Working with industry and others

When wokring with, for, and alongisde others, there are numerous factors to considers as well as capabilities to demonstrate. Presenting your business in the right way and highlighting key information may be the deciding factor between you or your competitor winning the next project. 

Answering YES to the next 3 questions and knowing what to do with the information may be the key to increasing your chances of winning work!

List your networks

1. Are you part of a network or cluster that work together or jointly bid on projects? 

This is important information to display and convey to the major project supply chain, letting them know that you can and are will to collaborate with others can improve your chances of winning work! This information makes a subcontractor valuable on a large project. If you have the capability to partly service the project's needs it is possible to award the work to you and use other subcontractors to complete the areas you are unable to service. With knowledge of your prior work with other companies, the project planners can be confident in your ability to collaborate. Alternatively, working as a consortium will improve your chances of winning work as you will be able to offer the project a complete package solution, with the capability to complete the whole project. 

 Shaking hands with your industry!

2. Are you a member of an industry association or group?

If not, join one now! Being a part of an association or group implies that you stay up to date with developments and additional industry information that outsiders may be missing. It also suggests that you're receiving continual professional development and are aware of trends within the industry and surrounding areas. Displaying this as part of your tender applications will give you a competitive edge as you will convey your willingness to learn and thorough industry knowledge and understanding of current and upcoming projects. 

Corporate social responsibility 

3. Is your business giving something back to the community? 

Major projects and Tier 1 companies spend millions on giving portions of their profits back to the community. This tends to be particularly important for Government tenders because as a community organisation their services are focused on supporting the community. When submitting a tender application it is important to include what your business does to give back to the community, especially if you're applying for a Government project or to a company with high corporate social responsibility expectations.  

Possible efforts include:

• Investing in community projects 
• Implementing environmentally friendly practices 
• Applying a code of ethics to your business operations
• Sponsoring local sporting teams or community groups 
• Helping local schools or charities 
• Offering work experience to students 

Update your capability statement to ensure it includes your answers to the questions above to start increasing your chances of winning work. After you've completed your capability statement use the checklist below to ensure you have included everything you need in order to deliver a high impact business capability statement!