BCS, THE CHARTERED INSTITUTE FOR IT
Our mission as BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, is to enable the information society. We promote wider social and economic progress through the advancement of information technology science and practice. We bring together industry, academics, practitioners and government to share knowledge, promote new thinking, inform the design of new curricula, shape public policy and inform the public.
Our vision is to be a world-class organisation for IT. Our 70,000 strong membership includes practitioners, businesses, academics and students in the UK and internationally. We deliver a range of professional development tools for practitioners and employees. A leading IT qualification body, we offer a range of widely recognised qualifications.
Further Information
BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT,
First Floor, Block D,
North Star House, North Star Avenue,
Swindon, SN2 1FA, United Kingdom.
T +44 (0) 1793 417 424
F +44 (0) 1793 417 444
www.bcs.org/contact
2012 British Informatics Society Limited
All rights reserved. Apart from any fair dealing for the purposes of research or private study, or criticism or review, as permitted by the Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means, except with the prior permission in writing of the publisher, or in the case of reprographic reproduction, in accordance with the terms of the licences issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency. Enquiries for permission to reproduce material outside those terms should be directed to the publisher.
All trade marks, registered names etc acknowledged in this publication are the property of their respective owners. BCS and the BCS logo are the registered trade marks of the British Computer Society charity number 292786 (BCS).
Published by British Informatics Society Limited (BISL), a wholly owned subsidiary of BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, First Floor, Block D, North Star House, North Star Avenue, Swindon, SN2 1FA, UK.
www.bcs.org
ISBN: 978-1-90612-489-2
PDF ISBN: 978-1-90612-497-7
ePub ISBN: 9781--90612-498-4
Kindle ISBN: 978-1-90612-499-1
British Cataloguing in Publication Data.
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available at the British Library.
Disclaimer:
The views expressed in this book are of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of BCS or BISL except where explicitly stated as such. Although every care has been taken by the authors and BISL in the preparation of the publication, no warranty is given by the authors or BISL as publisher as to the accuracy or completeness of the information contained within it and neither the authors nor BISL shall be responsible or liable for any loss or damage whatsoever arising by virtue of such information or any instructions or advice contained within this publication or by any of the aforementioned.
Typeset by Lapiz Digital Services, Chennai, India.
Printed at CPI Antony Rowe Ltd., Chippenham, UK.
For my beloved wife, Suzy, without whom this, and many other books, would never have been written
LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES
AUTHOR
David Nickson has managed, written and reviewed bids for customers in both private and public sectors, including HSBC Bank, the DWP, the Environment Agency, the MoD and the Cabinet Office. He also has extensive experience as a project manager and has over 200 magazine and journal articles to his name along with eight previous books. He is currently Director of Astar Computers Ltd. David is a keen pilot and enthusiastic musician.
FOREWORD
Have you been faced with the daunting task of preparing a proposal? Well, surely its easy, isnt it? Its only writing your proposition down you have access to a lot of expertise to help you, so how difficult can it be?
We all appreciate that there is more to writing a bid than this, but do we know exactly how we should go about the task? If there is a straightforward way, then why do we so often end up burning the midnight oil frantically editing responses that have missed the mark or been written poorly, or are inconsistent with the rest of the document to name but a few of the common problems.
If you recognise any of the situations mentioned above then this book is for you; it is an excellent guide on how to approach proposal writing. If you adopt the methods recommended then you will become more successful with your written proposals.
I have worked with David for several years, and this book describes exactly the approach that he has encouraged me to take with written proposals. Whats more, when I have actually taken note, it has made my proposals that much more successful.
Viv Green
Vice President, Application Services
Capgemini
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Suzy Siddons (my wife) for reading and advice.
Ms Jutta Mackwell for being a proper editor and providing essential advice.
Viv Green for agreeing to write the foreword.
Caroline Broad for agreeing to be a case study.
The anonymous peer reviewer for advice on structure.
My clients and their customers for providing the source material without which there would be no case studies or examples.
And finally, my late cat BeauBeau, the finest mews to set paw on an authors desk.
GLOSSARY OF TENDER TERMS
Note: I have left out entries for UK government departments and so forth, because they change so often. However, that information is readily available on government websites.
Alcatel period A cooling off period of at least 10 days after the notification of an award before the contract is concluded. Allows unsuccessful bidders to challenge the award decision. Named after a pair of linked European Court cases known as the Alcatel case. Formally known as the standstill period.
BAFO Best and final offer.
BEM Business excellence model.
BV Best value.
CIPS Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply.
Competitive Dialogue An interactive EU procurement procedure (see ) for developing complex solutions.
CPC Central product classification (codes).
CPV Common procurement vocabulary (codes) part of a package of measures specially developed by the EU to simplify and modernise EU procurement. EU buyers must use CPV codes under EU directives.
CSR Corporate social responsibility.
ECJ European Court of Justice.
EEC European Economic Community.
EFQM European Foundation for Quality Management.
ELTON Electronic tendering online.
EOI Expression of interest.
e-Tendering A process conducted online: supplier registration or expression of interest; contract download; submission of bid document, etc. Can include e-auctions. There are various software platforms in use for this.
EU European Union.
EU thresholds Financial limits based on estimated value of a contract over its entire lifetime. Where the value of a contract is expected to exceed the relevant threshold, it must be advertised in the OJEU.
Framework agreement An arrangement between buyer and suppliers on the terms of future dealings between them, without committing to or guaranteeing any volume of business.
GATT General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade.
Next page