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ACROSS THE TRADES Summer 2017
LOVE ME TENDERING
WINNING A TENDER CAN BRING IN THOUSANDS OR EVEN MILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN NEW AND REPEAT BUSINESS BUT
THE PROCESS CAN BE OVERWHELMING AND COMPLEX.
ADELLE KING
ASKED KEITH WHELAN, WHO SPECIALISES IN
GRANTS, TENDERS AND FUNDING CONSULTANCY, TO BREAK DOWN THE PROCESS AND OFFER HIS TIPS FOR SUCCESS.
T
enders can be a rich source
of work for tradies and are
crucial in building a business
and gaining contract work in both
the public and private sectors.
However, submitting a tender can be
a difficult and daunting process for
any contractor, particularly if they
haven’t submitted one before or aren’t
confident in their writing ability.
“The public sector in Australia is
a multi-billion dollar tender market,
which is huge and financially lucrative,
so more building contractors,
electricians and plumbers need to
be looking at submitting tenders for
projects to access this market,” says
The Grants Guy owner Keith Whelan.
Keith has worked across the local
government, university, sporting and
disability sectors in Australia and has
taught tender writing workshops for
ACT Tourism, NSW Business Chamber,
Newcastle City Council, Canberra
Business Council, University of
Adelaide and the University of Sydney.
He says that for builders, electricians
and plumbers looking at submitting a
tender, the first thing they need to do is
work out what their business can offer.
“This means having a business plan,
capital expenditure in order, a budget
and a project plan,” says Keith.
“Tradies know their own product,
their strengths and how to be cost
competitive because they’re already out
in the market competing. From there it’s
basically assessing what you want to
achieve with the tender, the outputs and
outcomes, and then take it step by step.”
There are a number of websites,
such as AusTender, which list tender
TENDERING