That Decision Makes No Sense!

We often complain and get frustrated about ‘nonsensical’ bid/no-bid decisions. The ones that mean we spend significant time and effort bidding for opportunities we’re unlikely to win and less on those we should. I’ve complained myself in the past. Often. Loudly. Occasionally successfully.

But recently, I’ve started to look at things differently.

The bid/no-bid is important, but it’s just one of hundreds of decisions made during a bid. From strategy and storyboarding decisions to writing (or editing the AI’s draft of) a single sentence, every part of a bid exists because someone decided it should be done – and done that way.

You could argue a submitted bid is simply the outcome of all the decisions made throughout its creation.

If you look at your bids from that perspective, could improving even a small percentage of those decisions lead to better, smoother bids – and more wins? What if, instead of focusing on actions and outputs, we paid more attention to the decisions that drive them?

Think about all the decisions being made during your bid, and ask yourself:

• Are the right people making the right decisions?
• Is it clear who owns each decision?
• Do they have the right information, skills, and authority to make a ‘good’ decision?
• Are they making decisions at the right time during (or before) the bid?
• Do they have a framework or process for making good decisions?
• Do they feel empowered, and psychologically safe to make, and act, on their decision?
• Where are the decision-making bottlenecks, or gaps where no one is really deciding at all?
• We’re used to analysing customer decision-making units – identifying decision makers, gatekeepers, and influencers. We map their decision-making processes and develop strategies to shape their choices.

But how often do we apply that same rigour to our own organisations?

Try conducting a ‘Decision Audit’ on your latest bid. Map out who made which decisions, when, how and why. I bet you’ll spot several opportunities to improve how decisions are made.

You might discover ways to empower your team to make better decisions more confidently (or ways to delegate more decisions to them); identify the decisions you need to focus on (and those you don’t); see more clearly how you can influence the bigger decisions (like the bid /no bid decision) more effectively.

Ultimately, by improving the decision architecture your bids are built on, you’ll improve the quality and effectiveness of the bids themselves.

So now, when I hear a bid/no-bid decision that seems to make no sense, I don’t shout (honest). I ask who made the decision, how, and why? And how can I help make a better one next time?