Business advice - development

Supplier Development Programme (SDP)

Our Economic Development Service is working with other local councils to create a Supplier Development Programme (SDP). This aims to address concerns that local Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are missing out on the procurement and tendering processes of public bodies.

Background

A study for the Scottish Executive (Review of Public Procurement in Scotland, April 2006) resulted in a public procurement reform board being set up. Its remit is to make sure that changes in procurement are conveyed and implemented by public sector organisations. Our Corporate Procurement team is implementing these changes.

As well as acting on the recommendations of the report, we surveyed 10,000 firms who expressed an interest in public procurement contracts. The main issues identified were:

  • lack of awareness about what contracts are available and where to find information

  • costs associated with tenders

  • poor understanding of what makes businesses more eligible for consideration

  • lack of know-how in presenting tenders

  • lack of feedback from buying organisations on unsuccessful bids

Our aims

We aim to address these issues through a 2-year pilot programme of information and training events. Specifically, we want to:

Improve awareness of, and access to, relevant and practical information by:  

  • creating a dedicated website

  • producing B-Link, a quarterly newsletter

  • arranging specific information seminars, including ‘meet the buyer’ events

  • publishing information booklets

Improve business capabilities by:

  • providing opportunities to ‘meet the experts’

  • offering specific tailored training to address weaknesses and instil good business practice

  • advising on investment in infrastructure and/or knowledge systems

Make businesses ‘tender ready’ by:

  • offering mentor support and one-to-one knowledge transfer

  • providing coaching on the presentation of tender documents

  • establishing potential sub-contract opportunities

Encourage purchasing organisations to use SMEs by:

  • making the economic case for considering small businesses for public procurement contracts

  • encouraging public sector organisations to implement a code of good practice

  • lowering the barriers to accessing SMEs without lowering standards

  • encouraging buying organisations to use consistent pre-qualification criteria

Outcomes

We expect the following outcomes from the pilot programme:

  • we will have increased awareness and information through the distribution of 10,000 quarterly newsletters and access to the SDP website

  • we will continue to survey our client group to improve our company knowledge base. This will allow us to provide tailored training through existing business support programmes

  • we will invite a wide range of public bodies to meet with local businesses at an annual ‘meet the buyer’ event

  • we will develop role model studies from successful companies, in order to encourage best practice

  • we will run six training workshops events with places for 25 – 40 firms who are tender capable

  • we will lobby the Scottish Executive, buying organisations and academics, in order to highlight the valid case for considering small businesses for procurement opportunities

Useful Links

Contact

For further information contact:
David Kermack
Principal Economic Development Officer
Telephone: 0141 577 3791
Email:
Website: Supplier Development Programme
Website: Procurement Portal



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