Marketing Sample Assignment Part 2

Which starts when the RFP becomes available at the conclusion of the needs identification phase and ends when an agreement is reached with the person, organization, or contractor selected to implement the proposed solution. After you finish with the review of this chapter, you should understand the following:

• proposal marketing strategies and the bid/no-bid decision
• the development of winning proposals
• the proposal preparation process and the elements that may be included in a proposal
• pricing considerations
• the evaluation of proposals
• types of contracts between the customer and the contractor

Remember that in many situations a request for proposal does not involve soliciting competitive proposals from external contractors and the second phase of the project life cycle may be completely bypassed. Based on my experience, most government agencies and large private companies in Florida use the RFP process to hire outside contractors to perform projects for them.

Implementing the proposed solution is the third phase of the project life cycle. This phase starts after a contract or agreement is drawn up and it ends when the project objective is accomplished. The fourth and final phase of the project life cycle involves terminating the project. This chapter discusses these last two phases of the project life cycle. After studying this chapter, you should understand:

• the elements involved in establishing a project plan
• the steps in the project control process
• actions that should be taken when a project is terminated

Another important topic in this chapter is Risk Management. Risk is defined as the possibility that the unwanted circumstance will occur; can result in loss. The project manager must accept that risk is part of project management. One of the best ways to manage risk is to have a Contingency Plan. A Contingency Plan is a pre-define set of actions that would be implemented if the risk event occurs.