News
Why Evidence Wins Tenders!
Ever wondered how your competitors get those elusive last few marks on a tender? The answer is probably that they provide really solid proof and evidence in their answers. Theoretical answers are fine – by all means tell the Evaluator how you do it…..but make it more compelling by providing specific examples of where you…
How Tenders are Scored (and How to Get Maximum Points!)
One good thing about public sector tenders is the depth and quality of the feedback that you receive – and detailed feedback such as that provided by the CCS is a great (and sometimes painful) way of learning how tenders are scored. The CCS’s marking scheme on their recent Permanent Recruitment Framework really showcases the…
How to Cut Word Counts!
Word and character counts are the procurement professional’s way of saying “get to the point”. When we write proposals and tenders, we tend to become verbose – waxing lyrical and using lots and lots of big words to try to impress the evaluator. What actually happens is that you unintentionally bore the evaluator, leaving them…
CCS Supply Teachers Framework Overview
CCS Supply Teachers Framework General Information Critical Timescales Deadline for questions – 5pm, 16th May 2018. Deadline for CCS responses to clarifications – 5pm, 23rd May 2018. Deadline for submission of the bid – 3pm, 30th May 2018. Clarification Questions Questions, clarification and queries for the CCS Supply Teachers framework must be asked using the…
CCS Permanent Recruitment Tender Overview
CCS Permanent Recruitment Tender – General Information Critical Timescales Deadline for questions – 5pm, 17th April 2018. Deadline for submission of the bid – 3pm, 2nd May 2018. Clarification Questions Questions, clarification and queries must be asked using the facility on the “eSourcing Suite” or portal. Try to ensure the question is specific and clear,…
ESPO Strategic HR Services Tender Requirements
So the much awaited ESPO Strategic HR Services Tender has now been published, and we're all ploughing through about 300 pages of specification, ITT documents, terms & conditions, and submission questions. As we've already been commissioned to work on this by a number of clients, we thought it would be helpful to share our overview…
Forthcoming Public Sector Recruitment Frameworks (CCS, ESPO, SUPC)
CCS Permanent Recruitment Framework After our meeting with the CCS on 22nd January, we have gathered some new information about the planned structure, lotting strategy and timescale of this tender. Originally advertised as being published in January, we have been advised that it will now be released in the first 2 weeks in February. The…
Demystifying the Forthcoming CCS Recruitment Frameworks
Hard sell marketing isn’t our style, but with two large CCS recruitment frameworks on the horizon we’re hearing stories from clients and prospects alike about bid writing companies using aggresive marketing and scaremongering tactics to try to sign them up to five figure fees for providing outsourced tender writing support/services. So, I thought it might…
New CCS Supply Teachers Framework
In November, the CCS is planning to publish a tender opportunity for a totally new national framework for provision of supply teachers. The CCS and DfE have conducted a pre-market engagement exercise which provides some useful insights into how they anticipate the framework will operate. Here are the key elements that we believe will be…
Bidding for Executive Roles Made Easy
Many senior level public sector roles have to go through a procurement process now, particularly in areas such as Central Government, Local Authorities and the NHS. Alternatively you may have been to see a client who has an executive role and everything has been going swimmingly until they utter the dreaded words: “perhaps you could…
Top Tips for Tackling the Hot Topic of CSR
So what is this CSR thing that we keep being asked for in tenders? It can seem such an intangible thing to write about so it’s easy to land up waffling about “doing the right thing” and “putting something back”. As a result CSR policies are often half a page of meaningless text about…
How about this for a New Year’s resolution?
As of September 2016, all contracting authorities in England (and most of those in Wales & Northern Ireland) have been legally obliged to replace the Pre-Qualification Questionnaire (PQQ) with the new Selection Questionnaire (SQ). This has been done to align us with European procurement legislation; and with the purpose of making it easier for SMEs…
