Georgia Chattahoochee Chapter of the APMP

Rita Martin
InterCall, Inc.

Question:  How long have you been a proposal manager/specialist/ writer?

Rita:  Since 1991

Question:  How did you become involved with proposals?

Rita:  Initially, I documented software, then moved into proposal development to help the software sales team.

Question:  Do you work in a “corporate office” or “home office” environment? 

Rita:  I work from a home office.

Question:  What do you like best about working in your current environment? 

Rita:  The commute.

Question:  What do you like least?

Rita:  The challenge of keeping home and work separate.

Question:  What do you feel is the most challenging aspect of your job?

Rita:  Maintaining a sense of camraderie within a virtual team.

Question:  What shortcuts or helpful best practices about working with proposal teams could you share?

Rita:  A good content management system can be your best friend.

Question:  Why  did you join APMP?

Rita:  I would like to complete my APMP certifications and follow industry trends through meetings and seminars.

Question:  What is your method for successfully working with your proposal teams?

Rita:  We collaborate using SharePoint, Salesforce.com, and audio and web conferencing.  We also set expectations for the entire response lifecycle at the kickoff meeting,

 Question:  Which type of proposals do you do most? Commercial, government or other?

Rita:  Most of our RFP responses are for commercial customers, although we do write government responses as well.