(173b) Writing a Successful Proposal

For over 40 years, Joe Reynolds lead a project team at Tracor, an Austin-based applied technology firm.  Early on, he developed a strategy for leading his team in writing proposals that could beat competition from the top-tier defense contractors.  His team’s specialty was in designing leading-edge applied technology for the Defense Department.

After a good idea, a successful proposal continues with an evaluation of your company’s strengths and weaknesses.  Next, you size-up the competition’s strong and weak points. As you complete the proposal, you want to describe any fatal flaws that your competition’s solutions may have and show how your design avoids them.

KEY WORDS: strategy, proposal writing, winning