Land that government contract: tips for presenting to the federal government.(extra credit)

(An article to pass up the management chain!)

Any company that does contract work for the federal government knows that oral presentations are a part of the game. Unfortunately, because giving a federal government presentation is so different from a typical business presentation, many companies don't receive as many contracts as they'd like.

Realize that the federal government is not your typical audience. They come into the room and may or may not shake hands and greet you. All the federal government members stoically sit on one side of the table and you and your team sit on the other. They cannot react to anything you say, and they cannot comment on anything until the question and answer time. Essentially, while you're presenting, you get no feedback, no body language and nothing to indicate whether you're doing okay.

Additionally, the federal government sees many different groups of people each day and often watch the same kinds of materials being presented repeatedly. They score you with a point system every step of the way, rewarding the contract to the company with the most points. So, in order to stand out, catch their attention and get the highest score, you need to present materials that are different and unique.

If you're tired of continually presenting for federal contracts and rarely getting picked, perhaps it's time to brush up on your presentation skills. While the actual specifics of presenting to the federal government are complex and the topic goes very deep, the following are some initial tips to get you on the right path.

Three Steps to Presentation Success

All federal government presentations have three distinct informational phases: (1) the people who will work on the project, (2) the project's management and (3) the company's problem solving abilities. Let's go over each in detail.