Preparing your team for the shortlist

Bridging the pursuit gap from RFP to interview

When most AEC firms hear “shortlist prep,” they think of the scramble that happens after the email comes in. But the reality is: preparing for the shortlist starts much earlier. From the moment the RFP lands, every decision your team makes in building the proposal sets the stage for the interview. The way you frame your story, the examples you highlight, and the language you choose all prepare your team for the shortlist interview. When firms stop treating proposals and interviews as two separate milestones and instead approach them as one continuous pursuit, they unlock a competitive advantage. 

Shape the interview story early  

Preparing for the shortlist begins with how you tell your story in the proposal. Too often, proposals are written to meet compliance requirements, and the story gets left behind. That’s why interview teams often find themselves trying to invent a narrative that doesn’t connect with the content the client has already read. 

Committing to storyboarding your interview as a part of your proposal strategy process gives your team the tools, language, and clarity to hit the ground running when the shortlist hits.

The better approach? Use the proposal as the foundation of your shortlist preparation. 

• Anchor the response in the client’s top priorities so your interview reinforces their biggest needs. 

• Highlight themes, visuals, or proof points you’ll carry from page to presentation. 

• Ask: If the client remembers one thing from this proposal, what do we want it to be, and how will we say it in the room? 

Engage the interview team before submittal 

Another important part of preparing for the shortlist: bringing interview voices into the process before the proposal goes out. Too often, marketing builds in a silo, technical staff weigh in late, and the interview team only sees the story after the fact. 

By engaging early, you create a more authentic and aligned narrative: 

• Schedule a brief strategy huddle at the start of the RFP process to preview likely interview themes. 

• Let interview participants weigh in on positioning before the story is locked. 

• Build familiarity so the team has already lived with the message when the shortlist arrives. 

Build with flexibility 

Rigid proposals, boilerplate, and jargon overload create headaches later. Preparing for the shortlist means designing a response that can live beyond the page. 

That requires thinking about how your written words will sound and feel when spoken aloud: 

• Keep copy clear, client-focused, and conversational. 

• Include stories, examples, or visuals that can be easily lifted into an interview. 

• Design with simplicity so proposal graphics translate smoothly into interview decks. 

• Write with adaptability, so your team can expand naturally instead of reciting copy. 

The real advantage of preparing for the shortlist 

When firms treat RFPs, proposals, and interviews as separate steps, they miss the opportunity to connect the dots. But when you start preparing for the shortlist the day the RFP arrives, you walk into the interview ahead of the competition: 

• Your story is cohesive and client-centered. 

• Your team is aligned and familiar with the message. 

• Your content translates naturally from written page to spoken word. 

That’s the overlooked advantage—preparing for the shortlist isn’t a reaction, it’s a process. 

You’ve submitted—now what? 

Proposal submitted? Don’t shelve it and move on just yet. The time between submission and shortlist is where momentum can either stall or build. 

Too often, firms treat this period as downtime. But it’s one of the most valuable stages of the pursuit cycle. This is when you can: 

• Revisit your story and sharpen how it will carry into the interview. 

• Build or maintain small but meaningful client touchpoints. 

• Prepare your team intentionally so the shortlist notice sparks confidence, not chaos. 

Explore how to turn this stage into a strategic advantage in our post: “You’ve Submitted — Now What?” 

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At Dragonfly, we help AEC firms rethink pursuit strategy by preparing for the shortlist from day one, transforming proposals and interviews into one continuous, confident pursuit. If your firm is ready to bridge the gap, let’s talk.