The tender process is an established, precisely documented and conducted flow of activities to determine the best value provider of products or services required.

 

However there is still substantial flexibility within that process to improve the chances of winning the tender, or finding the right tenderer, depending on whether you’re buying or selling.

 

Often incredibly complex and veiled in mystery, tenders are now subject to strict probity requirements. This can cause frustration for the vendor or purchaser as documents are produced or submissions are made without knowledge of all relevant information.

 

With experience in almost 200 tenders, The Diverter will maximise the value from the tender process whether you are a buyer or seller, particularly with regard to refinement of tender specifications or tender submissions.

 

With tenders, single misplaced words can mean a million dollar change in tendered rates so it is worth ensuring specifications and submissions are exactly right and put your best foot forward.

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• Be ahead of the game -  whether you are buying or selling, if you know that a tender is on the horizon, start doing your homework. This may involve researching technologies, discovering who is in the marketplace, or how your organisation can improve internal systems to establish a better foundation for the tender.

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• Conduct diligent research to find out either what you are going to ask for if you are a buyer, or what you are going to offer if you are a seller. If you are a buyer, make the tender specifications as specific as possible, which may include options for different solutions. If you are a seller, make your submission as attractive as possible with sufficient detail to articulate competitive advantages.

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• Be vigilant with submissions  - once tenders have been submitted, this is often a time of uncomfortable silence. For both buyers and sellers, this period is critical to make every opportunity to clarify and refine the position of tenderers. 

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• A successful interview for a seller would be confident articulation of their tender proposal and comprehensive responses to questions asked. It would also include some insight as to how they are positioned in relation to competitors. For the buyer a successful interview would clarify any concerns with the tender and to get a good feel for the organisation and people they may have to spend the next 5, 10 or 20 years with.

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• Document the tender results equitably and clearly by ensuring that the final contract is comprehensive and acceptable for both parties, considering probity requirements, with inclusions for negotiations from the tender assessment period. Look to give both parties the best chance of achieving their objectives with minimum assigned risk for a sustainable service. Talk about contingencies in the event of unusual scenarios if they weren’t included in the tender specifications.  

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