Welcome to AST On the Move where we spotlight our amazing staff and what makes them tick. Today, meet Director of Strategic Engagement / Program Manager Melanie White.
You recently received your AI-M APMP – AI for Proposal Development Certification- congrats! What inspired you to pursue this credential?
AI is a rapidly evolving technology and has the opportunity to bring many benefits to proposal management. As much as anything, I wanted the opportunity to learn where APMP sees AI playing a role in the industry.
How do you see AI shaping the future of proposal development?
I think it’s important to know that AI will never replace proposal management professionals. However, particularly in small businesses, robust use of historical data has been challenging due to resource availability and general growing pains. AI is a great way to bring relevant summary information together from a data repository in a manner that quickly highlights key data points
If you had to describe the certification journey in three words, what would they be?
Impulsive, informative, and worthwhile. When I saw that the certification was being offered, I immediately decided I wanted to take advantage of it. The information presented in the study guide and practice exams was very helpful and will be useful for me moving forward.
What’s your go-to productivity hack when working on proposals (We know you work wild hours! LOL)?
Unconventional hours. If I am working full-time on a proposal, I never let a clock dictate when I need to be working. I let my body do that – napping as needed.
Conversely, if I wake up with a really amazing idea in the middle of the night, I don’t go back to sleep until I flesh it out. Otherwise, the insight might be lost.
Fun one: If proposal writing were a sport, what would be your hype song before a big deadline?
I would like to say all proposal activity is light and inspirational like Natasha Bedingfield (Unwritten) but there are definitely moments that it is more Eminem (Lose Yourself).
What’s one recent change in the proposal or BD landscape that you think people are underestimating (besides AI’s role)?
I think the one of the biggest transitions that people are underestimating is the shift toward contract vehicles like OASIS+. With cuts across SBA and Federal agencies, small businesses cannot count on standalone set-asides. But, winning a spot on a large vehicle requires having strong past performance across multiple agencies at the right time since most of these vehicles only on-ramp new contractors at specific times. For small businesses that have focused too narrowly, this is a difficult transition. Without diversifying and showing they can scale quickly, businesses will need to rethink their BD strategies and approaches to market themselves and deliver on these vehicles.
Can you share a time when a challenge during a proposal effort taught you something unexpected about leadership or collaboration?
In a small business, it’s common for people to be pulled in different directions and not always available when we need them. While it is frustrating, it can actually strengthen collaboration.
People often step outside their usual roles, draft content based on shared knowledge, and then refine it during review. This reinforces that the most successful teams are those that trust, respect, cross-train, and empower people to contribute in multiple roles.
What do you think is the next big shift coming to federal contracting, and how should proposal professionals prepare?
A continued shift I see in federal contracting is the move toward “low to high confidence” scoring. Instead of detailed objective criteria, agencies can judge whether a proposal feels convincing and reliable. The result is that this can eliminate technical differences between proposals making it easier to justify an award to the lowest-priced bidder if their solution is deemed “good enough.” Finding the balance between technical capability, past performance demonstration, and price competitiveness while making them “like you best” is the key.