Common issues for companies looking to get involved in tendering

Tendering for public sector business can open up a world of opportunities for new start-ups and SME’s, in all of its various forms. The composition of documentation, from simple Requests for Quotation right through to multi-million-pound opportunities going through the full OJEU tender process, can have a profound effect on the ability of firms to tap into this market, in terms of resource, time and capability.

So what are the key factors holding companies back from getting involved within the public-sector market, and what are the key ways to combat them?

• Guarantee: there is NEVER a guarantee that any company will be successful in winning public-sector business, and this fact tends to put off those companies who would have to invest scarce time and resource to complete documentation, even for smaller contracts. No tender services company worth their salt will ever provide such a guarantee, and so the choice to begin tendering represents an investment in the development of bids over time. This is not to say, of course, that companies cannot win their first tender. There are examples of immediate success available right across the country in a huge array of sectors, but this is by no means something that happens by accident.
• Uncertainty: sometimes the will is there to get involved, but a read through the Standard Selection Questionnaire or ITT document leaves the reader with a sense of uncertainty as to whether they can either put in a compelling submission or, in some circumstances, what the specification for the expected goods or services actually is! For the first of these, I would tend to trust gut feeling and wait for a more obviously suitable tender opportunity to come along, instead of using valuable time on a bid in which your uncertainty may come across. Where there is an issue with the specification, it is ALWAYS best to seek guidance from the tendering authority prior to a decision being made. Most tenders will have a method identified for asking questions and authorities usually see it as in their interests to respond in a timely fashion.
• Technical: this can cover anything from lack of required accreditation or insurances through to inability as a new firm to provide case studies or evidential information on past contracts and successes. Whilst it is true in some respects that technical deficiencies within a bid may mean a fail, the revised Public Contracts Regulations 2015 do contain measures designed to counteract these issues where possible. Make sure to keep your company’s information up to date on a regular basis, even if you are not actively tendering for business, because if that all-important tender does appear it is best to be ready! Remember also, that the importance of social value in tenders can sometimes be a distinguishing factor, with some tenders now awarding up to 15% to suppliers local to the area of contract delivery, and those who are active in their efforts at community engagement and other social factors.

Even for large companies, there are always reasons not to go for a particular tender, but the key is to establish effective decision-making processes and ensure that you understand the likely requirements for a compelling bid within your industry.

For more information on any aspect of tender, call Courtney Tender Services on 0151 601 6263

Love me tender…........

With St. Valentine's Day fast approaching, we thought we'd take a look at how tendering can be such an emotive word!

The word tender can inspire many different emotions, from outright fear to absolute contempt, depending on an individual’s knowledge, experience and understanding of the process. This gets some people palpitating at the very mention of the word. So, what are the key facts that you need to know to get started in the world of tendering?

A tender is, in essence, nothing more than a bid. You will likely need to provide pricing and a proposal/qualitative response to be successful, and the structure is often quite rigid. Most public sector tenders are governed by European legislation (though this is likely to change following Brexit), and many opportunities are advertised via something called OJEU. This is the Official Journal of the European Union, and any public contracts anticipated to be worth in excess of certain thresholds must be advertised through this.

How do you even find tenders to go for? Well, there are a large number of websites these days that collate information on new tenders and detail how to obtain the tender documents. Some of the more common ones are:

• contractsfinder.gov.uk - this is a government run directory of available contracts on which all contracts of over £10,000 need to be advertised.
• https://procontract.due-north.com/Login - this might be more commonly known as ‘The Chest’ in the North West.
• http://www.mytenders.org/Default.aspx - allows direct access to documents for tenders posted on this site.

There are many more sites, some location or industry specific, and some research is advised for those companies not sure where to go!

There are several stages of tendering under the OJEU process. Depending on the type and size of contract, any or all of the following could be used

• Prior Information Notice (PIN) – to indicate that a tender is likely to come out, and provide a date for release if known
• Expression of Interest (EoI) – the first call for interested parties
• Pre-Qualification Questionnaire (PQQ)/Selection Questionnaire(SQ) – for the tendering authority to evaluate generic suitability of those companies interested in the contract.
• Invitation to Tender (ITT) – the main section of the tender, including the main response and pricing requirements
• Post-tender clarifications – for the tendering authority to ensure that bids have been correctly evaluated. Usually take the form of an interview, presentation and/or site visit.
• Success/unsuccessful notification – all bidders who have submitted a tender are notified of the initial decision of the tendering authority and usually provided with feedback.
• Standstill period – sometimes called the Alcatel Period after the legal case from which the name came. This gives bidders a certain period of time (usually 10 days) to challenge the initial decision
• Contract award – if no challenges are raised, then the contract can be awarded.

This can look like a daunting process to some companies, leading to the fear factor mentioned earlier. It can take months to complete the tender process but effective planning and monitoring can smooth the path to success.

Finally, no matter how all of the above looks, remember that there are people standing ready to help! WE LOVE TENDERS!!!

Give us a call on 0151 601 6263 or 07958 566 154 to find out more about how we can make tendering easy!!

What is holding you back?

From politics to the weather you can’t fail to notice that we are in a state of widespread change now. Brexit, a new US president and even the size of Toblerones … change is inevitable and the fear of the unknown is a phenomenon that most of us can relate to. However, when it comes to business, it can be one of the main factors that can hinder growth and prosperity.

Through our tender -support services, we work  with business owners and managers on a daily basis, who are applying for large-scale tenders for the first time. It fascinates us to discover the reasons why many successful businesses, who are so clearly capable of winning lucrative tenders, are not throwing their hat in the ring more.

Our experience would suggest that one issue that crops up over and over again is fear of failure. You may have to fill in forms, make a pitch, do a fancy presentation and people may snigger, right? What if you mess up and then don’t get it anyway? What’s more, you may not be sure if you can deliver the requirements for the entire lifetime of the contract.

As business owners, we are not particularly good at blowing our own trumpets, so an important activity to make sure that you do regularly, is reflect on and review your progress to understand how much you have accomplished and how far you have come. It is also time to let go of the idea that you always need to be 100% perfect. Sometimes, it is essential to take risks to reap the rewards.

Perhaps, you are busy enough? It Is hard to find enough time in the day to get through your ever-growing list, let alone find time for a work/life balance. Taking the time to build a winning team can be the difference, whether that be staff members or freelance delivery partners. The peace of mind that comes from knowing that you can pull a team together to pull off any project places you in a strong position and ready for take-off.

Another old chestnut – you don’t know where to start, or don’t know the difference between a poor tender and a good tender. A poor tender can often be caused by a business not having the correct guidance during the preparation. From errors to stating the benefits with supporting evidence, a few small tweaks and changes in your approach may be all that it takes. And rule number one – always read the documentation fully to understand what is required of you.

In short, when it comes to the things that are holding you back, we have seen and heard it all; every client needs our help for their own individual reasons. Initially, a friendly discussion will establish your development needs. At that point, we will walk you through a range of affordable options from ad-hoc support to our fully outsourced bid service. Ready to feel the fear and do it anyway? Contact us today on 0151 601 6263 for more details.

Tender fatigue - and ways to combat it

Courtney Tender Services clients are often finding that, when writing their own bids and tenders, the initial ‘buzz’ of starting the completion of documents can soon disappear and give way to the phenomenon of ‘Tender Fatigue’. This can have a serious impact on the ability of your submission to be successful since it often means that the vital final days prior to submission do not have sufficient concentration being devoted to the task at hand.

Tender fatigue is entirely understandable, and is borne of human nature. Most of us get bored when undertaking repetitive or drawn out tasks, and so the deterioration of effort that befalls the average tender throughout the completion window is entirely understandable.

This is particularly the case for those who have to take time out of their normal tasks to complete tender documentation, meaning a backlog for them once complete. The urge to rush through the writing process when you see a build-up of unread emails in your inbox is a difficult thing to resist!

So what can be done to avoid tender fatigue? The suggestions below may help:

• Plan the response formation process effectively

Pre-planning of both the schedule and the content for completion of your submission is of critical importance. Whether you are an individual completing tenders for the first time, or the leader of an experienced bid team, having a well-constructed timeline to allow document submission within required deadlines will pay huge dividends. It will also help to combat tender fatigue by establishing deadlines for completion of first drafts, completion of initial proof reads, the review/amendment process plus the individuals involved and their responsibilities. A round table meeting is recommended upon receipt of documentation for those who are fortunate enough to have several people working on tender submissions.

• Use the experts

Most people can write better quality answers when they understand the subject matter they are discussing, and tender fatigue is often reduced as people feel more confident in their own abilities when the content is highly familiar to them. For this reason, where a company producing a bid has different departments (for example HR, Legal, Operations, Sales, Account Management, Finance etc.), it is recommended that questions on these individual areas of expertise are completed by those who know the subject best.

• Build in ‘rest time’ during the submission

Where ample time is available for completion of a tender, it is always a good idea to allow some rest time from bid duties, as this has several benefits:

• It allows people to come back to their own work with ‘fresh eyes’ and identify more quickly and clearly where improvements can be made.
• It allows people to feel as though the build-up of day-to-day tasks is more manageable since they will have time to reduce the backlog at various intervals.
• It will enable renewed vigour to be applied following a break, often resulting in higher quality responses.

If you would like to understand more about tender fatigue or think your processes could do with freshening up to help avoid it, give Courtney Tender Services a call on 0151 601 6263 and we’ll be happy to discuss your needs!

Three reasons why companies don't get involved with tendering

When we’re talking to companies, whether start-ups or established, small or large, about the potential for them to get involved in tendering for public sector business, we come across a wide variety of reasons why they haven’t yet, will do in future, or don’t think they’ll ever be involved in this area of potential business.

However, the three most common reasons we come across are:

1. “We wouldn’t know where to start!”

This is an understandable reaction for the most part, given the level of misjudgements and misconceptions that people either hear from suppliers, colleagues and clients or make for themselves regarding the tendering process. It’s true that there is a very strict procedure by which public sector organisations have to abide when advertising for suppliers for the majority of the goods and services they need.

However, ask yourself the following question: how do people learn to ride a bike? The answer is that they practice, maybe needing stabilisers for a while before they are ready to go on two wheels for good. Tendering is not easy, but neither is it impossible, and Courtney Tender Services can act as your ‘stabilisers’ by assisting and guiding you through the process, either until you are ready to go it alone or on a continual basis.

2. “We wouldn’t have the time!”

We hear this comment a great deal every week, and as a small business ourselves, Courtney Tender Services understand the difficulties of making time for something which may not seem as though it is part of your core business. Think about things a slightly different way, however, and the problem takes on more of an ‘opportunity’ feel!

What if a potential client was to call you and say that they would like to begin detailed discussions regarding your products and/or services with a view to signing a long-term contract with you in the near future. Would you turn them down on the premise that the lead may not work out, or would you grasp the opportunity and try to secure the business? In essence, when tendering for public sector business, there is an investment in time but the potential rewards are great. Courtney Tender Services can write tenders for you to minimise the internal time spent on completing documents, effectively working on your behalf to generate compelling tenders and long term business.

3. “We’re too small to win tenders!"

This is an interesting point, given that there are now measures in place to prevent SME’s from being discriminated against in many tenders. These include:

• The Public Contracts Regulations 2015 now include a limit on the turnover requirements that can be put in place on tendering companies. For example, on a £1million estimated contract value, the tendering authority is now no longer able to set a minimum annual turnover any higher than £2million, whereas previously they could have asked for any figure. Most tenders now are not including any such restrictions whatsoever. Courtney Tender Services would still recommend suitable consideration is given to whether a contract would be achievable prior to completing documentation.

• The government has a publicly stated aim to increase the proportion of its spend through SME’s to £1 in every 3 by 2020. This will mean an extra £3billion being spent with SME’s whether on a direct purchase basis or via the supply chain.

There are of course, still factors that may influence public sector buyers towards larger companies, but in most cases nowadays the perceived gap can be closed considerably.

If you have any questions or doubts over getting involved with Public Sector tendering, call Courtney Tender Services on 0151 601 6263 to arrange a free consultation.

Brexit - Don't Panic

Brexit came as a shock to many business people, myself included, with the uncertainty surrounding both the process of exiting the EU and the British economy in the meantime dominating many people's thoughts.

Many British companies are now no doubt evaluating the likely impact of the decision on their business, whether it be trade with EU-base customers, procurement from EU-based suppliers, or industry specific nuances that may be affected. But how will leaving the EU affect procurement legislation within the UK once Article 50 has finally been invoked and the 2-year period expires?

The first thing to mention is that nothing will happen for some time yet, and so companies that have spent years coming to terms with OJEU processes and tendering methodologies need not worry in the short term.

The UK has, over the years of our membership of the EU, taken a leading role in development of the European procurement directives that have guided our own UK legislation. For this reason, it is unlikely that, after Brexit, we will experience much change anyway, given that we have agreed to and indeed proposed much of the content ourselves. Whilst there may be some changes to contracting thresholds, minimum turnover requirements, evaluation methods and the like, these are unlikely to be earth shattering in size.

Current contracts procured via the current Public Contracts Regulations 2015 will not cease to exist once any new legislation is eventually enacted, since the contracts are held between the purchasing authority and the provider. This includes contracts for goods and services with central government bodies such as the MoD and Crown Commercial Services. So long term arrangements in place now will remain so following Brexit (assuming they don't expire by the time this happens of course!) and extension periods can still be granted based on current contractual agreements. This last point is an important one, as it could bring extra reward in the form of certainty for the provision of service excellence.

Overall the message is one of 'Don't panic!' and carry doing what you're doing. Even when (and if) change does come within the UK public procurement landscape, it won't be huge, and it certainly won't be for some time yet.

If you’re unsure about where your business stands with regards to bids or current contracts, give us a call now on 0151 601 6263