Pre-positioning: this is where the winning game starts

"We know them, we don't need to do anything until we know what they're asking." We've all heard it. Here's the problem with that.

As bid professionals we know pitch strategy starts before the documents drop. Knowing it isn't the problem. Getting traction is.

The reality is that fee-earners and technical leads have utilisation targets, and pursuit groundwork rarely shows up in that equation, so it's understandable it slips down the list. Relationship confidence isn't the same as market readiness, but it's an easy line to blur when you're close to a client.

That's exactly why the pursuit team needs to carry this work rather than wait for it: to make the case for what's needed, do the legwork stakeholders don't have time for, and turn "we know them" into something that shows up when the RFT lands.

The panel appointment that had been out of reach.

Years ago at AECOM, I worked with the Energy business on a panel appointment that had been out of reach for a long time. We didn't wait for another shot at the same tender. We went back to first principles: early partnering conversations, real risk assessment, a clear-eyed look at who we were aligning with and why.

By the time the opportunity came to market, the groundwork was already done. That appointment was worth more than five million dollars.

Shaping a market before you need it.

The second example was less about one deal and more about shaping a market. I approached the sector lead about a thought leadership opportunity which was welcomed, and I used my network to find a partner to work with us. We brought regulators, engineers and energy providers into the same room for a thought leadership workshop, using design thinking. No proposal, just building credibility in a sector before we needed it.

We prepared a go-to-market thought leadership paper. That kind of work never shows up on a scorecard, but it changes how a business is seen long before a bid team or RFP exists.

The common thread.

The common thread wasn't a technique. It was treating positioning as ongoing commercial work, not a scramble that starts when procurement publishes a timetable.

Put bid/no-bid and opportunity conversations on the calendar, early. Give someone ownership of relationship and market intelligence, year-round. Run initiatives that aren't tied to any specific deal. Track the pipeline properly and revisit it often. Debrief every pursuit, win or lose, and feed it back before the next one starts. If you can't get a client debrief, do a forensic debrief.

None of this is complicated. It's discipline. Strategy before words is the principle. The strongest submissions are never won by better writing; it is better intel and understanding. They're won by the thinking and relationships that happened long before anyone opened a document.

Stop treating the RFT as the starting gun. By the time it's published, the outcome is already more decided than most people want to admit.

Want to talk through what pre-positioning could look like for your team? We can help.Get in touch