Change communication can be a ‘secret weapon’ for bid team leaders and managers

TL;DR: Effective bid and tender leaders need more than 'just' our core skills if we want to maximise our chances of winning bids (and doing so efficiently and sustainably). Given the current environment, change communication should be somewhere at the top of the list.
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I believe a 'secret ingredient' of effective bid leaders is curiosity and the drive to identify new sources of knowledge that can help us win more bids (and do so efficiently and sustainably).

Not only because a broader approach to professional development can provide us with new insights and understanding, but because it can also provide us with evidence to support the insights we have gained through hands-on experience. This can be very useful when you are engaging with professionally sceptical accountants, lawyers, consultants, etc, who may have you second guessing your own expertise (IYKYK).

Many bid team leaders are currently working to adapt to the impacts of generative AI on their teams and organisations, and many tender managers are also working to improve their engagement with internal SMEs (who are the source of insights into clients' needs and the competitive landscape, as well as capability). This is why I suggest bid professionals invest time in learning about effective change communications and consider how you can use it in their role. If you are looking for a resource, Dr Jen Frahm has a new book, 𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚 𝘾𝙤𝙢𝙢𝙪𝙣𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣, out today.

I attended a masterclass Jen ran a couple of years ago and found it very useful. And while I haven't had time to read the full book yet, I can already tell it is full of relevant gems.

For example, I recently gave a presentation on improving engagement with professional services subject matter experts (SMEs), and one of the points I made was the importance of bid professionals understanding the culture and context the SMEs were working in. This was based on my years of experience working in BD and bids within professional services. Page 83 of 𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚 𝘾𝙤𝙢𝙢𝙪𝙣𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 focuses on alignment to organisational context, why it is important and how to achieve it - providing guidance we can adapt and tailor to our bid roles.

In the same section, Jen goes on to say:

"𝘐𝘵'𝘴 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦, 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘹𝘵, 𝘣𝘦𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘳, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘺𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘮𝘴-𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘪𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘶𝘱 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘯𝘦𝘸𝘴? 𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘥𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘭𝘺 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘪𝘱𝘭𝘦, 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘢𝘵 𝘰𝘯𝘤𝘦, 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘲𝘶𝘢𝘭 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦.

𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵.

𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘭𝘶𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦.

𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵 w𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦."

Excellent advice for bid team leaders and tender managers looking to improve bid effectiveness and efficiency, and to do so sustainably!