This workshop will ensure your success in critical tender bids by giving you insight into the most effective techniques for selling your solutions to clients.
In today’s highly competitive market, the chances of winning a competitive tender bids are becoming slimmer and slimmer. For this reason it is essential that tenders for these bids are well prepared, concisely written and appropriately targeted to the client. Such a process can no longer be taken lightly, with hope for a good result. The techniques and tools must be mastered and effectively used in order to ensure your success in winning the contract.
Preparing, writing and submitting superior tenders has been specifically designed to give you the edge in putting your best foot forward and successfully winning a competitive tender.
Covering the entire process of identifying and evaluating tenders, choosing the most appropriate tender, preparing and writing the proposal and negotiating a win-win contract, this workshop is essential for any executive wanting to strategically increase their chances for success in the tender.
Your attendance at this essential workshop will:
- Assist you in understanding the big-picture process of tendering
- Enhance your ability to select the most appropriate tender
- Teach you how to more effectively read and understand the tender document, and gain insight into what the client is looking for
- Help you to more accurately assess your competitor’s strengths and weaknesses
- Give you insight into best-practice approaches for preparing the tender
- Show you the best ways in which you can write and submit the actual proposal
- Give you the edge in negotiating a win-win contract
Who should attend this workshop?
This seminar will be relevant to anyone involved in the process of preparing, writing and submitting tender proposals, including:
- Contract managers
- Bid managers
- Tender managers
- Business development managers
- Operations managers
- Commercial managers
- Divisional managers
- Marketing and sales executives
- Procurement managers
- Business managers
- Project managers
- Technical services managers
- CEOs, General Managers and Managing Directors
- Consultants
Understanding the tendering process:
In order to effectively prepare, write and submit a winning tender, you must first understand the nature of the tendering. This session will explore the various stages of this process including:
- Preferential Procurement Policy Framework Act
- Public Finance Management Act (PFMA)
- Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA)
Selecting the most appropriate tender for your proposal:
Creating a proposal for a competitive tender is not an easy job. It is costly in terms of time, money and resources, and it is therefore critical that you select the right tender for which to submit a proposal.
- Understanding your organisation’s offering
- Identifying, understanding and developing your competitive advantage points
- Scanning the market for tenders
- Analysing which tender is most closely aligned with your organisations skills and resources
Reading and understanding the tender
Critical to success of any proposal is an acute understanding of what the client is looking for and what their specific requirements are.
- Typical components of a tender
- Reading the tender - what’s important and what’s not
- Understanding exactly what the client is looking for
- Defining the business issues involved and how your organisation can resolve them
- Matching the client’s needs with your organisation’s strengths
Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer - the importance of acutely understanding your competition:
In order to create the most superior proposal, and to guarantee success in the tender submission process, you must fully understand who the other likely candidates will be. This session will examine the ways in which you can effectively compete with your competition.
- Identifying the competition
- Understanding your competitors strengths and identifying their weaknesses
- Developing a strategy to compete head-on in your proposal - differentiating yourself from the flock
Success lies in preparation - preparing for the tender:
Before the proposal is actually written, it is imperative that you fully prepare the way in which you approach the tender, and the key points you wish to make.
- Developing a winning approach to writing your proposal
- Understanding your unique selling points and the aspects of your product/service that will win the tender
- Researching the client, their company and their history
- Asking for more information - the do’s and don’ts
- Other factors to consider in preparation for the proposal - costing, timeframes and selecting key personnel
The final touch – submitting a superior tender:
The majority of the work in submitting a tender may be in the preparation; however, the writing and presentation of the tender is vital in getting your foot into the client’s door. This session will highlight the ways in which you can make your tender stand out from the competition.
- Structure and format
- Providing the appropriate level of information
- The executive summary
- The cover letter
- Key recommendations and pricing
- Presentation and language
Submitting your tender:
When submitting the tender, there are a number of actions that can greatly improve your chances of winning the bid. There are also various things you can do to dramatically reduce your chances of success.
- The importance of punctuality
- Creating a positive first impression
- Presenting your proposal - selling your solution to the client
- What not to do - the top reasons why proposals often fail
It ain’t over yet - negotiating a win-win contract:
Once your proposal has been accepted, it is critical that you are armed with the negotiation skills to get exactly what you want from the final contract. This session will teach you how to negotiate your way to success.
- Improving your negotiation skills
- Growing your confidence and credibility
- Effective listening and questioning skills
- Techniques for handling the ‘tough customers’
- Reaching agreement and gaining commitment in the negotiation process - working towards the win-win
- Continuing the relationship in the long term
About your expert presenter
Jan Barnard is a qualified training and development manager and practitioner, offering more than 13 years training and development expertise in the areas of management and leadership training and development. He holds various field related qualifications as well as a HONS degree in Psychology from the University of Stellenbosch. He is also a registered coach, focusing on the development of human potential in the areas of leadership, performance orientation, team effectiveness and service excellence.
Jan is a natural and persuasive communicator recognised for his keen ability to energise and inspire colleagues and clients towards achieving goals. He has extensive experience in both the public and private sector and specializes in Training, Organisational Development and Change Management.
