The 2025 SMPS Pacific Regional Conference (PRC) in Palm Springs: Reflections
By Al Anderson
Besides all that, there happened to be a conference going on, with some great speakers and too many excellent seminars for one person to fit into his or her schedule. To give you a taste of the conference, we’ve asked some attendees to share their thoughts on their favorite session. Here are some insights from Jessica Cadkin, Jillian Grabenstein, Valeria Huaco, Susie Smith, Lisa Thomson, and me.
Finding a Capture Plan Oasis in the RFP Desert! Presented by: Donna Corlew
Finding a Capture Plan Oasis in the RFP Desert emphasized the importance of early positioning for projects but acknowledged that reality often presents scenarios with little time for preparation. In these high-pressure situations, marketing leaders have the opportunity to take charge, crafting compelling, client-focused messaging. Donna’s session encouraged participants to think of real-world examples to explore three key areas:
- Creating Strategy from Chaos: Marketing leaders should take control of the chaos surrounding a high-pressure pursuit, leading their teams proactively rather than waiting for direction. This can be done by transforming disorganized beginnings into strategic advantages.
- Three Big Things: To stand out, firms should identify three memorable takeaways that resonate with clients, moving beyond budget and schedule to understand deeper client needs and concerns. This involves looking beyond the obvious and gaining genuine insight into the client’s priorities.
- Building Your Team and Telling Your Story: Success hinges on assembling a team with the right experience, relationships, and client preferences. Effective storytelling involves speaking the client’s language, focusing on their needs, and structuring messages around the “three big things,” ensuring the narrative emphasizes project understanding, challenges, gains/benefits, and evidence.
Donna’s approach empowers marketing leaders to drive conversations, lead teams, and secure wins even under tight deadlines!
--Jillian Grabenstein
Inspirational Storytelling: Why Relevancy is a Feeling. Presented by Erin Spaulding & Amy Pugh
"When you market to everyone, you market to no one." --Proverb
You’re already on your third cup of coffee as you review the latest RFP, noting the project-specific challenges and thinking about how to craft a thoughtful, relevant response. Just then, the Project Manager shuffles up and says, “Can’t you just use the last proposal and change the names?” You point out that this project is completely different—from the site to the scale and the building use—but the Project Manager has already shuffled off to the kitchen for more coffee. What do you do now?
As marketers, we understand the value of tailoring our communications for a specific audience, and presenters Erin Spaulding and Amy Pugh did a great job of providing guidelines for how to tell a compelling story, focusing on the 5 C’s:
- CONTEXT: Set the scene. This helps to draw your audience in from the start.
- CHARACTER: Show who they are as much as what they do.
- CONFLICT: Think about your audience—their conflict is our conflict.
- CHOICES: Show how your character overcomes circumstances.
- CHANGE: Our mind.
You then approach the Project Manager and say, “I’ll make you a deal. My team will respond to this RFP only if a technical staff member can provide input on how to address the client’s key concerns.” The Project Manager eyes you for a moment before giving you a quick nod. You return to your desk, basking in the glow of this small triumph.
--Lisa Thomson
Beyond the Expected: How to Spark Creativity and Drive Marketing Innovation. Presented by Tim Asimos
Tim’s session was a refreshing push to break out of stale, predictable marketing habits. It challenged us to think bigger, be bolder, and embrace creativity in new ways.
He encouraged us to look beyond the A/E/C industry for inspiration, emphasizing the power of bold, unconventional ideas. Key/takeaways included developing a vision for innovation, securing leadership buy-in, and navigating roadblocks that often lead to unexpected breakthroughs. Through personal stories, he illustrated how taking risks in his career led to major successes, reinforcing the importance of pushing boundaries and embracing creativity.
As I walked out of the session, I ran into a fellow seasoned marketer, and we immediately started brainstorming ways to hold each other accountable for staying innovative. We even set up a meeting in a couple of weeks to keep the momentum going! This session wasn’t just about ideas—it was about action, and I’m excited to see where it leads.
--Susie Smith
Constructing Connections: Building Better Bonds in Your Workplace. Presented by Brandy Little and Christi Pizarek
During the 2025 SMPS PRC, I attended this thoroughly engaging and at times weirdly interactive session. Constructing Connections touched upon and provided tips for how marketers can better understand "how humans are wired." This is particularly helpful in challenging work situations where you can easily go into defense mode: you’re unable to set boundaries, don’t get needed support, not heard or respected, or did not get the promotion. Honestly, there are too many to list.
Using computers as a relatable analogy, Brandy and Christi shared ways to better understand our wiring.
· The brain is our hardware (runs 24/7 managing data)
· Our mind is the operating system (valve of input, arbiter of good/bad, prioritizes threats)
· Our consciousness is our monitor (the user interface)
· Our network default mode (scientific term, involved in self-reflection, remembering, daydreaming) are our specifications (can use to interrupt our programming)
Heuristic thinking is how the mind makes rapid decisions and creates models of likely outcomes (snap decisions). To help a team come together and reduce conflict, they should address snap decisions by considering two different centers of intelligence:
· Emotional intelligence (what am I feeling, can I articulate that)
· Relationships system intelligence (greater when we come together, always in a state of change, conflict is a signal)
In all situations, your body sends signals. At times they can be quite physical, especially when you go into defense mode (or happy mode, such as blushing). A memorable acronym—CPR—will give you the tools and techniques needed to gain control of your mind and body.
- C = catch yourself (what signal is your body sending)
- P = pause (breathe, focus on your 5 senses—see, feel, hear, smell, taste)
- R = reframe (always have a choice, can't change others, not going to let this get to me)
--Jessica Cadkin
Proposal Design for the Non-Designer. Presented by Jane Jessen and Ivy Renfroe
The session Proposal Design for the Non-Designer, presented by Jane Jessen and Ivy Renfroe of the Transpo Group, provided practical, easy-to-apply tips and tricks to elevate a proposal visually—no formal graphic design training required. Jane and Ivy broke down five essential (and non-subjective) design principles: balance and alignment, hierarchy, repetition, emphasis, and white space. They shared simple yet impactful strategies to create proposals that are polished, professional, and, most importantly, deliver the right message with clarity and confidence. Attendees learned how to use grids for structure, leverage contrast for impact, and apply typography techniques like kerning, leading, and tracking for better readability.
A key takeaway was the power of small, intentional design choices. Simple adjustments—like limiting font and color selections, strategically placing callouts, and using white space effectively—can make a proposal look significantly more refined. The session reinforced that great design isn’t about adding more or being the best at graphic design; it’s about using space and elements thoughtfully to guide the reader’s eye and make content more engaging.
--Valeria Huaco
These summaries are just a small sampling of the content that was shared at the conference. The keynote speakers were excellent as well. My favorite was the final speaker, Pete Smith, whose topic was “Dare to Matter.” He stressed choosing optimism, humility, and focusing on how to be better every day. He emphasized that feelings are unpredictable and that you need to learn to let things go. It’s hard to briefly summarize his talk, but his presentation was applicable to life in general, and not just A/E/C marketing.
We hope we’ve given you a taste of the value of the Pacific Regional Conference. Next year’s PRC will be in Seattle in March. Try not to miss it!
Al Anderson, CPSM, is the Proposal Manager for Nova Group, Inc., a construction company located in Napa. He has been a member of SMPS for 20 years and is the Managing Editor of The Shortlist.
