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How are you doing with your bids and how can we assist you to achieve the results you want? I asked these questions because the messages from businesses I work with, are mixed. Some businesses are saying they need more help, whilst others appear to have cracked the code to successful bidding. Certification through the ISO route appears to be the flavour of the day in the public sector arena, for all sorts of reasons, which is shared in this article.
To put what I am about to share in the right context; let me quickly introduce myself again to you. Most of you will be aware that I deliver training workshops across London on tendering for public sector contracts. My knowledge and expertise on the subject was derived from my employment with one of the largest public sector organisations awarding millions of pound sterling in grants mainly to housing associations. I have also had numerous roles in the public sector market that put me in a position to understand the dynamics of public sector buyers. I have been privy to best practices and not so good practices. Drawing from the lessons learnt from those who know how to tender successfully for contracts, I will now proceed to share my insights with you.
What is the common factor or link between the winners of public sector contracts? This is what I want to uncover in this article. Commons links amongst winners of public sector contracts
· They have sound management systems and processes that underpin the quality of their services and products. · Most have certification such as ISO9001, ISO 14001 and the like · Most of the winners have very strong unique selling preposition that transcend beyond the ordinary statement supporting the delivery of quality services. · Most of the winners have strong track record in delivering quality services and are able to articulate their track record clearly in writing, demonstrating the benefits they can offer the public sector buyers. · All demonstrate that they have the resource capacity to deliver the contracts without any risk of staffing problems of one sort or the other. So you can see that having certification is a big deal in this market. In my next article I will share how you can develop your USP. For those of you who have already attended one of my workshops, you have access to the USP framework that should give you a competitive edge. Winning public sector contracts is a function of a complex mixture of different factors. You need to understand how each factor contributes to the overall success result. You cannot ignore the power of each factor without suffering adversely. This means that it is not enough to have experience and a good track record. You must be able to demonstrate that you can deliver good quality products and that you have systems that are validated externally by third parties as sound and reliable. Public sector buyers are not risk takers and they want to do business with organisations that demonstrate they are low risk suppliers. In other words, your business should be positioned as the supplier that offers the safest channel to do business with. It will not go bust, it will deliver value, it will deliver on time and within budget, it will preserve the reputation of the public sector buyers and the list continues.
This is why having ISO certification is so important in this market. I recently came across a business that has ISO9001 but was specifically instructed to incorporate ISO14001 in order to boost its competitive advantage to win contracts. This clearly shows that certification will boost your competitive advantage. This advantage will transcend the public sector market and will help you grow your business internationally should you want to do so.
The reality is this, ISO certification can be pricy but it should be perceived as an investment rather than an expense. As someone who is very keen to control expenses, you want to ensure you agree the fee you will be paying upfront so that you do not end up with any nasty surprises by the time the work is completed. Moreover, you want to get your certification through a competent firm that has proven track record in supporting businesses in your industry successfully. This is why we are now linking you up with firms that fit this specification. If you are serious about winning contracts, and you want to boost the competitive advantage of your business with ISO certification, using a firm that is internationally renowned in the industry and the UK and with a competitive fixed fee agreed with you before the work is completed, you would need to contact me for more information. We have been exploring all the different options available for businesses in the market and we can now confidently point you in the right direction to quickly get ISO9001, ISO14001, ISO22000, ISO18001 and much more with an agreed fixed price contract and a much reduced annual audit fee.
To find out more about this service, please contact Sheila Elliott by sending an email to Sheila@businessservicessupport.com. Please include ISO Certification on the subject line.
At BSS we also offer support at competitive prices in the following:
· Bid writing and review · Independent examination and auditing of accounts for small and medium sized businesses who want to become fit to supply in the public sector market. · Business plans for raising finance · Brokering commercial finance · Training grants through train to gain, which can be used to purchase our 121 business management and leadership coaching programme- depending on your industry.
If you are looking for support in auditing your accounts at a competitive price, please send Sheila an email, including audited accounts on the subject line of your email. You email should be sent to Sheila@businessservicessupport.com
To find out more go to:Tendering for Public Sector Contracts
Your feedback
Do let us know about your success and challenges with procurement; Feel free to leave or post comments on my blog about your progress, concerns etc.
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Winning Olympics Contracts with ISO Certification -Let us link you up with a reputable firm that offers speed, quality and competitive fees. |
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BSS Management Consultancy Newsletter |
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18 December 2008 |
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Volume I, Issue 2 |
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Welcome to our second newsletter and we hope you find the contents extremely useful and invaluable. In this issue, we are focusing on London 2012 events and Winning Olympics Contracts with ISO Certification. |
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Strategies for Attracting Finance for Business
Have you wondered why some businesses have financiers chasing them whilst others have financiers shutting their doors at them? |