‘Work Smarter, Not Harder’: Revolutionising public sector tenders

Working with the public sector can be a real game-changer for SMEs. Associated with long-term stability and excellent payment terms, public tenders can help to give SMEs the breathing room they need in order to expand their business both rapidly and securely.

Traditionally, gaining access to public sector tenders has come with its own set of challenges for SMEs. In the UK alone, there are over 3,600 tender portals that hold the information for live Government contracts. Of that number, not one includes smart matching. A lot of them don’t even have all of the same information available and, generally speaking, a good many of these sites are simply not user friendly, especially so for those SMEs who don’t have the resources to dedicate team members to finding public tenders.

However, as is now the case in so many sectors, technology is revolutionising these pain points for SMEs, ensuring that small business owners can start to work smarter, rather than work harder.

Smart tender-matching solution

OPPORTUNI, a tech start-up based in the North East of England, has developed a simple solution that affords SMEs “the fastest and easiest access to public sector tenders” that smart-matches SMEs with the most relevant contracts, sending them directly to their Inbox.

With OPPORTUNI, the process becomes much shorter and much smarter. All business owners have to do is sign up on the website and input their details. OPPORTUNI’s smart robots do the rest. In fact, OPPORTUNI’s smart robots are so smart that not only will they send the most relevant contracts, but they’ll also send the ones that a given business is most likely to win based on its profile. The time and resource that small businesses can save here is priceless, with no wasted effort expended on researching or bidding on the wrong tenders.

At a time when both resources and money can be scarce for SMEs, it’s important for all businesses to be cautious about how they spend their time and hard-earned money. OPPORTUNI delivers the perfect solution.

Building back better

Since its inception in March last year (just ten days before the first national lockdown, in fact), OPPORTUNI has evolved the landscape for public tender bidding across the UK and beyond. OPPORTUNI has helped SMEs to source and win over £400 million worth of Government contracts, with that number growing by the day.

Tim Ward, CEO of OPPORTUNI, has 15 years of bid writing experience under his belt, regularly advises the Government on procurement reform and is regarded as a leading bid expert. When asked about his motivation for the new solution, Ward informed Security Matters: “Our mission is to find great SMEs who should be winning Government contracts and, ultimately, make it easier for them to find these contracts and then subsequently win them. These are the companies who should be securing our Government buildings and civic centres, and so much more besides.”

Ward continued: “We’re passionate about smaller, local businesses winning these contracts because of the value it has for the businesses themselves, but also because of the amazing effects it exerts on communities more widely. By helping to provide easy access to stable avenues of work, it can help to reinvigorate local communities and assist small businesses in gaining the stability they need for long-term growth and security. Further, it also helps business owners to grow and provide employment opportunities for their local communities.”

At its core, OPPORTUNI believes that any business, no matter its size or who it knows, should have the same access to bidding for public sector work as anyone else. For a long time, the business feels that the procurement landscape has been subject to bias and ‘jobs for the boys’, and wants to play its part in rapidly breaking down such barriers.

With the click of a mouse, businesses can now gain acces to the best tenders in their area, as well as all the accompanying documentation and any other information required for the tender process. Further, OPPORTUNI has a team of expert bid writers on hand to write a compelling and winning bid.

Communicate plc is a small IT, telecoms and cyber security business based in the North East and a regular client of OPPORTUNI. A company spokesperson said: “When introduced to the concept, we knew that OPPORTUNI had the solution we had been looking for since tendering began. It has been a revelation in terms of the way in which we search for opportunities as the most relevant tenders now come directly to us.”

*Further information is available online at www.opportuni.com