Bidding and Tendering simplified

There are many factors as to why people assume tendering is overly-complicated. This is usually down to the amount of time it takes to complete and how mundane the process is. Yes there may be 5000 pages of specification which actually need to be read.

The three things one must possess when tendering is PERSISTENCE, PLANNING & POSITIVITY!.

Let’s get past the moaning and downtrodden attitude to how ‘complicated’ tendering is and break the process down to show how easy it actually is. In order to de-complicate the situation let’s look at a few things that are deemed complicated when tendering. This includes:

1. Terminology
The number of abbreviations flying around is becoming increasingly common in the procurement world. Terms like RFQs, ITTs, PQQs, DPS, and RFPs seems like they are only used to confuse us into a state of literary decline. Let’s simplify:

PQQ Pre-qualification questionnaire – this is usually a stage-1 questionnaire asking about specific company details like insurance and similar contracts one has worked on etc., along with simple ‘yes and no’ questions making sure one is not fraudulent and you pay your taxes etc.

ITT Invitation to Tender –sometimes one can forget out the PQQ and jump straight into an ITT, which is usually where your quality and costing ratio comes in. This is where you price the job at hand and answer several technical questions about ones ability to undergo the work in accordance with usually detailed specification/scopes of work. This is what one finds in the newspaper or website like www.tenderjournal.com

RFP Request for Proposal very similar to an ITT where cost and quality are assessed however RFPs are used in situations where the client either can’t or doesn’t want to define the scope of work up front to an adequate level of detail, meaning you need to be very descriptive and state a clear proposal to what’s needed.

RFQ Request for Quotation The RFQ is a lot like the Tender, however typically smaller in size and scope. They’re often more geared towards clients who are seeking pricing information for a defined scope of work or supply of materials or equipment. Detailed proposals are typically less often sought here.

Framework Agreement, This is an agreement between one or more businesses or organizations. If you enter into a framework agreement, usually you will be one of many suppliers contractually bound to deliver against buyer requirements.

DPS Dynamic Purchasing System – A DPS is similar to an electronic framework agreement, with two exceptions, new suppliers can join at any time and it is to be run as a completely electronic process. DPS is used exclusively by public sector organizations and can be considered as a ‘competitive supply chain’, where all chosen supply chain members regularly compete for work via ITTs and RFQs.

2. Opportunities
These are extremely broad with hundreds upon hundreds of opportunities released daily. Customers tend to wish to have one main platform to source the most relevant opportunities to grow their business. Currently, opportunities are typically shared through typically problematic electronic algorithms across multiple platforms, either showing you irrelevant opportunities or no opportunities at all.

Keeping it simple – sign up with www.tenderjournal.com to receive daily opportunities, sourced from the hundreds of Uganda’s tender portals. These are manually searched and published on a daily basis by a team of procurement-based staff, not computers. We are the first company to do this and the feedback we have is out of this world

Downloading all tender information;
Asking/monitoring clarification questions from other suppliers/the buyer;
Submitting the tender;
Every website should have a ‘help’ section – don’t be afraid to use it and/or contact the people who run it.