The fear factor
Steve Mullins, the chair of Strategic Proposals’ board, is one of the leading lights in the world of procurement. While we were chatting the other day, he made a marvellous observation:
What’s the scariest phrase for a buyer to hear after selecting their supplier?
“What a brave decision!”
I love this. I well recall from my own procurement days that, whilst we focused on what good would look like, the flipside was always a concern: what if this went wrong? Can you imagine a buyer saying any of the following:
• I want to have to work really, really hard personally to make this work
• I don’t mind my users shouting at me
• I don’t mind my bosses shouting at me
• If it’s late, who cares….?
• Unexpected extra costs? I don’t mind going to ask for more money
• Bring on the excitement – I love surprises!
I doubt it. And it re-emphasises the need to think about the customer’s hopes and – especially – fears when formulating your proposal strategies.
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Spot on. I see bids as a risk-mitigation exercise much more than a “selling” exercise. The question I ask myself when coming up with my submission is “if I was the buyer, would I trust these people with my money?”