A commonly found acronym in the world of public sector tendering is OJEU, and it stands for the Official Journal of the European Union. Formerly the Official Journal of the European Community, the OJEU is the international publication in which all tenders that are valued above a certain financial threshold, according to EU legislation, must be published. 

The legislation which dictates the threshold, and therefore which tenders must be listed in the OJEU, applies to local authorities, NHS trusts, Central Government Departments and Education Establishments across the EU. The legislation also covers any organisations or projects which receive public money. 

The OJEU is published in the 22 official languages of the EU member states, and also Irish when required. The Journal has been updated and released every working day since the Treaty of Nice came into being on the 1st February 2003. 

The Journal itself comprises of 3 distinct parts, the L Series, C Series and the supplementary S Series. The L Series contains the EU legislation and the C Series contains information and notices including judgements from the European Courts, expressions of interest in EU programmes and projects and public contracts for food aid.

Perhaps of most interest in this context is the S Series, which contains invitations to tender. This section of the OJEU sees around 160,000 invitations published per year in areas such as:

• Contracts for work, supplies and services from the public sector
• Contracts from EU institutions
• Contracts from utilities companies
• European Development fund contracts
• Phare, Tacis and other contracts from Central / Eastern Europe
• European Economic Area contracts
• Government Procurement Agreement
• Notices concerning European economic interest groups
• Public contracts for air services

The OJEU is published by the Publications Office of the European Union which is based in Luxembourg, however the name 'journal' is probably a little misleading about the nature of the publication. All of the tenders released in the OJEU can now be fully accessed online through tender portals and tender alert services. 

eTendering and eProcurement are fast becoming the front line of public sector tendering practice.  Purchasers are moving more and more towards online solutions for releasing tenders and seeking submissions from contractors so it's important that, if you are a contractor, you get to grips with eTendering and eProcurement in order to better your chances when tendering. 

Why are we moving more towards an online culture when tendering? There are a number of reasons for this, which make a great deal of sense no matter which side of the tendering process you are sitting on. 

Firstly, like most web-based endeavours, there is the convenience and speed aspect. As a contractor you no longer have to spend your life searching through vast piles of newspapers or tackling the printed version of the Official Journal of the European Union, which is quite a hefty volume to say the least. Tenders online mean that you are never more than a few clicks away from an easily accessible stockpile of all of the latest tenders, and that stockpile will be easy to filter through using keywords, CPV codes or industry and country specific filters. If you can spend less time trawling through the tender pile in the first place, and more time analysing only the most relevant ones to see which you should apply for, your business can only grow in strength where tendering is concerned. 

Another reason that eTendering and eProcurement is proving a firm favourite is the fast method of back and forth communication that it offers. You can register your interest in a tender online and be sent the Pre-Qualification Questionnaire electronically in a fraction of the time that it would take for those things to be mailed or even faxed back and forth. The time spent administrating the whole process is drastically cut, leaving the contractor and the vast majority of local authorities that use eTendering and eProcurement, more time to get on with running their businesses and moving ahead with projects. 

Tendering online is also thought to present a fairer and more transparent system all round. You can start with the fact that the information is readily available to anyone who takes an interest and they should be able to access the information at the touch of a button, opening up the stakes to a lot of companies who may have struggled with the time to tender previously. Perhaps more importantly, eTendering leaves a digital audit trail from the publication of a tender, right through to the contract award. It is much more difficult to hide unjust behaviour when the process is out there for all to see. 

While eTendering and eProcurement is nothing new, it is becoming more and more standard in the practice of tendering. As with all things on the internet, there is also a great amount of space for development. The future of tendering is likely to be online so it might just pay off to get to grips with using the internet to your advantage now.

• Don’t compromise on quality in your tender proposal but DO outline how your business will ensure that costs are kept low.
• As public sector projects often use a point-scoring system to offer contracts to traders it is safe to say that more weight will now be placed on suppliers who outline how their business will provide measures to cut costs.
• Bear in mind that the buyer will not necessarily accept the lowest quoted tender and will look closely at issues such as sustainability and overall value for money.
• Include examples in your proposal of how your company has managed to successfully cut costs in previous contracts.
• If you are asked to complete a Pre-qualification Questionnaire (PQQ) which requires you to provide financial information, previous experience and references don’t be afraid to approach the buyer if you are unsure about what to provide in the PQQ. Most tender notices will provide contact information.
• Smaller companies should not be deterred from tendering for OJEU contracts as subcontracting opportunities can arise from larger companies that win public sector contracts. Take advantage of government spending transparency and approach larger companies that have recently won public sector contracts.
• Smaller companies could also consider joining forces with another business in order to procure big contracts. 
• Ensure that your business is financially secure enough and prepared for the time it takes to tender public sector contracts. There are a lot of bureaucratic hoops to jump through and even if your tender is successful the timescale will probably be longer than private sector work 

Organising a tender bid can be a very time consuming task and the importance of effective bid management can not be under estimated when your company is faced with a pressing deadline and is under pressure to compile a winning tender proposal.

Be careful not to leave the task of bid writing to one member of staff as this really does have to be a team effort, with each team member contributing their area of expertise to the tender bid. Assigning a specific role early on to each member of the team ensures that the workload is shared and as staff will be working simultaneously, this will significantly reduce the length of time it takes to produce the final document and ensure that the tender bid is brought together well in advance of the bid deadline.

As each writer will probably work in a different department or area of the business, coherent writing may well become a problem with the tender bid, so to avoid contradictions or ambiguity it is essential that every writer is briefed on what the main objective of the tender is and how the proposal will be structured.

To ensure quality and consistency in your company’s tender proposal, it is important to assign a team leader or bid manager who will be responsible for motivating and managing the other team members and ensure that everyone delivers on their commitments.

Remember that the key to completing successful tender bids is good communication so make sure that contact information between writers is shared and encourage team members to liaise with the each other during the process of completing tender bids.

As well as there being a range of advisable actions which constitute good tendering practice, there are also a number of things which aspiring tender applicants should look to avoid at all costs. Here they are:

1) Bad spelling. Spelling words poorly immediately makes you look like a sub-standard applicant. If you’re misspelling words, tender sellers might wonder what other basic errors you are making. Bad spelling, poor grammar and misuse of punctuation makes you look immediately unprofessional and chaotic.

2) Applying for tenders you cannot definitely fulfill. Don’t base anything on chance. If you only have an 80% chance of being able to fulfill a certain tender, it is best to not apply at all. Only apply if you are 100% sure you can fulfill it. Otherwise, you’re not only wasting everyone’s time but you also earn a bad reputation. As well as in terms of the practical and economic likelihood, don’t apply unless you are sure you have the commitment, enthusiasm and availability to fulfill the whole process.

3) Exaggerating. The chances are, if you exaggerate or lie outright, you’re going to get found out. It doesn’t help either party and it hurts your reputation. Remain factual and truthful at all times.

4) Applying without research. It’s crucial that you know what you’re getting into. The tender seller expects it too. If you don’t research thoroughly before applying, you are probably going to be in for some surprises – some of which will not be to your liking.

Tenders contracts are binding, so you can end up in big trouble if you don’t conduct yourself properly. Avoid the above 4 things before anything else. Repeatedly unsuccessful tender applicants usually, inadvertently or otherwise, commit one of them. The best thing to do is check everything through beforehand and always ask yourself if anything on your application could look bad in the eyes of the other parties.

1)   Fill in every form properly. Make sure that every bit of information is accurate, and that the whole document is presentable and clearly understandable. Check your forms through at least twice over before you send them off. First impressions are important everywhere, especially in the business world, and an ambiguous or error-strewn form creates an immediately negative impression.

2)   Get your forms in on time, and as early as possible. Don’t rush them, but don’t delay them behind other projects. Time is money, and successful tenders are always ahead of the clock. Deals can be concluded quickly, and throughout the business world sellers often show an inclination towards buyers who have the courtesy to abide by the schedule.

• Give yourself plenty of time to complete a PQQ as gathering the required paperwork alone can be a very time consuming task

• Always read and re-read the instructions carefully as even minor errors will probably result in your application reaching the rejection pile

• A point scoring system is often used by awarding authorities when assessing PQQ’s so make sure you are aware of what criteria is weighted highly and pay careful consideration to answers that fall under that category  

• If possible, request an electronic version of the PQQ as this will look more professional than a hand written copy

• Presentation is important and is often judged as the mark of a professional company so present your information clearly, providing page numbers and an index to requested documentation will make your information easy to navigate and help to support your answers effectively 

• Answer all of the questions comprehensively. This seems obvious but many people make the mistake of stapling in documents and asking the Procurement Officer to ‘refer to attached’ which is counter-productive as they will not have time to read through lists or catalogues

• Think carefully about your case studies and references and make sure that they relate to, and support, the tender specifications or key requirements

• Remember to inform referees that you are using them in your PQQ so that they are prepared to be contacted and ready to send out a positive message about your company

• Awarding organisations will normally ask for documentation to establish your company’s legitimacy so make sure that Insurance Certificates and any financial information you are asked to provide is accurate and up to date

• If in any doubt about how to answer the questions in the PQQ, get in contact with a representative of the awarding authority and ask for clarification

Looking for a comprehensive guide on tendering? Below are a list of useful resources tailored to provide information and guidance to those who wish to improve their chances of winning tenders or understanding public procurement.

Bids, Tenders and Proposals by Harold Lewis is a step-by-step guide that explores the whole process of tendering. The book contains easy to follow check lists and examples of successful tender proposals. The book is driven towards creating successful tender bids and is an extremely useful tool for those preparing to bid for tender contracts in the public and private sector

The Bid Manager's Handbook by David Nickson advises on the the process of bid management. The book is both practical and comprehensive and focuses on the process of preparing for, and delivering, successful tender bids.

Improve your chances of creating a winning tender proposal with Tom Sant’s Persuasive Business Proposals; a book that thoroughly investigates every aspect of writing compelling proposals for tender bids, grants and funding.

Public Procurement in the EU by Peter Trepte is an in depth resource that focuses on public procurement law and specifically how European Court legislation affects both domestic and global procurement practices and procedures. This book provides a comprehensive guide to how tendering is legally governed and regulated.

Aimed at professionals in the construction industry, The Aqua Group Guide to Procurement, Tendering and Contract Administration is an up-to-date resource explaining in understandable terms procurement methods, tendering procedures and contract administration. The book is an amalgamation of three separate texts and consolidates this information into clear, self-contained chapters making it an essential read for anyone who works within or alongside construction projects.

The above selection makes a solid base for anyone looking to read more about tenders, or anyone trying to find ways to improve their approach to tendering in the hope of winning more tender bids.