---
name: business-unit-lead-playbook
description: "What a Business Unit Lead reaches for in RBA Skills to support pursuits, review proposals and SOWs, and keep a practice area's collateral current."
disciplines:
  - strategy
  - delivery
tags:
  - playbook
  - role-guide
  - business-unit-lead
author:
  name: Kassie Gibbons
  url: https://rba.com
---

# Business Unit Lead Playbook

Business Unit Leads oversee a practice area or team. You size work, review proposals, and back AEs on larger or more complex opportunities. This maps RBA Skills to your role in the pursuit.

## Pre-Sales — keep the practice area sharp

| Reach for | Why |
|---|---|
| **case-study-writer** (`case-study-draft`, `partner-evidence-package`) | Client success stories for your practice area. |
| **sales-pursuit** → `one-pager-builder` | Capability leave-behinds for your service area. |

## Sales — back the AE on complex deals

| Reach for | Why |
|---|---|
| **sales-pursuit** → `capability-proposal-deck` | Capability presentation for prospect meetings. |
| **rfp-response-assistant** (`draft-rfp-section`, `build-compliance-matrix`, `draft-executive-summary`) | Review or co-author formal RFP responses. |
| **sales-pursuit** → `executive-briefing-writer` | Thought leadership aimed at client leadership in your area. |

## Estimating — own the numbers

| Reach for | Why |
|---|---|
| **estimate-sow-builder** → `build-estimate` | Review or generate effort estimates for your practice area. |
| **estimate-sow-builder** → `risk-weight-estimate` | Enforce a low/high range on every estimate you approve. |
| **estimate-sow-builder** → `draft-sow` | Review SOWs before signature. |

## Tips

- **Estimates need a range.** Never approve a single-point estimate — always low/high via `risk-weight-estimate`.
- **Case studies are the AE's best asset.** Keep them current for your practice area.
- **The executive briefing is your practice area's thought leadership.** One well-written briefing on a topic your clients care about keeps the team relevant between projects.