to
The National Capital Area Chapter
Of the
Association of Proposal Management Professionals
May 17, 2006
Business Development Associates, LLC
Dr. John G. Picarelli, President
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Presentation Outline
Answering 3 Important Questions:
What are the Basics of Capture Management ?
What are the Focused and Disciplined Habits Needed to be an Effective Capture Manager, and How Can One Get There?
Effective Habits
The 7 Habits
The 10 P’s
3. How Does a Company Overcome Bad Habits to Achieve Better Results in Capture Management ?
Gap-Filling
Overcoming Bad Habits
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Question 1
What are the Basics of Capture Management ?
Understanding the Requirements
Developing the “Solution”
Positioning with the Customer
Submitting the Best Proposal
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Question 2
What are the Focused and Disciplined Habits Needed to be an Effective Capture Manager,
and
How Can One Get There?
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5. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People,
Effective Habits
Taken from:
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People,
by Stephen Covey, 1989
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6. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Capture Managers
Habit # 1 - Be Proactive in Taking Responsibility for the Capture
Habit # 2 - Begin with Multiple Ends in Mind
Habit # 3 - Identify the Important Things and Do Them While Handling Urgent Matters
Habit # 4 - Think About How All Parties Can Win
Habit # 5 - Listen to Understand, Then Seek to be Heard and Understood
Habit # 6 - Seek and Nurture Creative Cooperation
Habit # 7 - Seek Renewal, Growth, and Continuous Improvement
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Habit #1
(Be Proactive)
 “If the problem is perceived as out there, then that thought is the problem.”
- Stephen Covey (quoted from previous reference)
Be Proactive in Taking Responsibility for the Capture
Initiate Actions to Mobilize Resources in Response to Perceived
Needs for the Capture
Develop Ideas and Plans and Implement Them
Seek Creative Solutions
Be a Problem-Solver and Problem Mitigator
Maintain a Positive, Can-Do Attitude
Exercise the Power of Personal Choice to Respond to Events and Circumstances
Be “Response-Able”
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Habit #2
(Begin with the End in Mind)
 “Effectiveness is doing the right thing. Efficiency is doing the thing right.”
- Stephen Covey (quoted from previous reference)
Begin with Multiple Ends in Mind
Think from Multiple Perspectives on the Ends
The Company / Division/ Group/ Business Unit
The Team
The Customer’s Department/ Division/…
The User
“What is Each Stakeholder Trying to Accomplish ?”
Think about Making a Personal Difference, not Doing a Job
As a Leader -Think about Strategic Alignment – “What are the Right Things to Do ?”
Create a Vision of What Could Be or Should Be
As a Manager -Think About “How” to Accomplish the Right Things
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Habit #3
(Put First Things First)
 “At the heart of personal management is the ability to deal with things that
are not urgent, but are important.”
- Stephen Covey (quoted from previous reference)
Identify the Important Things and Do Them While Handling Urgent Matters
Learn to Identify the Important from the Urgent
Begin Important Things Early so They don’t Become Impossible to
Finish Later
Invest Time in Developing Important Relationships
Balance Production with Development of “Production Capability”
Invest Time in Planning and Prevention
Maintain Focus and Discipline for more Control
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Habit #4
(Think Win/ Win)
“Win / Win is not a technique; it’s a total philosophy of human interaction.”
- Stephen Covey (quoted from previous reference)
Think About How All Parties Can Win
Think about and Develop Agreements and Solutions that are Mutually Beneficial
Apply This to All Stakeholders
The Company / Division/ Group/ Business Unit
The Team
The Customer’s Department/ Division/…
The User
Build on the Foundation of Character, Integrity, and Mutual Trust
Change Lose/ Win and Win/ Lose Thinking by Identifying Ways Each Party Can Benefit
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Habit #5
(Seek First to Understand, Then to be Understood)
“This involves a very deep paradigm shift…Most people do not listen with the intent to understand; they listen with the intent to reply.”
- Stephen Covey (quoted from previous reference)
Listen to Understand, Then Seek to be Heard and Understood
Seek to Understand the Needs, Requirements, Concerns, Problems, and
Situations of the Customer and Other Stakeholders
Invest Time Getting to Know the Customer so that the Customer
Understands that the Company Cares and Understands
Slow Down to Build Customer Relationships
Develop Creative Ways to Get the Company’s Message, Capabilities, and Solution Heard
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Habit #6
(Synergize)
 “Synergy catalyzes, unifies, and unleashes the greatest powers within people. It means the whole is greater than the sum of the parts.”
- Stephen Covey (quoted from previous reference)
Seek and Nurture Creative Cooperation
Seek High Levels of Trust and Cooperation
   Analyze How the Team Adds Value to the Customer Organization
and Mission
Identify how is more than 2 for All Parties Involved
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Habit #7
(Sharpen the Saw)
 “Renewal is the principle and the process that empowers us to move on an upward spiral of growth and change, of continuous improvement.”
- Stephen Covey (quoted from previous reference)
Seek Renewal, Growth, and Continuous Improvement
Identify Standards of Excellence, Ideals, and Benchmarks of Industry
Leaders
Take Measures to Understand the Current Level of Accomplishment and Performance on a Personal, Team, and Organizational Level
Seek Insights and Inputs from Knowledgeable, Independent Sources
Set Goals for Continuous Improvement
Have a Passion for Growth and Excellence that’s Contagious
Empower and Inspire Others to Improve
Identify and Apply Lessons Learned
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14. The 10 P’s for Capture Managers to Get There
These are the 10 Key Activities to Developing and Strengthening the Habits of Effective Capture Managers –
Learning Goal – “Level 4 – Unconscious Competence”, also known as Habit
PROCESS
PLANNING
PEOPLE / PROPER RESOURCES
PREPARATION
POSITIONING
PERFORMING ANALYSES
PROPOSAL DESIGN & DEVEL’PT
PREVENTION
POSITIVE EXPECTANCY
PERSERVERANCE
“We are what we repeated do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”
- Aristotle
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Question 3
How Does a Company Overcome Bad Habits to Achieve Better Results in Capture Management ?
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16. Gap-Filling for Capture Managers
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17. Gap-Filling for Capture Managers, cont.
Key Points to Remember:
The responsible Corporate Executive needs to make sure that any “skill / experience gaps” the Capture Manager may have are filled across the Capture Team, including the strengths of the Proposal Manager, Technical Lead, key Blue and Red Team Members, and others, including him/herself.
The responsible Corporate Executive and the Senior BD Executive need to monitor progress throughout the capture process to make sure everything is being done as well as possible, and as timely as possible. This includes the entire proposal development process from kickoff to proposal delivery to closure.
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18. Good Capture Habits to Learn
Overcoming Bad Habits
Bad Habits of Performance and Execution Lead to a Predictable Pattern of Competitive Losses
Bad Habits to Overcome
Good Capture Habits to Learn
Lack of Accountability/ The Blame Game
Habit # 1
Lack of Leadership and Commitments
Making Excuses versus Developing Soln’s
Starting Late/ Poor Targeting/ Lack of Time
Habit # 2
Assigning Wrong People/ Needed vs. Avail’bl
Habit # 3
Inadequate or Untimely Resources
Undisciplined Capture & Proposal Process
Lack of Competitor Knowledge/ No Strategy
Lack of Customer Knowledge/ Relationships
Habits # 4 and # 5
No Win Themes/ Why Us?/ No Value-Added
Habits # 4 and # 6
Untrained Resources/ No Lessons Learned
Habit # 7
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Closing Thoughts
Cling to Goals
“Before you begin a thing, remind yourself that difficulties and delays quite impossible to foresee are ahead You can only see one thing clearly and that is your goal. Form a mental vision of that and cling to it through thick and thin.” –Kathleen Norris
“Nothing splendid has ever been achieved except by those who dared believe that something inside them was superior to circumstances. “ – Bruce Barton
“The moment you stop learning, you stop leading.” – Rick Warren
“Don’t be afraid of going slowly; be afraid of standing still.”
- Chinese Proverb
“Change is inevitable. Growth is optional.”
- John Maxwell
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