Description

Session 1: Tuesday, September 22, 2026

Session 2: Tuesday, October 6, 2026

In an increasingly competitive and crowded A/E/C market, technically strong firms are winning—or losing—work based on how clearly and persuasively they communicate their value. This Strategic Proposals Training is designed to help engineering professionals move beyond compliance-driven proposals toward strategically crafted submissions built on clear win themes, client insight, and disciplined messaging. Drawing from proven best practices in capture planning, win theme development, proposal organization, and evaluation-criteria alignment, the program emphasizes how to develop a compelling narrative that differentiates a firm’s approach, experience, and team, then weave that narrative consistently throughout the proposal. A dedicated storytelling component will help participants translate complex technical solutions into clear, client-focused stories that resonate with selection committees and reinforce win themes without sacrificing rigor. The training underscores that strong proposals are not written at the last minute - they are the result of early positioning, disciplined thinking, and intentional messaging that aligns technical excellence with what clients value most.

Tuesday, September 22, 2026
Session 1: Positioning to Win – Strategy Before the RFP

Focus: Competitive positioning, discipline, and message clarity before writing begins.

• Understanding today’s competitive proposal landscape and why technical excellence alone is no longer enough
• Assessing opportunities through a bid/no-bid and positioning-to-win lens
• Identifying client priorities, selection criteria, and decision drivers (both stated and unstated)
• Developing clear, defensible win themes that differentiate the team from competitors
• Aligning technical approach, staffing, and qualifications to client-specific outcomes
• Translating capture strategy into a clear proposal roadmap

Tuesday, October 6, 2026
Session 2: Telling the Story – Executing a Persuasive Proposal

Focus: Turning strategy into a clear, consistent, and compelling proposal narrative.

• Organizing proposals around win themes and evaluation criteria
• Writing clear, concise technical narratives that emphasize value—not boilerplate
• Using storytelling techniques to make complex engineering solutions understandable and memorable
• Ensuring consistency of message across executive summaries, technical sections, and staffing narratives
• Avoiding common proposal pitfalls that dilute differentiation
• Reinforcing credibility through examples, structure, and disciplined messaging

This is intended for a technical audience: it separates strategy from execution while reinforcing that winning proposals require both.

Instructors:

Sarah Ginand is a strategic marketing consultant who helps A/E/C, infrastructure, and mission-driven organizations clarify their value, strengthen their positioning, and win more of the work that matters. She spent many years developing and scaling proposal processes that improved hit rates and helped secure major priority wins. Sarah brings a practical, strategy-first approach to helping technical teams move from compliance-driven responses to persuasive, client-focused stories.

Allison Karoly has spent her career honing the craft of proposal preparation—helping technical teams organize complex information, respond clearly to client requirements, and produce polished, compelling submissions. She brings a disciplined, detail-oriented perspective to the proposal process, with a strong understanding of how structure, clarity, and consistency can strengthen a team’s competitive position.

Sophie Wadsworth is a storytelling coach who helps leaders and teams uncover, shape, and deliver stories that capture attention and inspire action. She works with business and social sector leaders to bring greater presence, clarity, and emotional connection to their communications, including presentations, pitches, and stakeholder conversations. Her role in this training is to help participants translate technical expertise into memorable stories that resonate with selection committees.

Registration Deadline: Tuesday, September 15, 2026

Registration information: Register to attend this course and pay by credit card online by clicking register. To register online for an event at the BSCES member rate you must login or enter the email connected to your ASCE membership. Cancellations or no shows after September 15 will be billed.