The Pros and Cons of Tendering

During the last twenty years of my tendering career, I have been approached by a large number of organizations who are looking for help responding to tenders advertised in the daily newspapers. Many of these are new subscribers to tender notification services such as Tender Service Pakistan. The prospect of a continuous flow of potentially lucrative contracts is very seductive, yet the reality can be very different, particularly for those who haven't yet considered the role that tenders advertised in the daily newspapers will play in their business development strategy.

Most tenders advertised in the daily newspapers are called by government or semi-government organizations. Government departments purchase billions of rupees worth of products, services and works each year. PPRA procurement guidelines are required for the proper procurement of these items. That's a pretty rewarding business, but getting a share of it requires some effort.

Responding to tenders advertised in the daily newspapers isn't called 'competitive tendering' for nothing. It's a bit like responding to job advertisements listed in the major newspapers. A number of other contractors, perhaps equally qualified, have also seen the opportunity and could easily put their hands in the pot of honey.

The odds of being selected for a particular tender can be slim indeed.

Another limitation is that, in tendering, the purchasing departments know what they want. By the time an opportunity goes to tender, the purchasing departments have already decided what they want and the suppliers have a narrow set of criteria within which they must deliver the goods. That's the bad news.

The good news is that government tenders can be an extremely good source of new opportunities, provided you are choosy and selective about what you respond to and are prepared to invest time and effort in setting up a strategy in your tendering efforts to accomplish your goals.

The Slap That Changed My Life

"It takes twenty years of hard work to become an overnight success". Well I think that true. I was a tall lean lad with a broken front tooth in my youth. No body cared about me. I used to wander in the woodland near our house for hours with out any companion, alone on the path of unknown destiny, alone on a journey without destination.

I sat at the back bench in my class, avoiding the stares of my teacher. I used to put a hand on my mouth while laughing to cover the ugliness of my broken black tooth. For me life was a meaning less struggle without any productive output. Dawn defused into days and evenings converted into night in an endless circle.

One day our teacher cracked a joke, every body was laughing, I was giggling too but covered my mouth to conceal my broken tooth. My teacher was watching this; he came near me and slapped me on my face. Everyone in the class was stunned, I froze with fear, I did not even knew my fault. Then he spoke "why you always cover your face when you laugh, what are you afraid of, your classmates, they all have a complex or another. Don't be afraid of the people. Face the world head-on and it will give you the way... the way to success.

Now I am the editor in chief of three monthly magazines and Pakistan's largest tender providing web site. When I was honored with national performance award for my contributions in tendering, I remembered the slap of me teacher and my eyes became moist. It was the slap that changed my destiny.