how to win tenders

How to Win Tenders

Gill Hunt

22nd April 2010

The Big 3

• Understanding the Process

• Choosing Tenders you can Win

• Believing it can be done!

Public Procurement

• Difficulties– Open – so highly competitive– Time-consuming for all parties– Low bid to win rate

• Plus Points– Open – you know about it– Structured – there are rules (sort of)

Private Procurement

• Restricted set of bidders

• May still be bureaucratic

• Less competitive – if you’re in

• Difficult to open doors

Is it worth it?

• Public sector spends a lot of money

• Public procurement includes ex-privatised industries and not-for-profits

• 150 plus consultancy/service related projects per week

• Projects range from £Millions to £5k

Typical Formal Process

• Public advert – EU law must advertise over £150k

• PQQ – pre qualification questionnaire• ITT/RFP/RFQ – Invitation to Tender, Request

for Proposal, Request for Quotation• Final Short List – commercial negotiations

(BAFO – Best and Final Offers)

Formal Issues/Barriers

• Minimum turnover

• PI, Policies, procedures

• Payment for bid documents

• Value for money – Public Benefit

• Must be located in.. Usually for funding reasons

Informal Issues

• Client may have incumbent, preferred bidders

• Client may have unstated preferences e.g. local supplier, big company

• Client will want to reduce bidders to a short list as quickly as possible

Finding out about tenders

• http://ted.europa.eu – free OJEU alerts

• http://www.contracts.mod.uk – only source of MOD non-OJEU tenders

• http://www.supply2.gov.uk – low & high value, UK wide alerts

• http://www.etenders.gov.ie/

Skillfair

• http://www.skillfair.co.uk– Free weekly alert for IBC members– 20% Discount on membership - £115.20– Free access to IBC member projects– Private projects & associate opportunities

S-Cat & Frameworks

• http://www.ogc.gov.uk

• Catalist

• Search TED Contract Awards

Choosing

• Understand your strengths

• And your weaknesses

• Read the documents carefully

• Look for uniqueness/special factors

• Find out more – call them!

• Watch out for warning signs

What if?

• What will you not do if you bid?

• Can you afford to win it?

• Could you bid as a consortium?

• Is it worth bidding to make contact?

You’ll Know it When you See it

Best Bid Ever

• Answer the questions

• Focus on the client – not you

• Try to build a relationship

• Keep structures simple

• DO PRECISELY WHAT THE INSTRUCTIONS SAY

Don’t slip up

• Don’t argue with their approach– But do show them other ideas

• Answer every question– If they want a H&S Policy, have one

• Present your bid well– But don’t just focus on binders

Get it Checked

This is Success

Over To You

Final Yards

• Beware price battles

• You can still lose

• Innate conservatism – we want people who’ve done this before

If You Lose?

• 1 in 5 Win Rate is good

• Ask for feedback

• Review what you did right/wrong

• Try and fix perceived weaknesses

• Persist

Can you win?Inge Hill, management consultant and facilitator

Infinity PR

Stephen Howes - Management and

Systems Consultancy Meg Abdy – New entrant into NHS consulting

Barbara Welford – Fundraising for Staffordshire Hoard

Last Thoughts

The Process is difficult for both sides – work to make it easier

Be in the game

• Register with Skillfair – otherwise you’ll miss out

Believe that you can win