According to a recent article by AXA, the UK public sector spends an estimated £242 billion per year on procurement – that is, hiring goods and services from contractors. It is a big marketplace and there is an opportunity for SME and in particular the smaller companies to gain good quality work.
There has been, in recent years a concerted effort for public sector organisations to award contracts to smaller firms, with the UK Government setting an ambitious target of 33% of procurement spend going to small businesses by 2022.
So what is required, particularly in the public sector, for an SME to prepare for dealing with a larger customer?
David Reilly, director at TalkRiskGroup.com, stated “We work with numerous clients who are in a state of preparation to bid for public sector contracts. Proof of compliance with Data Protection and Cyber Security is now the minimum requirements when bidding for work. We help our client comply with UK GDPR and put in place the policies that will communicate to a perspective client, that they are serious about Cyber and information governance”.
He goes on to say, “Most suppliers will not pass the pre-qualification questionnaire stage (PQQ), if they don’t have their correct policies and certificates to be pre-approved by the potential client”.
Optimat a research and strategy consulting firm comments. “We’re delighted to say that we have just won a good sized tender thanks to TalkRisk Ltd. Their help with pulling together our data protection and information security policies and the help they gave us to position our approach to information governance really made a difference in the scoring of the bids and helped us come out on top. Money well spent!”.
It’s clear there are opportunities in the Public Sector for SME’s, as the AXA articles concludes “Although there is often no concrete guarantee of work on a Framework Agreement, being awarded a place on a framework is a sign to others that your business is a key player in the industry”.
End
Would you like to chat through your options and get your queries answered? Arrange a call with David using the calendar below and he will be delighted to connect with you.