I go through many proposals on a weekly basis. I have 7 days to analyze any proposal before I submit for review. While most of our regular partners understand how the company works, many newcomers don’t and have difficulty respecting the process.
My group of decision makers meet once a week on Tuesdays. However, if quorum is not met, it can be postponed to the following Tuesday. No exceptions. They do not meet on any other day. If I get a proposal on a Monday, it will not be submitted until the following week Tuesday because each proposal needs its individual review. In my capacity, I make recommendations and my Business Council makes the decisions. Sometimes they go with my recommendation and other times, they go against it. I never know when it will happen either.
When analyzing proposals, it’s not just the proposal itself I am analyzing, but the entire process. Bear in mind that they do not just ask about the numbers. The council always asks me the following things:
1. How responsive are they? 2. Have they been accommodating of your requests? 3. Do they seem rushed and want an answer each time you come back to them? 4. Do they know that you’re meeting with us today? 5. Have they ever attended one of our events? 6. How do they treat you in person?
These seem like irrelevant questions but to me, these play just as large a factor in the proposal process as the proposal itself, so I love that they ask me these things, because I note these exact moments!
Proposals that require a turnaround of a week are ALWAYS denied. I do present them even if the offer expires because I would not be doing my due diligence if I kept them to myself. Now, unless the account representative tells me there is an extension, I will not go out of my way to ask. You see any accommodations must be shared and should not have to be asked by the client. That’s just common sense.
If I send an email to an individual wanting my business and I do not hear back from them within the same business day, that will be reported. Again, businesses will always be at their peak before they’ve locked in the account. So if they’re not bending over backwards for you before, they certainly will not after.
The council likes me to inform potential partners of our process. A good partner or account rep will reach out the morning of my meeting or the day before to make sure that I have everything I need to represent them. As they should, because they have to trust that I will present them in the best light. How can they if they don’t know what I’m bringing to the table?
The council also likes to know how dedicated a potential partner is. Many of our partners attend our events so they have first hand experience. Its one thing to say “I know you have this event every year” it’s another to say “I enjoy attending …. every year”. Makes a world of difference when planning to work together but half the work (in understanding the event itself) is done.
The last thing that I always appreciate about my decision makers is that they care about how I am being treated. My staff as well. They will say “we were invited to this event, were you made aware of it? Were you invited?” If I attend an event on their behalf, they ask about my accommodations. Was I left to my own devices or was I treated as I believe they would have been treated?Yes, they do ask these things, and yes, I give them my honest report.
This is the beauty of working for a Tribal entity as a Tribal member. But all of the things mentioned above should always apply regardless of your position or end goal. It’s all just good business sense.
Althea Frye 