As part of our ongoing commitment to nurturing an inclusive community of bid and proposal professionals, APMP has introduced a number of Affinity Groups, with the purpose of providing supportive spaces for professionals with shared experiences in life and the industry.
One of these groups is the PRIDE Affinity Group which is currently headed by Mercedes Jacobs (MJ) and Heather Finch (HF), who serve as the group’s co-chairs.
‘Pride month’ might be over – but pride is year-round! So, we’re continuing the celebration of the LGBTQ+ community and our LGBTQ+ members into July. I sat down with Mercedes and Heather to discuss their journeys towards leading this group, and what the Affinity Group is all about.
Can you give me some background on yourself, your career, and your APMP journey up until this point?
HF: Like a lot of people, I fell into proposals. I had previous roles where I had dabbled in some grant writing and responding to a couple of RFPs, then, saw a job posting for a proposal writer that was really interesting to me, and I got the job! At that company I was supported to get involved with APMP and attend APMP conferences.
Then, in a class I attended I met a new friend and we discovered we both did proposals. I asked her if she was familiar with APMP, and she joined up too. She’s the kind of person that, when she joins something, goes all in. So, when she joined, she started organizing local meetups in the Milwaukee area and encouraged me to join in with that. Then I got involved in a couple committees, wrote some articles for APMP, joined the board for the Greater Midwest Chapter, became chair of the Pride Affinity Group, and eventually got on to the international board.
MJ: In college, I studied English – writing and literature – and when I graduated with my Master’s degree in 2020, it was quite a tumultuous time. So, I managed to nab a course editor job at my university, but I only did that for a year because I was looking to grow professionally. So, I started looking for a technical writing jobs because I knew there was a pretty high demand in that field, and it seemed like a field that I could get good experience in.
I landed in the proposal profession by accident. I found a job with L3 Harris, which is where I’ve been for a little over two and a half years. My manager in my current role recommends that everybody on our team join APMP and the company pays for it too. So, I thought, ‘Why not professionally develop for free?’.
A major theme that has been in all of the writing courses I’ve ever taken, and is also pretty prevalent in APMP, is writing for your audience or your customer. It was cool to draw those parallels between my career as a student and my professional career.
What is the PRIDE affinity group all about?
MJ: I would say, first and foremost, it’s about creating – for lack of a less cliché term – a safe space, not only for members that identify as a part of the LGBTQ+ community, but also for people who are curious to learn more or want to join as allies for the sake of people in their life who are queer. Within that space, we discuss topics as they relate to queerness in the professional realm.
HF: It’s about providing a space for people to be who they are. It’s certainly about celebrating the LGBTQ+ community, but it’s celebrating all of us, who we all are, and how we can contribute our unique knowledge and talents.
What drew you to becoming a Co-chair?
HF: It is important to give space for people to have their voices heard. Some of us work for companies where we’ve got some kind of Pride group, but not all of us do. Even for those of us that do, many don’t feel comfortable being ourselves in our workplaces. Knowing that I could help to create a space for people to just show up and be who they are really means a lot to me. It’s been so much fun getting to know people, and I wish I could meet every single person that I’ve interacted with in person and get to know them more. It’s just been really, really rewarding to be able to be part of it.
MJ: I guess I’m what we tend to call a “late-blooming” lesbian, in that I didn’t realise I was a lesbian until two or three years ago. Since I’ve realised that, it kind of feels like there’s a bit of catching up to do as far as the culture, and educating and immersing myself in the community. So, joining the Pride Affinity Group just as a member was very exciting because I was looking forward to getting more involved. Last year, I volunteered to help write some copy for BPC, and Heather and I had been in touch since then just talking outside of the official meetings. A few months ago, she asked if I would like to be co-chair, and I very enthusiastically said yes! I’m really passionate about getting involved in the queer community, making more connections with queer people, and helping other queer people feel less alone.
And what are you most excited about going forward this year in your role as chair?
MJ: Getting to make more connections and help other people make more connections. Being visible in a leadership position, I see it as an opportunity to share my story and encourage people in their own queer journeys. It’s so nice to see that my story is helping other people, and I love the opportunity to hear other people’s stories and make more of those connections. I’m really excited to be collaborating with Heather as well, because she’s just so wonderful and so on top of things. I definitely look to her first when it comes to making plans.
HF: I am so stoked to have Mercedes as my co-chair and to see her stepping up like she has been. Anything she does, she jumps in with both feet and full enthusiasm, and being able to work with her – with her super positive energy and great ideas – has really made it a lot more fun compared to doing it by myself.
Why do you think it’s important to continue LGBTQ+ visibility and inclusion efforts outside of Pride Month?
MJ: I think it’s important to remind people that we exist outside of the month of June, and to discourage this idea of performative activism where we’re just showing allyship one month a year because it looks good. I think visibility and having those discussions year-round is really important.
HF: We exist 12 months a year, right? We want to celebrate all of the amazing people in the world and all of the differences that they bring to the table, and that’s why we don’t just do it one month a year. An example of why that’s important: there was a study done around perceptions of trans people and there were a lot of negatively stereotyped perceptions reported, except for one person who used words like “hard-working” and “very smart”, and he explained that he worked with a trans woman. I think just that little bit of exposure to the community can really take away that “otherness”, and the ignorance around who somebody is. It’s nice to have the recognition and the time to focus on it a little bit more so that we all have that opportunity to have our voices uplifted, but it’s important to bring that forth and into our day-to-day lives as well. Certainly, if you look back 10 or 20 years ago, a lot of society is better, but there’s still a lot of work that needs to be done in pushing for equality and fairness. It’s really important that we all have our voices and our identities celebrated.
What would you like to say to the members of APMP about the affinity group?
HF: Drop in when you can! Whether you’re queer, or an ally, or have somebody in your family that’s queer and just want to learn more – those are all great reasons to show up, listen to people’s voices, and share your own thoughts and perspectives. And we’re always open to any ideas for topics or people to get involved and help lead something. It’s really meant to just be a space for people to come and be who they are.
MJ: A lot of people think that, to join a Pride group, you have to be a part of the LGBTQ+ community. A lot of people don’t realise that you can join as an ally or a curious person looking to learn more about the community, as long as that safe space is maintained. So, to the APMP members, I guess I’d like to say hop in on one of the meetings and see what it’s about.
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