Government Tenders - Are They Worth All the Effort?

Government tenders can be hard work. Lots of hard work, and that takes lots of time. Most businesses I work with to write tenders are really, really great at what they do, but when it comes time to submit a bid, it suddenly becomes too hard.  

Many businesses soldier on with a poorly written response to save on cost, only to find their bid unsuccessful because it didn't meet all the criteria. Let's face it — if you're going to produce a half-hearted tender response just so you can get something in, you can't expect to be seriously considered.

So the dilemma for many businesses often comes down to whether or not the reward is worth the effort and the cost — and regardless of whether you go it alone or hire a professional, you still need to put in some effort and, of course, pay the cost.

The Effort Required to Write a Great Tender Response

All tenders are different but there are usually common elements across all of them and these include:

Demonstrated Experience

It's not good enough to simply list some of the similar projects that you've worked on. It is your opportunity to really showcase your business and how well you match the tender requirements.  If you're not going to put some effort into this, don't bother going any further.

OHS&E and Quality Management Systems 

You can't just state that you comply with Health and Safety, Environmental, and Quality requirements. Most tender responses these days want to see a copy of your OHS&E and Quality Management Systems, and they'll want to know if it's ISO certified.  

If you don't have this documentation, only go further once you do. Most tender writers should be able to write these documents for you. When I write these, I always state in the tender response that the documents are not ISO-certified but have been developed in accordance with ISO principles.  

If you hire a tender writer, you won't need to put as much effort into your tender submissions response, but be warned — you'll still need to provide plenty of information to enable the bid to develop.

The Cost of Writing 

So you have two options — do it yourself or hire a professional. If you do it yourself, you won't have many out-of-pocket expenses, but you'll need to find a fair bit of time to get the job done.  

Since tenders vary quite a bit, how much time depends on how savvy you are when it comes to writing. But I'd spend around 30 - 50 hours on most tender responses I work on before I'm happy with the result.  

You must allow more time than this if you're not a professional writer. If you don't have the time, don't respond or find someone to do it for you.

Speaking of which, a professional tender writer will probably cost you around $300 — $5000 to complete your response. But this figure should include all your supporting documentation, such as your OHS&E and Quality Management Plans. Expect this to be more if you also need individual processes documented to support the plans.

And there is a third option — that is to write your own tender response. But hire a professional ISO consultant to help you through the OHS&E and Quality process. If you're a small business, you can expect the ISO certification process to take 6 to 12 months. 

Getting the documentation ready will set you back around $10,000 — $15,000, and the annual certification process will cost you another $3500 — $4500 (note that these are rough guides only; it's different for each business.

So, is a Government Tender Worth the Effort?

In my book, if you have the capability and capacity to meet the tender requirements, then yes. These figures are from the 2014/15 financial year):

• 69,236 Government contracts were awarded worth a staggering $59.5 billion

• 67% of contracts were worth < $80,000, and 18% were worth between $80,000 to $249,000

• 62% of contracts related to services and 38% to the supply of goods

If you want to be a part of this $59 billion opportunity but need help figuring out where to start with the government tenders, call me at 0400 514579, email me at pauline@tenderwise.com.au or fill out this form here. Let's chat.

Tender Writing Tips for New Businesses

Tender writing can be complex and time-consuming, but the reward can mean years of steady business and secure income. However, if you’re a new business, how do you demonstrate your experience?  

How do you indicate in your response that you have the right skills to deliver to the exacting requirements of the tender? How do you include written testimonials you don’t have yet because you’re just starting?

The answer is simple – rather than focus on a history that doesn’t exist yet, focus on what you as an individual have done in the past. The jobs you’ve worked on, the skills you’ve developed, the contacts you’ve made and the people who know how good your work is.

I recently helped a new start-up create a Government tender response for security services in regional Australia.  

The tender had some precise requirements for services to be delivered in the mental health sector, and it was important that we could demonstrate an ability to deal with conflict and aggression, stay calm under pressure, and remain polite and welcoming to all staff and visitors.

Here’s how I wrote the response to several key areas that had a significant impact on the selection criteria:

Demonstrated Experience

The new business had a few clients, but since it had only been in operation for a few months, there was no real history, and the services delivered weren’t particularly relevant to the tender submission.

It meant the focus needed to be on the principle behind the business. What the client had done in the past, how he had personally handled difficult situations and his attitude to providing security services.

Using his past experiences as examples, we demonstrated, point by point, how he personally met every criterion in the demonstrated experience section, and we backed this up with references from his past employers.

Standard Operating Procedures

The tender response required the company to provide the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and a description of the specific practices used to deal with aggressive people and situations of conflict or where force may be required.

Although the new business was operating professionally, it had no specific written SOPs. As part of the response, these were written and attached so we could fully meet the criteria for this section.

Risks & Vulnerabilities

The tender submission called for a detailed description of any vulnerability to the provision of the required services. What a fantastic opportunity to demonstrate an in-depth knowledge of the potential risks involved in reliable and consistent service delivery!  

And more importantly, the contingency plans that would be used to minimise them. We developed complete plans for 12 key risk areas and were able to show the impact that each of these could have and what would happen if a risk event occurred.

Personnel

As a new start-up, personnel were pretty thin on the ground for this business, but the tender response had to include details of the key people who would be delivering the security services.

The business did have access to people with the right training, but none were yet on the books. So, we couldn’t mention how long they had been working for the business. Instead, the focus was on their experience and attitude and how these would fit the tender requirements right.

The resumes of these key people were explicitly redeveloped for the response, so they met the relevant criteria. I don’t mean that I created skills that didn’t exist – I simply updated the existing resumes to highlight and provide more details about relevant experience and to present the resume in a more professional format.

Covering Letter

I always include a cover letter with any response when writing tenders. In this one, we highlighted from the outset that the business was a start-up and then reinforced all of the positive aspects they brought to the table.  

Things like local employment, community support, regional knowledge, and the principal’s experience depth.

Stay Focused

So there you have it – it's not rocket science, but writing a security business bid response can be tricky and very time-consuming. Keep focusing on precisely what the questions are being asked, and provide as much detail as you can in your response.  

Stay fixed on your personal experience when tender writing and relate it to the tender's requirements.

If you're unsure where to start or don't have the time to pull a professional response together, call me (Pauline) at 0400 514579, email me at pauline@tenderwise.com.au, or fill up the form here. Let's chat.