s the price and the terms of the contract with the supplier.
• Fixed budget selection. The offer with the highest technical score that meets the pre-established budget is selected.
• Least cost selection. This method selects the lowest-priced proposal that achieves the required technical quality established by the contracting authority. It is normally used for the procurement of standardized goods (e.g. stationary material).
Any bid advertisement must give concrete details about the information needed from interested suppliers to participate in the procurement process. The required documentation will depend on each procuring authority and may include all or some of the following:
• Corporate presentation: explanation of goods/works/services offered, mission, vision, and methodology of work, organigram, etc.
• Certificates and legal documents: business registration certificates, tax clearance certificates, national social security and insurance certificates, goods and services tax certificates, audited accounts, articles of incorporation, etc.
• Financial information: audited accounts, financial statements, etc. from current and previous years. Other financial details, such as insurance cover, may also be required.
• CVs: of management and technical staff who will be involved in the project (to show previous experience and the technical ability to carry it out especially required for the procurement of services and works).
• Others: Further documents/details may be required for particular contracts.
You can find out what information is usually needed by analyzing past notices from your clients of interest. Also, check if you need to have the information available in several languages, depending on the client.
You should have all the standard information prepared in advance, because the time to prepare an offer is very limited. Having the standard information prepared will save you time and allow you to focus on the specifics of each bid (approach to work, timeline, pricing, etc.), which will be unique to each project.
Business support organizations (e.g. Chamber of Commerce) may offer a variety of (online) resources to support companies accessing government tenders. These services may include training, advice, mentoring, publication of guides and manuals to help companies’ access procurement opportunities. Some organizations also organize “Meet the Buyer” events, which are very useful for networking and business development. You can also check with professional or trade associations for your industry and your personal network.
Governments, both at national and local levels, may have a dedicated section on their websites about public procurement resources, including bidding templates, publication of tender notices, manuals and guides.
Procurement terminology may vary by country and may be confusing for SMEs that are new in this business. The following vocabulary is widely used in procurement, but the list is not exhaustive and only includes some of the most common procurement terms.
Bid advertisement [also called procurement or tender/bid notice]: public announcement from a procuring authority of the intention to purchase goods, works or services.
Consortium: it is a temporary association of two or more companies to bid together. A consortium is formed by contract and each company retains its separate legal status.
Invitation to/for bid [also called bid solicitation or request/invitation to tender]: invitation to suppliers to submit a proposal on a specific project, whose details are specified in the bid or tender documents.
Joint venture: a new legally and temporarily formed company by two or more companies to achieve a specific purpose. A joint venture is a separate company, has shared ownership and it is governed by its own rules.
One-stage procurement process consists of an invitation to bid, followed by an evaluation process and a contract award. A two-stage procurement process consists of an invitation to express interest (or a pre-qualification process), followed by an evaluation process and creation of a shortlist 