Bid packages assembled by hand for every bid
The same documents, gathered again, for every bid.
Every bid needs the same set of documents, and every time somebody gathers them from scratch.
Not every business has this problem, and some should leave it alone.
Most of these can be handled better. Whether it's worth doing is a separate question. What follows is one common form of the problem, described in general terms, because your version will differ. These are possible challenges, not a description of your business, and some should be left exactly as they are. If it sounds like your week, that's worth a conversation.
Sound familiar?
- Each bid means hunting for the same certificates and forms.
- A bid went in with an out-of-date document.
- Only one person knows what each buyer asks for.
- The deadline is close, and the package is still being put together.
What it looks like
A bid asks for the price, and also for a stack of supporting documents: registrations, insurance certificates, references, past work, signed forms. Most of them are the same from bid to bid.
Somebody gathers them each time: finding the latest version, checking the dates, filling in the forms, and putting the package together before the deadline.
What it costs
The same gathering, every bid. The price is the new work. The package mostly is not.
An old document can go in. When the latest version is not kept in one place, the one that is found may be out of date.
Deadlines squeeze the checking. The package gets assembled late, and the last look is rushed.
Where it goes wrong
- There is no current library. Documents are scattered across folders and inboxes.
- Dates are not tracked. An expired certificate looks just like a current one.
- Each buyer's list is remembered. What each one asks for lives with one person.
- Forms are filled by hand each time. The same company details, typed again.
What a better version looks like
The standard documents live in one place, each with its end date, and the list flags anything expiring before the next bid. Each buyer's requirements are kept as a checklist. A package starts from the checklist and the current library, and a person fills in what is new.
What still needs a person
A person reads each bid's requirements, decides whether to bid, and sets the price. A person checks the finished package before it goes.
Questions worth asking about your own operation
- Which documents go into almost every bid?
- Where is the latest version of each one?
- What does each buyer ask for, and where is that written down?
- Has a bid ever gone in with an old document?
If this sounds familiar
Bring me the version you actually have. I'll learn how the process really works before I suggest anything. If it isn't worth changing, or isn't a fit for me, I'll say so. Talk through a problem