Project Management · Module 1 · Week 2 · Written Lesson and Prework
Module 1 · Project Pursuit · Week 2 · Prework
This week, you will test the assumptions from Week 1 against evidence and decide whether Weston & Sampson should commit pursuit resources to the Town of Millbrook opportunity.
Written Lesson and Prework · read before the live sessionVersion 2.0This week, you make the decision
By the end of this prework, you will be able to complete Weston & Sampson's 2025 Go/No-Go Form for an opportunity, support each material response with evidence, interpret the resulting score, and produce a preliminary Go or No-Go recommendation.
Week 1 showed how pursuit decisions create the assumptions a project inherits. This week, you will test those assumptions against evidence and decide whether Weston & Sampson should commit pursuit resources to the Town of Millbrook opportunity.
During the live session, you will defend two decisions for the same opportunity: whether to pursue it, and how to price it.
The Estimated NET Revenue and win probability you record will become the planning inputs introduced in future modules.
Our Go/No-Go form helps guide the decision-making process and brings consistency to the way we evaluate opportunities. The form structures the evaluation. Your judgment determines how the evidence is interpreted.
The completed form produces a score, a recommendation, supporting Notes, and the information required to begin the pursuit.
Plan for approximately 45 minutes in total, 15 to 20 minutes for this prework and 20 to 25 minutes for the RFP and worksheet. Record your answers directly on the Go/No-Go worksheet on the course site, in the same fields Weston & Sampson uses in the 2025 Go/No-Go Form and in Vantagepoint.
You will receive the Town of Millbrook request for proposals (RFP) and the Weston & Sampson Go/No-Go worksheet. Review the opportunity as a member of the pursuit team. Your task is to complete the form and determine whether the available evidence supports committing the firm's time and resources.
Read the RFP and prepare the evidence
Read the RFP in full before completing the Go/No-Go form. Marketing cannot guarantee support for proposals with less than a two-week lead time. Check the proposal deadline against today's date and record the lead time available before you continue.
While reading, mark the following: mandatory qualifications, submission requirements, evaluation criteria, scope uncertainty, schedule constraints, fee requirements, client priorities, known competitors, staffing implications, and terms that may create risk.
The form accepts a Yes or a No, supported by Notes. Before you select an answer, classify its basis as Confirmed, Inferred, or Unknown, and record that basis in the Notes field.
Week 1 identified the assumptions behind a project. Week 2 asks whether each assumption is confirmed, inferred, or still unknown.
| Basis | What it means |
|---|---|
| Confirmed | Supported by the RFP, client knowledge, firm records, or a named source. |
| Inferred | A reasonable conclusion drawn from the available information. |
| Unknown | Information the firm still needs. |
An Unknown cannot support a Yes answer on an automatic No-Go question. For a scored question, record the gap in Notes. An Unknown scored question is recorded as No until evidence supports Yes.
The Go/No-Go decision draws on more than one person's judgment.
Section A · qualification minimums
Section A contains two automatic No-Go questions and one scored licensing question. Answer the two automatic No-Go questions first.
A No answer to either question is an automatic No-Go. The score on the following pages does not override this answer.
Question 3, licensing. The firm is licensed in all required services in the project state, corporately and individually. This question is scored, worth 10 points, in the current form. A No answer reduces the score. It does not stop the pursuit under the current form.
Sections B through D
Sections B through D contain the remaining scored questions and the exception for a score below 70. The table below groups them by theme. The worksheet lists the exact questions and points for Questions 4 through 15.
| Section | What it is testing | Evidence to examine | Output |
|---|---|---|---|
| Strategic Fit & Positioning | Whether the firm has a credible path to win | Capture plan, advance awareness, client relationship, differentiation | Yes or No, Notes, competitors |
| Profitability & Resources | Whether the likely fee supports delivery | Scope, staffing, schedule, subconsultants, risk | Yes or No, assumptions |
| Operational Readiness | Whether the firm can mobilize, and whether an exception applies | Regional experience, local staff, score, emerging market | Yes or No, rationale if below 70 |
Questions 14 and 15 do not follow the same Yes or No scoring pattern as the rest of the form. Question 14 applies only when the score falls below 70, covered below. Question 15 records context only and does not affect the score.
The form calculates a total from the scored questions. A score of 70 is the firm's standard reference point.
Use Go or No-Go as the final recommendation. Record unresolved questions and required next steps in Notes.
A Go decision advances the opportunity into the planning system. The quality of the Estimated NET Revenue and win probability determines how reliable that planning information will be.
Pursuit information
The form requires eight additional fields once the scored questions are complete.
| Field | What it records |
|---|---|
| Technical Champion | The person who leads the technical approach and commits the time required. |
| Manager support | Confirmation that the Regional Manager or Client Manager supports the pursuit. |
| Estimated NET Revenue | The opportunity-stage estimate of the Net Service Revenue introduced in Week 1. |
| Win probability | Set from the available evidence. |
| Technical proposal hours | The hours required from technical staff. The average technical lead spent 35 hours per proposal in 2024. |
| Technical lead capacity | Confirmation that the technical lead has the hours available before the deadline. |
| Proposal format | Word or InDesign, as requested. |
| Marketing hours | Support hours from Marketing. Marketing cannot guarantee support with less than a two week lead time. |
Supplemental material
Use this supplemental read after completing the Go/No-Go evaluation. A disciplined pursuit still separates two questions. Should Weston & Sampson commit pursuit resources, and what supports the value of the firm's contribution.
Record one evidence note for each dimension, then assign a high, medium, or low reading to prepare for the positioning and pricing discussion. This assessment is not a form field.
The current form does not ask which pursuit type applies. The live session uses this distinction, so it is retained here as supplemental context.
| Pursuit type | Client decision | Pricing point |
|---|---|---|
| Qualifications-based | Selects on qualifications | Negotiated after selection |
| RFP with scope and fee | Evaluates qualifications, approach, and fee | Included in submission |
| Direct hire or direct appeal | Requests services directly | Set after discovery |
Before the live session
Bring the following to the live session.
The live session will compare how participants interpreted the same evidence. The goal is to identify where assumptions entered the evaluation, calibrate the score and win probability, and determine what additional information would change the recommendation.
Week 1 explained the system. Week 2 produces the decision and the planning inputs that enter that system. Week 3 refines those inputs into a forecast the firm can use with confidence.