More than 200 people represented 29 different countries last month for APMP’s first Bid & Proposal Con Europe. Attendees at all levels of their career, across a variety of industries and sectors, gathered at Beurs van Berlage in Amsterdam for two days of education, inspiration and connection.
Regie Sastre, CF APMP, a work-winning consultant at Aurecon, was one of these attendees. The BPC first-timer ventured to the conference from Dubai after hearing positive things about Bid & Proposal Con from fellow APMP members and having a desire to “learn new ideas from the best.”
“The conference was very educational, full of relevant topics and the latest trends in proposal management,” he says. “It was also nice to see other proposal professionals from different regions and [different industries] in the same room, sharing their views and experiences.”
Sastre also took (and passed) his certification exam, taking advantage of the opportunity to become Foundation-certified before the event officially kicked off. Another attendee, Laurent Zeller, CF APMP, bid manager at SAS Institute, took the opportunity to receive his Foundation certification as well, in an effort to achieve a personal goal of “continuous development and learning.”
“[BPC] gets you motivated and inspired first with the keynotes,” Zeller says, “and then it lets you exchange and receive best practices from other bid and proposal experts from different sectors and countries during the workshops. Thanks to the scheduled breaks and reception … I met with several other country mates [who] all shared the same interests for the job.”
In addition to a location and venue that received acclaim from attendees, BPC Europe offered the unique opportunity for proposal professionals to get firsthand perspectives on the cultural nuances of the bid process from their industry colleagues around the world.
“I am now sharing with my team in Dubai all the lessons that I learned at the event,” Sastre says.
Both Sastre and Zeller agree that participating in BPC Europe was worth the investment and they’re excited about attending the next one.
“I want more of it next year!” Zeller says. “The date is already blocked in my agenda. I’m looking forward to it.”
Want more BPC Europe? View photos from the event or download the presentations from the education sessions. And don’t forget to save the date — next year’s event will take place April 12-13, 2021.
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