How Do I Know Which Projects to Turn Down?

Chase fewer, better-fit pursuits. A single RFP response represents roughly $12,000 to $15,000 in production costs once staff hours are counted, so a bad-fit pursuit isn't a wasted afternoon — it's a real line item. Only about 40% of AEC firms use a formal go/no-go process, which means most firms are deciding by gut feel or by whoever's loudest in the room. A weighted scoring filter fixes both problems at once: it's faster than a debate, and it's consistent from one pursuit to the next.

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Why does chasing the wrong work actually cost money?

Because a proposal isn't free just because you didn't win it. Monograph's Architecture RFP Guide puts a single response at $12,000–$15,000 in production costs, and Deltek's Clarity A&E Study (46th edition, 2025) found that as firms got more selective — proposal volume dropped 38% industry-wide — the value of awarded work still grew 52% year-over-year. Pursuing less, but pursuing the right things, produced more revenue, not less.

What should a qualifying filter actually weigh?

Six factors, scored consistently across every pursuit:

• Strategic fit. Does this project sit in a sector, typology, or geography you actually want more of?
• Capacity. Can your current team staff it without gutting another project?
• Client quality. Is this an organization with a track record of paying on time and respecting scope?
• Payment history. If it's a repeat client type, what does their history actually show?
• Scope certainty. Is the brief real, or is the client still deciding what they want?
• Schedule risk. Does the timeline assume approvals or funding that isn't secured yet?

Score each 1–5, set a threshold, and treat anything below it as a "no" by default — not a debate every time.

What are the client red flags that override a good project fit?

A great project attached to a bad client is still a bad pursuit. Watch for a client who won't name a decision-maker, who asks for spec work before a contract exists, who has a reputation (public or through your network) for scope creep without fee adjustment, or who negotiates fee before you've even discussed scope. None of these are disqualifying alone. Two or more together usually are.

What's a "conditional go"?

Not every pursuit is a clean yes or no. A conditional go says: we'll pursue this if a specific condition is met — a clarified scope, a named decision-maker, a fee floor. It keeps you from either chasing blind or walking away from something that just needs one more conversation before it's worth the hours.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does it actually cost to respond to an RFP? Roughly $12,000–$15,000 in production costs per response, based on staff time (Monograph, Architecture RFP Guide).

What percentage of firms have a formal go/no-go process? Only about 40% of AEC firms do, which means the majority are deciding informally — and inconsistently — on every pursuit.

Does pursuing fewer projects actually help revenue? In Deltek's 46th Clarity A&E Study (2025), firms that cut proposal volume by 38% still grew the value of awarded work by 52% year-over-year — selectivity outperformed volume.

What's the single biggest client red flag? No named decision-maker. If nobody on the client side can say yes, no amount of good project fit will save the pursuit from stalling.

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