Five Habits of Highly Effective Color Team Reviewers
Recently, I have seen an influx of articles attacking the
effectiveness of color team reviews. One article states boldly that the “color
team model is ineffective, obsolete, and not worth preserving.” The author goes
on to fault the process itself. However, to be most effective, processes must
be taught to the implementers, and the right people must be selected to
implement the process. Processes should be evaluated frequently and adjusted
for maximum effectiveness.
As you have probably guessed, I am still a proponent of
tried and true color team reviews. Why? Because I have seen them done well, and
I have seen them work. Color reviews should be based on a defined process that
is clearly articulated, taught, and understood by all those participating in
the proposal process. The right review leadership should drive the color team
reviews and keep the review teams on track. The review leadership should select
a sufficient number of reviewers to allow for a thorough review. However, even
if all this is done correctly, reviews will not be effective unless the right reviewers
are selected. Color team reviews can only be highly effective when you have
highly effective reviewers. This post will examine five key habits of
exceptional color team reviewers.
1. They come
prepared. Exceptional color team reviewers come to the review prepared for
business. If the RFP was available to review beforehand, they have already read
the requirements, especially those pertinent to their assigned section. They
avoid distractions while participating in the review (e.g., emails, phone
calls, etc.), and they spend their review time focused on the task at hand.
2. They focus on
compliance first. Exceptional color team reviewers understand that the team
can’t win if they are noncompliant. These reviewers first scrub the section
looking for holes, and then make solid recommendations on how to remedy any
issues found.
3. They provide
recommendations. Exceptional color team reviewers not only identify issues
and weaknesses, but they also provide the proposal team with solid
recommendations on how to fix the problems they find. These reviewers take time
to fix a non-compliant outline, add example proof points to strengthen a
section, or actually rewrite bullet
points for parallel structure. Exceptional color team reviewers understand that
not all proposal writers are grammarians and that nearly all proposal writers
are very stressed for time.
4. They provide
positive feedback. Exceptional reviewers not only identify weaknesses, but
they also identify portions of the proposal that are done well. This positive
reinforcement not only helps to keep morale high among the proposal team, but
it also provides examples that the proposal team can use to fix issues elsewhere.
For example, as a model for how to fix a weak past performance write-up, the
reviewer may point to another past performance write-up that is very strong,
with solid proof points and metrics that map clearly to the requirements of the
RFP.
5. They use the
pronoun we instead of you. Exceptional reviewers
understand the psychology involved in receiving feedback, and opt to use we instead of you. Instead of “You need to include the retention rate on the
program,” they write, “I recommend that we include the retention rate on the
program to strengthen our statement about how effective our retention strategy
is.” Using you can come across on an
attack on the writer, where using we
reinforces the team aspect of the effort.
When conducted thoughtfully and with diligence, color teams
can be highly effective, helping proposal teams to improve their proposal
offering and increase their probability of win. To increase the effectiveness
of your color team reviews, make sure to define expectations, select the right
reviewers, and allow for sufficient time to review. The proposal process must always
remain flexible, adjusting to the needs of individual opportunities and
organizations. Color team reviews are no exception. It is OK to adjust the
review process to make it effective for your opportunity or organization—in fact,
this is something that you absolutely should
be doing.
Written by Ashley Kayes
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashley-kayes-cp-apmp-a3750413/
Who is the author? I would like permission draw from this article and share with colleagues in my company and give credit to the Author
ReplyDeleteSorry for the delayed response. I am the author of the blog and this specific article. Please feel free to share content from this blog with your company! I am glad that have found it useful. Hopefully your colleagues do as well.
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