Writing a tender for the vast majority of public tender contracts in the UK will involve filling out a PQQ. There are plenty of suppliers eager to fill those tender contracts and so the contracting authorities use them to keep the number of tenders they look at manageable. This can raise problems for suppliers that … Read more
When aiming for a tender contract it’s important to consider what the procurer wants from the contract. This is a vital part of winning contract opportunities. Public and private sector organisations are putting a relentless focus on cost efficiencies. Many companies believe that the main role of their procurement team is to deliver cost savings … Read more
Recently an alliance of small business lobbying groups sent a letter to the Business Minister Mark Prisk, highlighting one of the biggest problems facing companies tendering for contracts in the UK today: late payment. The numbers present a clear picture of the both the scale of the problem and who the mostly likely perpetrators are. … Read more
May 2011 saw the publication of a report outlining Bristol City Council’s Carbon Footprint that related directly to procurement activity. [Please see the full report: Carbon Footprint of Procurement] Will we see more local authorities asking questions on carbon footprints? Probably not! The report does provide a response to the question ‘is the Carbon Foot … Read more
Lothian and Borders Police has come in for a bit of ridicule lately, following news that they had issued an incredibly complex PQQ describing their sandwich needs in pedantic detail. Other recent stories include complaints about construction tenders with over one hundred questions and extremely high accreditation requirements. These can seem like impossible hurdles for … Read more
You might have seen some conflicting news reports about the Bribery Act lately. Notably, the legal firm Ernst & Young recently polled company employees and found that only 6% of companies surveyed believed that the Bribery Act compliance rules had affected their business. That said, the Bribery Act 2010 is also very young – the … Read more