Using cmmi, itil, and pm bo k to improve proposal operations - brenda crist 6-12-09

Using CMMI, ITIL, and PMBoK to Improve Proposal Operations Presenter: Brenda Crist Lohfeld Consulting Group

Current Proposal Practices
Proposal Management Books Often Focus on Proposal Management Basics:
Capture and Positioning
Bid Request
Bid Decision
Proposal Scheduling and Development
Proposal Planning
Review Teams
These processes are tried and true and promote collaboration and delivery on schedule

Do These Processes Meet All Your Job Needs?

Does Your Job Involve Multiple Functions?
Do You Manage Multiple Projects?
Staffing and Resources
Budgets and Communications
Cost and Quality Control
Do You Provide These Services?
Proposal Systems Design
Pipeline Management
Knowledge Management
Configuration Management
Template Creation
Training Services
Do You Promote Continual Improvement?

What Can We Learn from Industry to Improve Our Management of These Tasks?

We Can Take Best Practices From:
The Project Management Institute, Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBoK) can help us effectively manage multiple projects
Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) can help us deliver better proposal services
Capability Maturity Model Integrated (CMMI) can help us smoothly integrate proposal functions
ISO 9001:2000 can help us improve consistency and quality
We write about “industry best practices” daily; let’s use them to improve proposal management

What Can We Learn from PMBoK?

PMBoK Highlights Offers a framework for project management backed by project management best practices

What Can We Take From PMBoK?
Specific practices for improved:
Project Planning
Schedule Management
Quality Management
Communications Management
Cost Management
Risk Management
We can also use PMBoK methods for managing two or more projects concurrently

Project Planning and Scheduling
In advance of proposal activities:
Develop a realistic pipeline to determine workload (preferably Using a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Tool)
Develop project plans with WBSs and schedules for 10, 15, 30, and 45 day turnarounds
Establish milestones for major capture/proposal activities
Establish agreements with vendors and consultants
Manage to the schedule; reporting status daily against the milestones
Proactively monitor and record variance of planned vs. actual activities
Pre-planning + Commitment = Success

Examples Create a Pipeline Create a Work Breakdown Schedule ID# Agency Name Description Capture Status RFP Date Value 110 DOE ELMS Program BPR Smith Pre-RFP 5/1/09 $25M 210 DOC IPS Program Help Desk Jones RFP 6/1/09 $50M 330 Navy TACS Program Call Center Turner Future 9/1/09 $40M

Budget realistically
Plan ways to drive down proposal development costs
Proposal costs are often unpredictable; leave plenty of cushion in the budget
Implement cost controls and break down work into small incremental pieces
Measure performance
Maintain historic cost data for the next budgeting cycle
Cost Management You will be a hero if you deliver your proposal under your B&P budget

Tips for Driving Down Costs
Buy supplies in discounts like paper, toner cartridges, and binders and tabs
Negotiate discount rates for hardware maintenance (printers, copiers)
Establish agreements with set rates for services vendors like writing or editing
Create a knowledgebase of reusable written materials (resumes, graphics)
Hold brainstorming sessions after hours w/dinner so billable hours are not lost
Limit review team membership
Control color printer use
Re-invest savings back into the training of your staff

Quality Management
Incorporate quality standards
ISO 9001:2000, PMBoK, CMMI
Implement a Quality Assurance Program
Define quality metrics
Define processes for accomplishing milestones
Identify artifacts resulting from reviews
Implement Quality Controls
Compliance and solution reviews
Editorial and document reviews
Book check and media reviews
Evaluate and continuously improve qual ity
The quality of the proposal reflects your company’s quality

Incremental Quality Controls Build time in for quality reviews throughout the proposal life cycle

Human Resources Management
Define Staffing Plan
Define roles, authority, and responsibilities
Define competencies, experience, education, certifications
Maintain a realistic staffing plan for program and specific proposals
Develop a Training Plan
Define Program-Level Plan
Define Individual Development Plans
Attend APMP events
Develop a Retention Plan
Spot bonus pool or bonus plan
Alternate work schedules for long hours
Morale boosters
Develop plans and objectives for training and retaining valued capture and proposal management employees

Five things we can learn from PMBoK:
Create a communications plan and train members in its use
Identify the most effective and secure methods for information distribution
Define the best way for communicating with stakeholders/participants
Identify how to report status
Define your risk escalation path
Communications represent a significant part of a proposal manager’s daily activities

Communications Plan

Risk Management
Define a risk management plan or processes with escalation paths
Identify major risks
Proposal program risks: Lack of resources (personnel, technology, funds), Lack of training, Lack of time
Proposal risks: Solution gaps, Lack of key personnel, Missing price information, Unforeseen RFP changes/amendments
Maintain a risk mitigation log
Identify the risk
Person responsible for mitigating the risk
Risk mitigation timeframe and due date
Risk mitigation outcome
Discuss risk mitigation during daily standup meetings and at routine staff meetings
Keep management aware and focused on potential capture and proposal risks to mitigate deficiencies Risk Log Date Risk Due Assigned To 6/16 No Solution for Reports 6/26 James Smith 6/17 Missing Key Personnel 6/27 Recruiting, John Doe 6/18 Missing SW Pricing 6/28 SW Dept, Jane Jones

What Can We Learn from ITIL?

Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) Framework If your job requires more than just proposal management, ITIL offers a framework for the delivery of services

The ITIL Framework Defined
Service Strategy provides guidance on how to design, develop and implement service management
Service Design describes how to convert your service strategy objectives into service assets
Service Transition describes how to ensure service elements (applications, infrastructure knowledge, facilities) are delivered on schedule
Service Operations provides strategies for service support (incident, problem, access mgmt, and service delivery (infrastructure and security management)
Continual Service Improvement measures performance, implements improvements, and ensures expected results are achieved
ITIL is an IT infrastructure and services framework originated by the UK Office of Government Commerce

Service Strategy and Design
Develop Your Service Strategy
What services are you offering in addition to proposal management and production?
Knowledge management
Data calls/information requests
Change and configuration management
Customer relationship management (CRM)
Pipeline management
Proposal facilities management
Task order registration and processing
Who are your internal/external clients?
What assets do you need?
Develop a service strategy that meets the needs of your internal and external clients

Knowledge Management Services

ITIL Knowledge Management Tips
Make knowledge easy to access and intuitive to find
Create an electronic library using directory folders or a collaboration tool
Create instructions for a cheat sheet for finding information
Restrict access to the knowledgebase as appropriate for your company
Don’t re-create the wheel – build a knowledgebase

Items to Put in the Knowledgebase
Resumes (updated annually)
Past performance summaries (updated annually)
Processes for program planning, cost control, human resources, communication, risk, quality, and monitoring
Management factoids about retention, degrees, certifications
Processes for transition, incident, problem, change, configuration, release, asset, availability, capacity, and security management
Technical architectures and system flows for operations
Performance management success stories to demonstrate performance at or above industry averages
Problems and solutions
Kudo letters and success stories
Proposal templates
Art library containing photos and graphics

Do You Feel Like a Help Desk?
Are you always fielding questions about company characteristics? Like number of employees, certifications or revenue?
Are you always asked for past performance summaries or resumes?
Are you always asked for sample graphics or photos?
If you feel like a help desk, implement ITIL best practices for service management to function most efficiently

Consider Adding a Self-Help Feature
Work with company executives to determine what type of knowledge should be included in the self-help feature
Determine how you will restrict access based on roles
Identify what subset of the knowledgebase can be shared
Setup policies for adding, updating, and maintaining data
The self-help feature can benefit the company by providing secure, accurate, consistent, and timely information

Configuration Management Services

ITIL Configuration Management Tips Keeping knowledge under configuration control increases proposal preparation efficiency

Items to Put Under CM Control
Capture Plans and CRM data
Solicitation, Q&As, amendments, BAFOs, debriefs
Proposal Management Plans and schedules
Kick-off meeting agendas
Compliance matrices, storyboards, outlines
Templates, graphics, photos
Background information
Input from authors
Blue, black, pink, red, and gold team versions of the proposal/task order or oral presentations
Resumes, past performance summaries
Final proposals (hardcopy and softcopy)
Proposal budgets and metrics

What Can We Learn from CMMI?

Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) Process in unpredictable, poorly controlled, and reactive Process is characterized but is often reactive Process is defined, repeatable, and proactive Process is measured and controlled Focus on process improvement CMMI is a process improvement approach Level 1 “ Initial ” Level 2 “ Managed ” Level 3 “ Defined ” Level 4 “ Quantitatively Managed ” Level 5 “ Optimizing ”

Continual Process Improvement
Obtain buy-in for a CPI Program
Define SOPs for performing your job
Establish metrics
Allocate sufficient resources to collect metrics and analyze findings
Use IT to facilitate CPI data capture and analysis
Monitor performance and record lessons learned
Identify and implement improvements
Control improvements to verify they achieve the intended result
Start with one or two areas you wish to improve

Suggested Measurements
Win ratio
Completed on schedule
Completed within budget
Free of editorial defects
No unauthorized changes made to baselines
All proposal artifacts are kept under CM control
Internal clients express high satisfaction with service
Select performance metrics and use them to measure how well you perform

Training
Use feedback and metrics to identify training needs
Train external clients: Proposal training classes, secure, just-in-time training knowledgebase
Proposal team training: On-the-job training, knowledgebase, formal proposal training, APMP events, professional certification programs
A well-trained team improves efficiency, increases retention, and improves morale APMP NCA Professional Day 2008

Consider Using Software Development Techniques to Facilitate Proposal Management

Software Development Methods Applied to Proposal Development
The Software Engineering Institute (SEI) originally designed CMM/CMMI to define what processes and activities were needed to develop software
Many best practices were developed to specify how these processes and activities should be accomplished:
Waterfall Method
Spiral Method
Iterative Development Method
Agile Method
Plug and Chug Method
Evaluate each solicitation to determine the best process for developing a winning proposal response

Proposal Development Methods to Consider
Traditional Development
Storyboard
Annotated Outline
Pink Team
Red Team
Gold Team
Production
Delivery
SW Development Techniques
Waterfall
Plug and Chug
Iterative Method
Spiral Method
Agile Method
Consider using an iterative development technique if your solution is not established

Burn Rate/Burn Down Chart
When using an iterative/agile development method link accomplishments to a Burn Rate/Burn Down Chart, so executives can assess progress in comparison to the schedule
A Burn Rate Chart illustrates your performance against the budgeted schedule and cost Burn Rate/Burn Down Chart

What Can We Learn from ISO 9001:2000?

ISO 9001:2000 Highlights
ISO 9000 is a family of quality management standards maintained by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO)
To become ISO 9001:2000 certified you need:
A set of procedures covering your business process
A plan for monitoring processes
Records demonstrating you followed your business processes
A plan to check output for defects and a plan for corrective action
Regular review processes
A plan for continual improvement

We Can Learn to Write Effective SOPs Using ISO Guidance
Procedures should have:
Clear instructions and a schedule
Owner(s)
Metrics
Monitoring methods
Reporting methods
Audit methods
Set expectations and communicate how you will perform proposal management activities using SOPs

Sample SOP SOP Element SOP for a Proposal Kick-Off Meeting Agenda Instruction Develop an Agenda for the Proposal Kick-Off Meeting. The Agenda should contain a welcome from executives, a bid review, proposal schedule, writing assignments, and meeting schedule Owner Proposal Manager Metric Distributed at Kick-Off Meeting Monitoring Method Capture Manager works with the Proposal Manager to ensure it is being created Evaluation Method Executive Management and the Capture Manager review the agenda prior to the meeting and Proposal Manager makes corrections Reporting Method Agenda distributed at the Kick-Off Meeting and stored in the Proposal Library Audit Method Quarterly review of Proposal Library to determine if the Agenda is present

Internal Audits
Conduct quarterly audits to determine if artifacts are:
Present
Complete
Secure
Correctly located
Require updating
Internal audits provide a discipline for ensuring your records are present, secure, up-to-date, and easily located

To determine if industry best practices can help, make a list of your job functions

To determine if industry best practices can help, make a list of your job functions
Proposal Process Management
Proposal Project Management
Proposal Service Management
Proposal Performance Management
Proposal management is a multi-dimensional process often involving project, service, and performance management Performance Mgmt Functional Categories Service Mgmt Process Mgmt Project Mgmt

Functional Breakdown
Process Management
Capture Management
Proposal Management
Coordination Management
Graphics/Art Management
Production Management
Project Management
Project Planning / Scheduling
Cost Management
Quality Management
Human Resources Management
Risk Management
Service Management
Knowledge Management
Pipeline Management
CRM Management
Change Management
Configuration Management
Performance Management
Measurement and Analysis
Training
Continual Improvement
List and categorize your job functions to determine if you can benefit from industry best practices

Link Functions to Best Practices Link your job functions to best practices and create SOPs to enhance your performance Function Best Practice Area Risk Management PMBoK Risk Management Cost Management PMBoK Cost Management Knowledge Management ITIL Service Transition for Knowledge Management Continual Improvement CMMI Continuous Process Improvement and ITIL Continual Service Improvement Quality Management ISO 9001:2000 and CMMI Process and Product Quality Assurance Process Area Communications Management PMBoK Communications Management Configuration Management ITIL Service Transition for Configuration Management and CMMI Configuration Management Process Area

Summary
As a proposal professional your job is complex and demanding
It involves the management of multiple processes, projects, and services simultaneously
Learn from industry and adapt best practices and lessons learned to help as needed
Pass your lessons learned and best practices onto others

Thank You Brenda Crist APMP NCA Vice President Professional Day Committee Chairperson 2009 Principal, Lohfeld Consulting Group www.lohfeldconsulting.com [email_address] 301-466-9566

Using cmmi, itil, and pm bo k to improve proposal operations - brenda crist 6-12-09

by Lohfeld Consulting Group on Mar 28, 2011

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Using cmmi, itil, and pm bo k to improve proposal operations - brenda crist 6-12-09 — Presentation Transcript