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鈥淲e are pleased to present this proposal 鈥︹��

I鈥檝e spent many exhausting years changing this opening sentence to cover letters. It started when I attended a roundtable with selection committee members and one of them said that if he read another cover letter that started this way he would scream.

I concur. This sentence makes me want to scream too. In fact, I鈥檓 so against it, I teach a workshop on how to write an effective cover letter that cautions against using this sentence.

This is the kind of feedback people need to hear. What grabs selection committees and what turns them off? What sets one firm apart from another? How important are graphics and photography? Do selection committees notice boilerplate proposals?

To answer these questions and more, I interviewed three people who have played an active role in proposal short-listing for many years: Susan Steinbrenner, former (recently retired) executive director of facilities at Evergreen Public Schools (EPS) in Vancouver, Washington; Rob Fix, executive director of the Port of Bellingham (POB); and Libby Ramirez, university architect/director of capital resources for Oregon State University (OSU). As representatives of public entities, they must participate in an equitable selection process.

So, about that cover letter 鈥�

Mr. Fix and Ms. Ramirez agree that firms should avoid openings that sound more like a cold call than a customized letter. Instead, they encourage firms to use this space as an opportunity to show an understanding of their organization, their project, and its place in the community. Passion for the project is also valued.

鈥淚 want to hear what鈥檚 exciting about our project and what first intrigued you,鈥� Ms. Ramirez said. 鈥淲hen someone says they have been dying for this project to be posted for years, that鈥檚 the kind of thing we appreciate.鈥�

This kind of customization extends beyond the cover letter. All three directors can immediately spot boilerplate writing.

鈥淭he teams who understand our priorities and have done the kind of work and have the kind of enthusiasm we鈥檙e looking for are apparent. We can tell what proposals are custom-made to respond to the RFP and which ones are cut and pasted from another proposal,鈥� Mr. Fix said.

Other proposal writing

Do selection committees really read proposals? These directors unanimously do.

鈥淚 read every word,鈥� Ms. Steinbrenner said, adding that she appreciates conciseness.

Selection committees receive numerous responses to RFPs/RFQs, so it鈥檚 important to respect their time by being concise.

For Ms. Ramirez, the most successful proposals are specifically crafted for the RFP/RFQ.

鈥淲hen you see a firm give a fresh take that is directed to OSU 鈥� they鈥檝e looked at a different project on our campus or maybe they鈥檝e looked at some other work that we鈥檝e done in the past and they incorporate that information into their response 鈥� it really stands out.鈥�

All three directors mentioned how easy it is to visit their websites and learn about their goals, guiding principles and strategic plans.

Graphics and photography

Selection committees value how a proposal is put together visually. When asked what stands out most as an excellent proposal, each director said that strong organization is key. This is in part based on the selection committee members鈥� experience. Oftentimes, members may have no experience with the process, so it鈥檚 helpful when the response is in the same order as the RFP/RFQ criteria.

Relevant, quality photos are also appreciated.

鈥淲e were doing a STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) accelerator project that was a renovation of an existing school,鈥� Ms. Steinbrenner said. 鈥淥ne firm put in all these CTE (Career and Technical Education) photos. I give them credit because they were trying to relate to our project, but it was really kind of a miss.鈥�

The group also said that while firms don鈥檛 have to hire a professional to shoot photos, it鈥檚 a good idea to do so 鈥� or at least assign the task to an employee with an understanding of photography.

Resumes and team experience

Ms. Steinbrenner cautions against what has become known as the bait and switch.

鈥淚 want to see a proposal that includes the people who are really going to work on the project,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e more interested in people who are good designers and not polished presenters, and we caution our selection committee members to be on the lookout for that.鈥�

Mr. Fix values a cohesive team spirit.

鈥淎nytime someone comes together with a team that looks like a well-oiled machine, and they present a thoughtful concept, we鈥檙e going to be respectful of that and we鈥檙e going to make sure they at least get an interview.鈥�

For OSU, seeing teams who have worked together is important.

鈥淚f we get a firm with great experience, but the team hasn鈥檛 worked together, that isn鈥檛 as strong as proposals from teams who have,鈥� Ms. Ramirez said.

In addition, Ms. Ramirez prefers teams with relevant experience. OSU is an R1 research institution (one that offers at least 20 research or scholarship-based doctoral degrees and spends at least $5 million on research annually), and direct experience with that kind of lab design is essential to the university.

鈥淚f I look at a resume and it says that a person has eight years of laboratory design experience, and then they list out the labs that they鈥檝e worked on and they鈥檙e all high school labs or all their lab experience was a community college or private industry, that鈥檚 different experience,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 good, but it鈥檚 different.鈥�

The DEI response

Numerous firms struggle when presented with questions about diversity, equity and inclusion, and how best to respond.

OSU typically asks firms to discuss how they design for inclusiveness and for a description of a firm鈥檚 workforce diversity plan.

鈥淭hese sections are extremely important to us,鈥� Ms. Ramirez said, adding that the response is a quick way for the selection committee to discern if someone is 鈥渞eally interested or phoning it in.鈥�

What OSU isn鈥檛 looking for is a response about how a firm has 40 percent women and a policy of being an equal opportunity employer.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 all well and good, but what I want to hear is what you鈥檙e doing to help lift up the contractors, architects and others in the industry who qualify as MWESB (minority-owned, woman-owned, and emerging small businesses) or DSV (disabled-service veteran-owned) firms?鈥�

Responses should focus on how firms create opportunities for these businesses by providing mentorship or bringing more diversity into project teams.

In addition, the university wants to understand how firms design for, and consider, the viewpoints of a diverse audience. The word 鈥渄iverse鈥� covers a broad base that includes race, gender, LGBTQ+, students from different cultures, students with food insecurities, people who require universal access, and others. There is a myriad of groups, and responses need to show an understanding of who the user groups are and demonstrate that within their proposal.

EPS also has a robust DEI initiative, according to Ms. Steinbrenner. The district values responses that discuss how firms engage with a variety of stakeholders to get more participation. Do firms understand the barriers that might prevent inclusion?

鈥淚 think it鈥檚 become a white culture thing to check a box and say that they have an MWESB partner when they didn鈥檛 actually engage with them and learn more about their culture or what they can bring to the design, or talk about what opportunities they provided them,鈥� she said.

EPS is asking people to demonstrate in proposals how they would work with those stakeholder groups to make them feel included and how that would translate into the project鈥檚 design. They want to see experience or even representative projects that speak to that.

Final words

Ms. Steinbrenner, Mr. Fix, and Ms. Ramirez emphasized deep appreciation for the time and money that goes into each proposal.

鈥淲e would be nowhere without the interest of all these designers and construction firms,鈥� Ms. Ramirez said. 鈥淪o, I want to express my thanks to anyone that opens our advertisement for bid opportunities and shows interest.鈥�

Julie Flattery has worked in the architecture, engineering and construction industries for 30 years and uses this knowledge to help firms improve their verbal communications. She also teaches workshops on the art of proposal creation through a co-owned business: Deconstructed Workshops (www.deconstructedworkshops.com). Contact her at [email protected].

The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed in the preceding commentary are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of the Daily Journal of Commerce or its editors. Neither the author nor the 91视频 guarantees the accuracy or completeness of any information published herein.