AI Proposal Agent: RFP Response Automation Runbook

Purpose

Reduce proposal turnaround time, improve compliance coverage, and eliminate the coordination chaos that typically accompanies government RFP responses. This runbook documents the end-to-end agent workflow Alhasan deployed.

Phase 1: Opportunity Intake

Inputs

• RFP document (PDF or Word)
• Deadline date
• Opportunity value and strategic priority (1–3)
• Assigned proposal manager name

Agent Actions

1. Extract all mandatory requirements and evaluation criteria from the RFP
2. Identify submission format requirements (page limits, font, annexes, signatures)
3. Flag clarification questions for the issuing authority
4. Generate initial compliance matrix

Prompt: Requirements Extractor

You are a government procurement specialist.

Analyse this RFP document and extract:
1. All mandatory requirements (label each M1, M2, M3...)
2. Evaluation criteria with weightings if stated
3. Required submission documents (checklist format)
4. Key deadlines (submission, clarifications, site visits)
5. Any ambiguous requirements that need clarification before writing

RFP Content:
{rfp_text}

Output as structured JSON with sections: mandatory_requirements, evaluation_criteria, submission_checklist, deadlines, clarification_questions.

Phase 2: Compliance Matrix

Using the extracted requirements, build a compliance matrix:

Requirements: {requirements_json}

For each requirement, create a row with:
- Requirement ID and text
- Compliance status: FULLY / PARTIALLY / NOT YET
- Which proposal section will address it
- Evidence or reference to include
- Owner (name of team member responsible)

Output as a markdown table.

Phase 3: Section Assignment

The agent splits the proposal into sections and assigns owners:

Phase 4: Draft Generation

Prompt: Section Writer

You are writing the {section_name} section of a proposal response to:

Opportunity: {rfp_title}
Issuing Authority: {authority_name}

Requirements this section must address:
{relevant_requirements}

Organisation background to draw on:
{org_background}

Draft this section in a professional government procurement tone. Word limit: {word_limit}. Do not fabricate specific numbers or case studies — use placeholders like [INSERT FIGURE] where specific data is needed from the team.

Phase 5: Submission Checklist

Before submission, the agent verifies:

• All mandatory requirements addressed (compliance matrix complete)
• All required documents included (per submission checklist)
• CVs formatted to RFP specification
• Commercial proposal matches technical scope
• Clarification responses received and incorporated
• Page limits respected per section
• Signatures and authorisation obtained
• Submission portal account active and tested

Results

Tools Required

• Claude API (claude-opus-4-8 for complex RFP analysis)
• PDF-to-text converter (PyMuPDF or Adobe API)
• Optional: n8n or Make.com for workflow orchestration
• Shared document workspace (SharePoint or Google Docs) for section writing

Notes

• Always have a human review the final compliance matrix before submission
• Commercial proposal numbers must be verified by finance — never use AI-generated figures directly
• Retain all agent outputs as audit trail for procurement governance