How to Win Federal Oral Presentations | The Orals Gap with Lisa Shea Mundt
Sep 22, 2026 · 40 min · 10 segments
In the 1990s, the government decided proposals had become too easy to fake, so it started asking to hear from the people who would actually do the work. That is the oral presentation, and it is now…
In the 1990s, the government decided proposals had become too easy to fake, so it started asking to hear from the people who would actually do the work. That is the oral presentation, and it is now one of the fastest-growing phases in federal source selection. In this week's episode of GovCon Unscripted, orals coach Lisa Shea Mundt, a 15-year veteran of federal proposals, sits down with Chelsea Reberts to explain why the skill that wins on paper doesn't win in the room. She covers confidence ratings versus adjectival scoring, the solicitation language that quietly grades collaboration, why a corporate representative who cannot survive Q&A is a liability, and how to prepare a reluctant technical expert to carry a live presentation. Whether you are building your first orals team or tightening a capture plan that treats orals as a formality, this conversation is a practical guide to winning the room. **Chapters:** 00:00 Why the government stopped trusting proposals 02:00 What an oral presentation actually is 03:30 The unwritten requirement hiding in “performance risk” 05:30 Why COVID made orals explode 07:30 Confidence ratings vs adjectival scoring 11:00 Writing a script is not reading a proposal aloud 16:00 Logos, pathos, ethos in the room 19:00 “The words need to conform to me” 22:00 Scripts, notes, and teleprompters: what is allowed 27:00 When your best technical mind is your worst presenter 32:00 The Q&A round nobody prepares for Resources: Follow Lisa Shea Mundt Follow Chelsea Roberts **🎧 Listen now on:** 🔹 Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/govcon-unscripted/id1766384482 🔹 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NL0kFAvmgECLTJpUZYNHy **Like and follow us:** 🔹 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@GovConUnscriptedUS 🔹 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/govconunscriptedpod/ 🔹 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/govconunscriptedpod/ 🔹 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/govcon-unscripted/posts/ 🔹 JOIN OUR #govcon #community: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/14618490/
In the 1990s, the government decided proposals had become too easy to fake, so it started asking to hear from the people who would actually do the work. That is the oral presentation, and it is now…
