We are seeing increasing scrutiny on social value questions in tenders and PQQs. Since the Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012 came into force, the public sector has had to ‘consider’ social value as part of any procurement. But recent reviews of the Act have led to a stronger requirement for public bodies to take positive action and become more accountable. As a result, the expectations for bidders to demonstrate clear and measurable impact in tenders has intensified.

Suppliers are increasingly asked to monitor their social value activity to prove the promises listed in their tender submissions come to fruition.

What is Social Value?

Social Value is the term used to describe the additional benefit created in the delivery of a service contract which has a wider community or public benefit. It extends beyond the value delivered as part of the primary contract activity and goes wider to improvements to the ‘economic, social and environmental’ well-being of the local area.

In procurement terms, it is a move away from awarding contracts based on lowest cost. Whereas evaluation criteria in the past may have been weighed 60% price and 40% quality, today we are seeing weightings of up to 20% for social value alone, so it’s a fundamental component of any successful bid.

Typical social value tender questions

Here are a range of examples of the kinds of Social Value questions which contracting authorities might ask:

Economic examples:

How will you support local people to gain access to the employment opportunities that your contract will produce?

How will you create jobs through the growth of business and investment in the local area?

What work experience will you provide and how will this be achieved?

What work place schemes and opportunities will you provide for apprenticeships, traineeships, higher apprenticeships.

What training opportunities will you offer and to whom? For example, entry-level employment, engaging the unemployed, specific priority target groups, existing workforce.

What education engagement will you offer? For example, with schools, colleges or training providers and how will this be achieved? For example, through site visits, careers talks, work placements etc.

What opportunities are there for voluntary work and what benefits will volunteers receive?

Social example questions:

How will your organisation work to help others? For example, local charities, local community groups, local resident engagement, supporting local culture and heritage.

How will your supply chain ensure ethical considerations? For example, this could include ethical sourcing practices.

How will you promote the safeguarding and welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults?

How will you provide opportunities for all, including the most vulnerable, to make a valuable contribution and promote social integration? For example, this could include work opportunities for disadvantaged people.

How will you consider equality and diversity in the provision and operation of services? For example, this could include ensuring the workforce is representative of the communities served as part of this contract.

How will you protect and support the most vulnerable people?

How will you work towards improving the health and wellbeing of local residents and employees?

Environmental examples:

What are the main environmental impacts associated with delivering the contract outputs and how will impacts be reduced, managed and verified?

Have you set any specific environmental objectives to improve environmental performance during the duration of the contract? If so, what are they and how will environmental objectives be managed and verified?

How will you reduce energy and fuel consumption in the provision of the contract?

How will you promote initiatives which retain, protect, enhance and/or promote the character of the local natural environment for the benefit of local people and wildlife?

Please confirm what will be delivered, as part of contract delivery, in relation to any of the following and how this will be achieved: the re-use of resources, increasing recycling levels to reduce the amount of waste, use of environmentally friendly goods, reducing the carbon footprint, pollution reduction, improving fuel and energy efficiencies.

Will you operate an environmental management system certificated to ISO 14001 or equivalent throughout the period of the contract?

Creating Social Value Responses

Responses to social value questions can vary considerably as they will be based on the specific needs of a local area. The scope of each contract and buyer expectations will also differ widely so its important to read the questions carefully and respond specifically to each element of the contract.

It’s important to familiarise yourself with local social value priorities to ensure that your commitments and responses reflect them. Never make the same standard commitments to every bid response, as each commissioning authority will have its own unique socio-economic challenges which they will be looking for you to address:

Below are some general pointers:

Your ‘economic’ responses might include:

• Creating jobs for local people
• Progressing towards paying a living wage
• Supporting young people into apprenticeships
• Using local suppliers and supporting a local supply chain
• Investing in local SME businesses
• Providing training or apprenticeship schemes
• Promoting opportunities to work with local voluntary and community organisations

Your ‘social’ responses might include:

• Improving the health and wellbeing of local residents and employees
• Helping local charities and community groups
• Championing ethical supply e.g. Fair Trade
• Promoting social integration and community engagement e.g. involving local residents
• Supporting local culture and heritage
• Creating volunteering opportunities
• Promoting safeguarding and the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults

Your ‘environmental’ responses might include:

• Reducing energy and fuel consumption in the provision of the contract
• Minimising waste through re-use and recycling
• Using environmentally friendly goods to minimise pollution
• Saving energy e.g. using energy efficient lighting and equipment
• Promoting initiatives which retain, protect or enhance the local natural environment
• Incorporating sustainability considerations into your supply chain
• Implementing ISO 14001 environmental management systems

Resources for Calculating Social Value

Often your social value bid response will require some form of measurable return on investment calculation.

Many contracting authorities now have a social value toolkit, which is designed to help suppliers understand and deliver localised social value. These toolkits include ideas for the type of social value you might offer, potential partners and how you can calculate this for a winning tender response.

There are several free to download Social Value Calculators as well as paid for social value tools on the market. We’ve listed a few free resources below to help you:

Housing Associations’ Charitable Trust (HACT) operate a spreadsheet tool where you can input specific information and generate an assessment of the social value delivered through your bid proposals. The calculation will arrive at a ratio of how many pounds you will generate in social value, for money gained through the contract. https://www.hact.org.uk/value-calculator

The Sustainable Development Unit (SDU) offer a similar free to download calculator here:
https://www.sduhealth.org.uk/areas-of-focus/social-value/social-value-calculator.aspx

Business In The Community have compiled a detailed toolkit on Social Impact Measurement & Metrics which can be downloaded here https://www.bitc.org.uk/resources-training/toolkits/social-impact-measurement-metrics

The Considerate Constructors Scheme have a range of useful information on their Building Social Value website. http://buildingsocialvalue.org.uk/

If you need more support to create a winning social value bid response, please contact our bid response team on 01462 440077 or email Stuart@propeller-studios.co.uk

Holding an effective tender launch meeting is an important first milestone in the bid response process. It’s your ideal opportunity to provide key information, assemble content experts, gain buy-in from essential stakeholders, assign tasks and motivate the entire bid team.

Before the meeting date, there are several good practice tasks to you can undertake to make sure everything gets off on a firm footing:

Pre-meeting activities to maximise value on the day

• Produce an agenda with an indication of time allowance per section.
• Ensure you allocate enough time. A thorough tender launch meeting can easily take half a working day (4 hours)
• Carefully consider who needs to be present – too many cooks spoil the broth
• Circulate a copy of the ‘quality questionnaire’ before the meeting:- 500 word summary of the project
  – 500 word summary of the client

• Clearly describe the deliverables of the meeting
• Circulate any key documentation and specifically indicate which documents each team member should read
• Produce a draft programme of what needs to happen during the tender period
• Request that people who cannot attend send a deputy who can brief them after the meeting
• Enlist someone to take minutes at the meeting and ensure dissemination afterwards

Objectives – Your 13-point plan

With the right pre-meeting prep, you’ll be all set to brainstorm solutions and agree the approach. You should aim to achieve the following by the end of the meeting:

1. Identify the individual who is leading the bid submission (Bid Manager)

2. Introduce the bid team to requirements
3. Identity any questions about the tender that can only be answered by the Buyer
4. Discuss tactics for the bid process
5. Agree a timeline to complete the work, including all necessary reviews

6. Allocate resources to individual elements of the response
7. Identify the relative strengths and weaknesses of your bid
8. Ensure everyone is clear on the client ‘problem’ that your bid ‘solution’ will be addressing
9. Agree the operational structure that will be in place to complete the work
10. Identify the Framework Governance Structure for framework bids
11. Identify the person who will complete the skeleton response
12. Choose the case studies that best illustrate your abilities, experience and expertise
13. Agree the strategy by which the bid will result in a win

Need some support with running a bid launch meeting?

Contact Propeller or take a look at our tender launch workshops.

Date: Friday 7^th June 2019
Time: 10am – 3pm
Venue: Airside Suite, IWM Duxford
Ticket Types:  Delegate rate (£175+ VAT)

We’ve created a highly practical learning, knowledge sharing and networking day for anyone  involved with procurement processes, tenders and proposals.

This seminar style event will be an opportunity to update your bid writing skills and get the latest insights from construction industry bid experts.

Benefits of attending:

• IDENTIFY current trends and industry insights
• RECEIVE the latest bid writing tools and presentation tips
• LEARN new strategies for improving your tender success rate
• REVIEW case study examples of good bid practice
• UNDERSTAND Government / regulatory updates and forecasts

Your day will include an opportunity to get up close to some of the world’s most famous aircraft including the Concorde, B-52, Vulcan, Spitfire, Lancaster and Tiger Moth.

Who should attend?

This event will specifically benefit anyone wrestling with procurement processes, tenders and proposals for:

• Building and Construction Services
• Mechanical, Electrical and Gas Servicing
• Road and Rail Infrastructure Development
• Civil Engineering and Utilities Sector
• Facilities, Professional and Engineering Services

Places will be limited to ensure accelerated learning in small interactive groups.

AGENDA

09:30 – Registration open and refreshments served

10:00 – Welcome and scene setting

10:05 – Getting ready to bid
Bid / No bid – assessing the probability of success
Understanding the buyer and their requirements in 2019
Importance of client information

10:45 – Preparing your submissions
Maximising tender launch meetings
Developing a winning bid strategy
Allocating team responsibilities
Scheduling tender deliverables

11:30 – Current trends, industry insights and new bid writing tools
Evidence based processes. Focusing on lean, clear step-by-step process
Balancing infographics with technical diagrams
Increasing use of reality-checked proposals over warm rhetoric
Brace for post-Brexit impact – PCR2015, ESPDs

11:50 – Soft Landings: An alternative method of demonstrating added value
What is a ‘Soft Landing’ strategy?
If you’re not talking about it, you may be missing a vital piece of the bid writing conundrum
Establishing the softer side of construction – more ‘service’ than ‘works’
Simplifying your offering and maximising your appeal

12:30 – Networking Lunch

13:00 – Writing the submission – strategies for success
Ensuring 100% compliance
Tactics for constructing compelling responses
How to create the differentiator in your response

14:00 – Ask the Experts – Q & A Session
Learning from mistakes to improve future submissions

15:00 – Close and tour of the Aircrafts

An opportunity to get up close to over a century of aviation with hundreds of aircraft and objects on display. Stand in awe of the world’s most famous aircraft at this historic museum. Be dwarfed by the B-52 and Concorde; get up close to famous Second World War classics including the Spitfire, Lancaster and Tiger Moth; and stare up into the guts of the Vulcan bomber.

Your expert speakers:

Stuart Parkes – Bid Response Director, Propeller Studios
David Lowe – Public Procurement & Collaborative Contracts Consultant
Andy Hammond – Managing Director, Propeller Studios
Sue Ward – Senior Bid Writer & CITB Construction Ambassador

About Propeller Studios and Bid Buzz

Propeller Studios is the home of experienced bid consultants and construction industry professionals.

Propeller’s Bid Response team are proven bid winners. We provide qualified and experienced support to help you win more contracts. With a wealth of construction sector expertise, plus experience at SME and national contractor level, we craft persuasive winning bids.

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Once every two months subscribers receive something INFORMATIVE and USEFUL,completely free of charge:

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The email or letter you’ve been waiting for finally arrives. You read the first line…

“We regret to inform you that, on this occasion, you have been unsuccessful in this tender.”

Deflation. Despair. What went wrong? Now, the inquest begins.

If this scenario sounds familiar and continues to be played out within your company, we’ve compiled a list of investigative questions.  Working through each question with your bid team could help to diagnose the problem areas, and hopefully prevent another unsuccessful response.

To make the most progress, you must answer honestly!

Did you fully understand the scope of work?

Unsurprisingly, if you fail to comprehend the scope of work set out in the Invitation To Tender, you’ll struggle to build a winning proposal. You must study the scope of work very carefully. If something doesn’t make sense or you need clarification, make sure you revert to the contracting authority and ask for further information. As yourself, “do I fully understand the client’s drivers and requirements”.

Did you provide enough relevant detail or actually answer the question?

Some bidders overdress their responses with irrelevant details, while others don’t offer enough information to fully answer the questions. Assessors want to see precise responses which are to the point and meet the specification criteria. Make sure you understand what the question is specifically looking for. A common mistake is to latch onto a keyword and answer everything you know about that topic, while entirely missing the root of the question.

Did you provide enough convincing evidence and past experience?

Your submissions must be backed up with proof. Evaluators want to see evidence of the quality of your work. Previous successful projects should be the source of your supporting evidence. Case studies, supporting documents, photos, illustrations and testimonials will add weight to your bid. If the tender specification requires a minimum level of expertise or a certain number of years’ experience within a sector, you must demonstrate this to ensure compliance.

Did you conduct a thorough review before submission?

Not having a robust review process can result in your bid being littered with incorrect information, pricing numbers that don’t stack up, spelling mistakes or typos. It’s important that supporting documentation including organisational charts, infographics, CVs, case studies, policies, procedures and methodologies are checked by a fresh set of eyes.

Did you copy and paste from previous tenders?

If you’re simply duplicating content taken from past unsuccessful bids…guess what?  You’ll end up with the same unsuccessful result. If a tender is worth your time and effort, make sure you do it justice by creating fresh content relevant to the specific specification. Copying and pasting old sections can easily lead to entire paragraphs being misplaced or containing erroneous information. Avoid this practice at all costs.

Did you check for basic administrative errors?

Under the category of ‘administrative errors’ common mistakes include: Omitting mandatory documents, failing to sign documents or statements, not answering all the questions, incomplete forms, ignoring word count quotas, disregarding font type / size, format and layout rules. Any administrative aspect which is not adhered to is a potential reason the assessors will use to exclude your bid.

Did you check that your bid is fully compliant?

Contracting authorities closely scrutinise core compliance areas such as health and safety practices, quality management systems, supply chain management, environmental and waste management practices etc. Often there are minimum mandatory levels of accreditation required and examples of good practice should be clearly demonstrated.  Make sure you comply in all mandatory areas before you start compiling your bid response.

Did you provide solid references?

Providing relevant references will establish credibility. But care should be taken in choosing the right referee. Make sure they are recent – within the last two years ideally. References should be for projects similar to those that you are tendering for and they should be for work you are able to showcase in detail should the need arise. A contactable reference is a strong indication of client satisfaction so do ask for permission and inform your contacts they may be approached by the contracting authority.

Did you demonstrate where you add value throughout the bid?  

Every answer in your bid should aim to demonstrate where your company, product or service can add value to the client. Align your answer with key motivators such as efficiency, time saving, risk reduction and of course cost savings.

When evaluating costs, awarding authorities like to see detail and transparency. Your bid should aim to explain all itemised costs explicitly. Overpricing or under-pricing without clear reason or rationale will be red flag to evaluators. It’s important to annotate costs with narrative that demonstrates how your financial offer adds value.

And remember, you can’t win them all!

There will be times when factors out of your control influence the outcome of the tender process. Unfortunately, that’s just a commercial reality. However, if your bid writing process remains rigorous and your commitment to continuous improvement remains steadfast, it will only be a matter of time before you win.

For more information on our services, you can check them out here. We can help you win your next bid.

Infographics, or to give it its full title – information graphics, is seen as a bit of a buzzword and thanks to their widespread distribution through social media channels they are seen as something new. This is far from the truth. Their first documented use was nearly 400 years ago in 1626. In his research about the rotation of the sun, the Rosa Ursina sive Sol, Christoph Scheiner published a series of illustrations. These images, or infographics, demonstrated how it happened. Used as an alternative to writing pages of complex technical copy, his infographics allowed people without a scientific background to understand the process. They have been in use ever since.

Everyday use of Infographics

Data visualisation is the art of presenting complex information quickly and clearly. These images tie into the inbuilt part of our brains that see patterns and trends. An infographic has come to represent a collection of lots of different data visualisations that are all related to the same topic. Weather maps and road signs are both examples of infographics that have been a part of our everyday life for a long time. We may not think of them as such, but they both use symbols to transmit information quickly in a very visual way.

The importance of infographics in bid submissions

The benefits of including data visualisations and infographics in your bid submissions are twofold:

1. Removing the need for several paragraphs of explanatory text when you are limited by page count is vital. By portraying a wealth of information graphically frees up space in your bid, allowing you to include more information overall.
2. Presenting information in a graphical form breaks up pages of text and makes the bid more aesthetically pleasing and appear easier to read. This will mean that your marker looks upon it more favourably.

Below are a series of data visualisation examples that engage the reader, are easy to understand, and build an instant picture of the process you are demonstrating. Furthermore, the person marking the submission doesn’t need to read through a whole page of text explaining the process. Circular charts These demonstrate a continual process of improvement Illustrative graphics These are a very visual way to show the different component parts of a project Linked graphics These can identify the different departments in a chain and where there may be weaknesses in the process. Flow diagrams These show the different stages in a process and highlight areas of difficulty or that need more attention. Maps These demonstrate the geographical locations involved. At Propeller, we specialise in visual communication for pre-qualification and tender submissions – combining images, words, and ideas to convey information to an audience to produce a specific result – creating a winning bid. We can provide you with infographics to insert into your submission, or produce the entire bid. If you would like to see how varied infographics can be, the website Information is Beautiful has some great examples; if you would like talk to someone about how we can help you create an expertly designed bid submission, contact us now on 01462 440077, or via our online enquiry form.