APMP Compliance and Risk Management in Proposals 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is a compliance matrix used for in proposal management?
- To map every RFP requirement to the specific proposal section that addresses it (Correct answer)
- To track the budget spent on proposal production
- To list all team members and their security clearances
- To document exceptions taken to terms and conditions
Correct answer: To map every RFP requirement to the specific proposal section that addresses it
A compliance matrix ensures no RFP requirement is overlooked by cross-referencing every instruction and evaluation criterion with proposal content.
Question 2: What does 'responsiveness' mean in the context of federal proposal evaluation?
- The proposal meets all mandatory requirements and is eligible for further evaluation (Correct answer)
- The proposal was submitted before the deadline
- The proposal team responded to all evaluator questions
- The technical volume received a high score
Correct answer: The proposal meets all mandatory requirements and is eligible for further evaluation
A responsive proposal satisfies the minimum solicitation requirements; unresponsive proposals may be rejected without substantive evaluation.
Question 3: What risk does submitting a non-compliant proposal pose to a bidder?
- Disqualification or significant scoring penalties during evaluation (Correct answer)
- A minor deduction in the technical score only
- A request from the contracting officer to resubmit
- Loss of past performance credit on future bids
Correct answer: Disqualification or significant scoring penalties during evaluation
Non-compliance with RFP instructions can result in outright rejection or evaluation scoring that makes the proposal uncompetitive.
Question 4: What is an 'exception' in a proposal, and when should it be used?
- A formal statement that the bidder cannot or will not comply with a specific requirement, used sparingly and with justification (Correct answer)
- A supplemental section added when the RFP page limit is reached
- A boilerplate clause from the company's contract template
- An alternative technical approach submitted without authorization
Correct answer: A formal statement that the bidder cannot or will not comply with a specific requirement, used sparingly and with justification
Exceptions notify the customer of non-compliance and should only be taken when a requirement is technically impossible or legally impermissible.
Question 5: Which of the following is a best practice for managing proposal risk related to page limits?
- Build a page budget early and track actual page counts against it throughout writing (Correct answer)
- Submit the proposal under the page limit to demonstrate conciseness
- Ignore page limits until the final production stage
- Ask the contracting officer for a waiver if pages run over
Correct answer: Build a page budget early and track actual page counts against it throughout writing
A page budget allocates pages to each section and is monitored throughout development to prevent last-minute cutting that degrades content quality.
Question 6: What is the purpose of a 'shred' or annotated RFP during proposal compliance planning?
- To break down the RFP into individual requirements that can be assigned and tracked for compliance (Correct answer)
- To summarize the RFP for senior leadership approval
- To identify sections of the RFP that can be ignored
- To create a pricing checklist for the cost volume
Correct answer: To break down the RFP into individual requirements that can be assigned and tracked for compliance
Shredding the RFP systematically identifies every requirement, instruction, and evaluation criterion so nothing is missed during proposal development.
APMP Compliance and Risk Management in Proposals 1
What is a compliance matrix used for in proposal management?