Adding Opportunities to the Pipeline

Overview

There are three ways to add opportunities to your pipeline:

• From Discover: add a notice you found, and GovDash keeps it updated from the source.

• Bulk import: upload a spreadsheet of opportunities.

• Manually: enter one opportunity yourself.

Each opportunity gets a classification when you add it. If the same pursuit ends up in your pipeline twice, you can merge the two records into one.

Adding from Discover

You can send an opportunity from Discover straight to your Pipeline so your team can start working on capture. Click Add to Pipeline on any opportunity card on the Watchlist or Search tab, or on the opportunity's page. When asked, choose a classification to finish.

You can also search for a solicitation without leaving the Pipeline. Click + Opportunity, search under Quick Create, and click Add to Pipeline on the result.

New to Discover?

Check out our support article here to learn more about utilizing GovDash’s Discover to source opportunities for your Pipeline!

Automatic Opportunity Updates

When opportunities are added from Discover under the Public tab, any updates that are made from the original source (such as SAM.gov or PIEE) for the opportunity are automatically pulled into GovDash. You will receive a notification/email when your opportunities are updated, and what was updated within the opportunity. These updates can include things like response due dates and new documents.

At this time, eBuy updates are not automatically downloaded or applied to opportunities added from the Private tab within Discover to your Pipeline. You must track these changes externally and update your opportunity within your Pipeline manually.

Spreadsheet/Bulk Import

You can upload a list of opportunities to the Pipeline by clicking the + Opportunity button in the top right of the Pipeline, and choosing Bulk import opportunities from the options provided.

On the following page, either drag and drop your file into the box, or click the upload box as shown below to select your file.

GovDash provides an easy to use template that will download an Excel spreadsheet that automatically has your team’s fields (both GovDash provided and custom fields) mapped to the column headers.

Next, set your opportunity classification. All opportunities within the import must share the same classification, but this can be changed individually after import by selecting the classification next to the opportunity’s title.

Map your file's columns using the drop down menus. If you are missing a field within GovDash, you can quickly create a custom field from the import screen, as shown below. Once all fields are mapped, click the Next button at the top to continue.

GovDash will detect the number of opportunities within your spreadsheet and allow you to choose which ones you'd like to add, or you can add all opportunities by clicking . Once you're finished selecting your opportunities, click the Add To Pipeline button at the top to finish your import.

Manually Adding an Individual Opportunity

You can also manually create opportunities in the pipeline by clicking the + Opportunity button in the top right, and then the Add an individual opportunity button in the pop up menu of options.

Next, fill in the relevant opportunity details that GovDash provides, your opportunity classification, your custom field data, and once you’re finished, click Next. GovDash will ask you to preview the opportunity, which you can then click Confirm & Add to Pipeline to finish.

Optionally, you may upload documents to opportunities added in this way during the final step, but documents can be added at any time to any of your opportunities you create from the Documents tab within the opportunity.

Mandatory Fields

You can choose which fields are required to create an opportunity, or before it can move forward from a phase, in the Required Fields section of Capture Settings. Check out our support article here to learn more!

Choosing a Classification

When you add an opportunity or upload a document, mark it as (U) Unclassified or (CUI) Controlled Unclassified Information.

GovDash carries CUI forward to anything created from that item. For example, uploading a CUI focus document marks the proposal as CUI, and the label shows next to its name.

You can change a classification at any time. When you change a document, GovDash lists the items created from it so you can update those too.

Important Note Regarding Classification

Your team is responsible for properly marking your data in GovDash. Correct classification ensures that sensitive information is handled appropriately and that properly labeled, sensitive data is protected on the GovDash platform.

Merging Opportunities

Prefer a video walkthrough? Watch how to merge opportunities in GovDash here

Over time, the same pursuit can end up in your pipeline multiple times. This might happen from a Discover notice, once from a bulk import or a manual entry, or as a pre-solicitation that later reappears as a full RFP. Merging Opportunities lets you combine two of those records into one, so your team works from a single source of truth without losing any of the work that already lives on either record.

When you merge, GovDash walks you through a short, guided merge editor where you decide what to keep from each opportunity: field values, linked sources, documents, team members and government contacts, and capture work like capture questions, capability matrices, pricing, teaming, and data calls. One opportunity is kept and updated with your choices; the other is permanently removed.

Before You Merge

• You need edit access to both opportunities. If you can't edit one of them, the merge will not go through.

• Merges work on exactly two opportunities at a time. To combine more than two records, run the merge again with the result and the next duplicate.

• The opportunity that is removed is deleted permanently. Its retained information is carried over to the opportunity you keep, but the record itself cannot be restored.  Review each step of the merge editor before you confirm.

Starting a Merge

There are two ways to open the merge editor: From the pipeline bulk-edit bar or from an opportunity’s action menu.

From the Pipeline Bulk-Edit Bar

• Click Pipeline in the left-hand navigation menu and switch to the table view if you're not already there.

• Tick the checkbox next to each of the two opportunities you want to combine. The bulk-edit bar appears at the bottom of the table.

• Click the Merge opportunity icon in the bulk-edit bar (hover over it to see the tooltip). The button stays disabled until exactly two opportunities are selected. If you have one or three or more selected, the tooltip tells you to adjust your selection.

The first opportunity you selected is the one that will be kept; the second is the one that will be merged into it. You can confirm which is which at the top of the comparison tables in the merge editor.

From an Opportunity’s Action Menu

• In the Pipeline, click the ⋯ (action) menu on the opportunity you want to keep.

• Select Merge opportunity.

• In the Select related opportunity to merge dialog, search for the opportunity you want to merge in, tick it, and click Merge. Opportunities you've already linked as related on the Sources tab are excluded from this list.

Using the Merge Editor

The merge editor shows both opportunities side by side in six steps. Use Continue and Back, or click a step name to jump to it.

1. Review Fields: where values differ, pick the one to keep. The kept opportunity's value is selected by default.

2. Review Sources: tick the sources to carry over and choose the Primary source.

3. Review Documents: everything is kept by default. Files flagged Duplicate of can be skipped.

4. Review Members & Contacts: choose who holds each role and which government contacts to keep.

5. Misc: choose which opportunity's Capture, Pricer, and Teaming & data calls work to keep.

6. Confirm Merge: set the classification if needed, read the Warning, tick I agree and click Merge.

If you close the editor before you confirm, your merge choices are discarded.

After the Merge

• The kept opportunity is updated with the field values, sources, documents, members, contacts, and capture work you selected, and the merged-in opportunity is removed from your pipeline.

• Comments from the merged-in opportunity are carried over to the kept opportunity.

• If you started from the bulk-edit bar, your selection clears and the table refreshes in place. If you started from an opportunity's action menu, GovDash takes you to the merged opportunity.