APMP Glossary Verified Answers
Account Plan
A sales plan that is specific to one customer and covers multiple opportunities with that customer. The
timespan covered by the plan typically is two to five years.
Action Caption
A short, informative statement associated with a graphic that provides additional information to help
the reader understand what the graphic means.
Active/Passive Voice
Sentences written in active voice have a clear subject and verb. They make it clear who does what.
Passive-voice sentences, in contrast, are considered "weaker," because the subject receives the action
instead of performing it. Passive sentences usually contain a form of the verb "to be."(...)
Advantage
How, in the seller's opinion, a product or service may benefit the customer. Advantages are potential
benefits and are more powerful than features.
Aesthetics
A set of principles regarding the nature and appreciation of beauty. The study of aesthetics increases the
validity of many critical judgments concerning art. Established aesthetic principles create a shared
vocabulary and understanding for the objective evaluation of beauty.
After-Action Review
A systematic process to extract the learning from an event or activity. The process addresses the
questions, What should have happened? What actually happened? What can we learn and apply for the
future?
Annotated Outline
A simple writing or content plan. This is a structure for the proposal that is usually derived from the
customer requirements documentation. The outline may be annotated to show writing responsibilities,
informative headings, page-count estimates, and so on. The annotated outline amplifies a(...)
Appendix
Supplementary material included at the end of a proposal. Appendices contain specialized, relevant
information that facilitates the decisionmaking process.
Assumptions
Conditions that the bid team assume exist for the purpose of providing a price or terms of service in a
proposal.
Balance (Visual)
,Balance is achieved when the visual "weight" of both halves of a graphic is similar, giving a sense of
equilibrium. Unbalanced graphics convey a sense of uneasiness.
Benchmarking
A systematic process for comparing your processes with those of other recognized leaders in your field
or industry to identify and close gaps.
Benefit
A benefit results from a feature of an offer that resolves a customer issue and demonstrates the value
the customer can achieve from resolving the issue. To claim a benefit, there must be a feature of the
offer that clearly allows the customer to realize the benefit. Benefits help customers(...)
Best and Final Offer (BAFO)
A customer request for a document that describes your organization's final price. There may be more
than one request for a BAFO. The customer requests a BAFO after the proposal has been submitted to
select the final companies to negotiate with or go directly to award.
Bid Decision Tree
A tool used to help you make an informed bid decision based on positive and negative indicators. It
results in a "yes" or "no" response leading to a qualified pursuit decision.
Bid Decisions (General)
Bid decisions are aimed at eliminating opportunities or sales leads with a low win probability, thus
permitting a stronger focus on opportunities with a higher win probability. For large, complex pursuits,
companies often use market entry, opportunity qualification, bid pursuit, bid/no-bid,(...)
Bid Manager
A Bid Manager is responsible for managing a bid or proposal opportunity from qualification to contract
award, including: Early and ongoing strategy development Legal review Solution development Winning
price development Partner identification Risk management Proposal(...)
Bid or Proposal Center
A support organization dedicated to generating proposals and other response documents for customers.
Bid Pursuit Decision
Generally the first decision milestone to verify that the opportunity fits your strategic direction and
capability. This decision often approves the funds to initiate early opportunity planning activities. Sales
may do an opportunity qualification decisionbefore this decision gate.
Bid Validation Decision
A decision milestone after the customer releases an RFP to address obstacles to winning that were
identified in the opportunity plan.
Bid/No-Bid Decision
,A milestone after the opportunity plan is substantially complete. It validates that you are properly
positioned to win based on the opportunity plan.
Bidder Comparison Matrix (BCM)
A tool used to analyze the customer's current perception of your solution compared to competitors. It
usually is a weighted score that indicates the customer's confidence that you can meet their
requirements.
Black Hat
See Competitor Review.
Blue Team
See Opportunity Plan Review
Boilerplate
Stored text and graphics that are available for potential reuse in future proposals. Boilerplate is
information that is harvested from existing documentation to be repurposed in other proposals. It may
include text and graphics, technical specifications, company procedures, and advertising and(...)
Business Case
An internal documented argument for bidding on a particular opportunity. The business case typically
focuses on the financial aspects of the bid. The same term may also be applied to a document or
proposal section that is aimed at providing the customer with the financial justification for(...)
Business Case Review/Senior Management Review
All the internal milestones and approvals (internal governance) required to sign off on the solution,
pricing, and legal requirements.
Business Development Capability Maturity Model (BD-CMM)
A research-based framework that guides business development organizations in identifying and
implementing high-priority improvement actions. The model encompasses the entire business
development life cycle. It establishes a structure that guides increased performance to: Increase value
to(...)
Business Development Maturity Level
An indicator of an organization's adoption of business development best practices. For example: Level 1
organizations have ad hoc processes and are often seen as chaotic. Level 2 organizations have
repeatable processes and build on past successes. Level 3 organizations have defined processes(...)
Business Development Phases
There are eight generally accepted business development phases: Market identificationAccount
planning Opportunity assessment Opportunity planning Proposal planningProposal development
Negotiation Delivery Opportunity assessment, opportunity planning, proposal planning, proposal(...)
, Callout Box
A design feature with text inside a box or within borders to highlight a key point in the text.
Capture Manager
See Opportunity Manager.
Capture Plan
See Opportunity Plan.
Capture Rate
See Opportunity Rate.
Central Processing
Decisionmaking based on logic and sound arguments. This type of processing is often used by experts
but is less common in general than peripheral processing.
Change Management
The application of tools, processes, skills, and principles to transition people from one way of working to
another.
Clarification
Communication to eliminate minor irregularities or apparent clerical mistakes in a request for proposal
(RFP) or in a proposal. In government settings, these are typically limited and structured exchanges
between the Government and offerors that may occur after receipt of proposals. In(...)
Color
A technique used for emphasis, color may be applied throughout the proposal to headings, callouts,
sections, tabs, and anywhere else the solicitation instructions allow. The use of color can enhance the
readability of the document and draw the reader's attention to specific content you wish to(...)
Color Teams
See Reviews.
Community of Practice (CoP)
Networks of people who work on similar processes or in similar disciplines and who come together to
develop and share their knowledge in that field for the benefit of themselves and their organization.
CoPs may be created formally or informally, and members can interact online or in person.
Competitive Intelligence (CI)
Objectively understanding the strengths, weaknesses, and strategies of companies competing against
your company for business. CI is a well-defined business practice to understand the competitive forces
and market dynamics that affect your company's viability and long-term profitability.
