APMP Asia Pacific: Singapore x Japan x Korea — Can AI Write a Winning Proposal?
Everyone's using AI to write proposals. But are they winning?
Proposal teams around the world are pasting RFPs into ChatGPT, pulling out drafts, and hitting submit. It's fast. But the win rates aren't moving.
The problem isn't the AI. It's that there's no methodology behind it. No strategy, no structure, no understanding of how evaluators actually score proposals.
This evening is about fixing that. We'll show you the methodology that winning proposal teams use globally, then show you what happens when you put AI behind it. Live, in the room.
🇸🇬 Marcus Ong, CP APMP, ex-AWS (APMP ANZ Member) @ Pitchmaker — LinkedIn
🇯🇵 Mitsuhiro Seto, APMP Japan Chair & APMP International Board @ SAP — LinkedIn
🇰🇷 Junho Cho, APMP Korea Chair @ Contrl — LinkedIn
🎤 Patrick Han, CF APMP @ APMP Korea Founder — LinkedIn
📋 What is APMP, and Why Does It Matter?
APMP (Association of Proposal Management Professionals) was founded in 1989 in Washington D.C. with a single mission: to professionalize the art and science of winning proposals. What started in the U.S. has grown into a truly global movement, with 12,900+ members across 72 countries including the US, Canada, UK, Japan, Korea, India, Australia, South Africa, and beyond, and over 21,800 certified proposal professionals worldwide.
At the heart of APMP is the Body of Knowledge (BOK), a framework of 51 topics across 7 categories. It is a structured, globally recognised system for how to think about, plan, and write proposals that score. The BOK is built on the foundations of the Shipley Proposal Guide, the industry's most respected reference for competitive proposal development.
Core Concepts from the APMP Framework
Win Theme: The single answer to "why should we win this?" Without it, your proposal is just a feature list
Capture Planning: Building your win strategy before a single word is written
Compliance Matrix: Mapping every RFP requirement to your proposal so evaluators can score you easily
Competitive Positioning: Differentiating from competitors with similar capabilities
Persuasive Writing: Turning features into benefits, and benefits into score points aligned to evaluation criteria
Teams that know this framework score higher than teams that don't, even with the same solution.
🔀 APMP Methodology + AI = Proposals Built to Win
AI can generate a draft quickly. But speed without strategy produces generic content that scores like everyone else's submission. APMP methodology gives that output structure, intent, and competitive positioning.
In this session, three of the most experienced APMP practitioners in Asia will show you how to combine them. Not slides. Real experience. Live in the room.
📅 Agenda
🚪 6:30 PM — Doors Open
Arrive, grab a drink, and check out the wall display: AI-written proposal vs. human-written proposal. Which one would you submit?🌏 7:00 PM — Welcome: Proposal Professionals from Singapore, Japan & Korea
Who we are, why we're here, and why AI and proposal methodology belong in the same room.🏆 7:10 PM — Singapore IT and Public Tender: Winning Proposal Masterclass by Marcus Ong @ Pitchmaker
Most proposals lose not because the solution was weak, but because the proposal didn't speak the evaluator's language. Marcus has been on every side of this: presales at DXC Technology across 6 APAC countries, bid manager at Frequentis where he took win rates from 30% to 52%, and Senior Proposal Manager at AWS. In this session he covers how evaluators think when they're scoring, why capable teams keep making the same mistakes, how to build a Win Theme before writing a word, and how to write so evaluators can actually find and score your value.🇯🇵 7:25 PM — How Japan Built a Proposal Culture: APMP’s Role in Transforming the Bidding Market by Mitsuhiro Seto @ SAP
Japan’s bidding market has undergone a profound transformation over the past decade. Mitsuhiro Seto, APMP International Board member and former Chair of APMP Japan Chapter, will share what it took to build a proposal professional community from the ground up. He’ll cover the unique dynamics of Japan’s procurement culture, how APMP methodology took hold in a market where proposal writing was rarely treated as a discipline, and what other markets in Asia can learn from Japan’s journey. A session for anyone who wants to understand where the profession is heading, and who is leading it.🤖 7:40 PM — 15 Years of Procurement Experience Across APAC: AI Built for Proposals in Asia by Junho Cho @ Cliwant
Junho spent 15+ years winning bids across Singapore, Hong Kong, Korea, and China, from airports to hospitals, banks, and shopping malls. He'll share how that frontline experience shaped Contrl, an AI proposal tool built on APMP methodology and recognised as an OpenAI partner startup. He'll walk through why general AI tools fall short for serious proposal work, what it takes to build AI that genuinely understands RFP requirements and company content, then show it live.🔥 7:55 PM — Fireside Chat, moderated by Patrick Han, CF APMP
Marcus, Mitsuhiro, and Junho talk through the moments that shaped how they think about proposals. Real wins, costly losses, and the instincts you only develop after years of doing this. Patrick brings his own perspective as someone who led APMP BPC 2025 and has run multiple APMP seminars in Korea, hosting experts from around the world. What do they wish they'd known earlier? What still catches them out? And what's the one thing AI won't be able to replace?💡 8:15 PM — Small Group Workshop
Groups of 4. Quick introductions, then 4 guided questions to surface real experience from the room. Every group has someone who's been in the trenches. This is where that knowledge comes out.🎤 8:55 PM — Full Group Debrief & Wrap-Up
Each group shares their sharpest insight. We close with key takeaways from the evening and one concrete thing you can bring to your next bid.
🙋 Who Should Come
Proposal writers, bid managers, and business development professionals
Consultants and PMO leads involved in client pitches
Anyone curious about APMP certification and methodology
Anyone exploring AI tools for proposal and document-heavy workflows
🎙️ Your Speakers
🇸🇬 Marcus Ong, CP APMP — Founder, Pitchmaker
Marcus has worked across the full lifecycle of competitive bidding from presales and bid management at global IT firms to running his own consultancy. At Stratech he led the bid that brought FOD detection technology to Changi Airport, a first for Singapore. At DXC Technology he led new business across 6 APAC countries. At Frequentis he managed aviation bids across 11 APAC markets, taking the team's win rate from 30% to 52%. Most recently he served as Senior Proposal Manager for the Worldwide Public Sector at Amazon Web Services. He now runs Pitchmaker and the Singapore Business Federation's flagship tendering programme, currently in its 19th run.
🇯🇵 Mitsuhiro Seto, CF APMP — APMP International Board & Chair, APMP Japan | Senior Director, SAP APAC
Mitsuhiro has spent his career at the intersection of enterprise technology and competitive bidding across Asia Pacific. As Senior Director of Global RFx Proposal Advisory at SAP Japan, he leads bid strategy for large-scale enterprise deals across the region. He served as Chair of APMP Japan Chapter, building one of Asia's most active proposal professional communities from the ground up, and was a finalist for APMP Chapter Leader of the Year 2025. He now serves on the APMP International Board of Directors, shaping the direction of the global profession. He has spoken at BPC Nashville and at major bid events across Korea, Japan, and the ANZ region, bringing a perspective that spans culture, methodology, and enterprise-scale execution.
🇰🇷 Junho Cho — CEO, Contrl & Chair, APMP Korea
Junho spent over 15 years winning bids across Singapore, Hong Kong, Korea, and China, including Changi Airport, shopping malls, department stores, banks, and hospitals. He took that experience and built Contrl, an AI-native proposal automation platform built on APMP methodology and recognized as an OpenAI partner startup. He also serves as Chair of APMP Korea, working to raise the standard of proposal writing across Asia.
🇰🇷 Patrick Han, CF APMP — APMP Korea Founder
Patrick holds the CF APMP certification and has been at the centre of building Korea's proposal community. He led the APMP BPC 2025 project and has organized multiple APMP seminars in Korea, bringing in experts from across the globe. He is the moderator for this evening's Fireside Chat.
🪑 Seats are limited to 40. Registration requires approval.