Most businesses talk to their incumbent vendor, get a price or two, and call that a market check. It isn't. A properly run sourcing process makes the market compete on ideas, approach and price - and surfaces options you didn't know existed.
Sound familiar?
A major contract coming to an end
Managed services, telco, a core platform - and a decision to make.
Only ever compared one or two quotes
The incumbent, plus a price to keep them honest.
Governance requires a tender
Your board, funders or policies expect a formal process.
Responses that are hard to compare
Different scopes, different pricing models, similar promises.
Nobody in-house has run one recently
Technology tenders happen once every few years.
A decision too big to get wrong
Years of cost and service riding on one choice.
What you get
This isn't just for large procurement exercises. Mid-market businesses and NFPs often go to market for technology services once every few years - without the experience to run it well. That's where an outside perspective pays for itself - not just in price, but in what you actually end up with.
Having written bids from the vendor side, I know exactly how responses are constructed to look compelling while leaving the real commitments vague. I help you design a process that gets past the pitch.
How it works
01
Define what you actually need
The business outcomes, constraints and must-haves - before anyone talks to a vendor.
02
Design the process
The right approach for the decision, with evaluation criteria agreed upfront.
03
Engage the market
Briefings and clarifications, so vendors respond to the same, clear brief.
04
Evaluate and shortlist
Comparing responses like for like, and testing the commitments behind them.
05
Negotiate and contract
Support through negotiation, so what's promised ends up in the contract.
Why me
For years I was on the other side of these processes - writing proposals, building pricing and structuring the agreements. I know which questions get real answers, and which get marketing.
I built and led a presales team, and wrote winning tenders across mining, government, retail and defence - including government panel submissions in several states.
I also spent six years running infrastructure for a large NFP, through the merger of several organisations - so I understand the governance and funding realities that shape decisions in that sector.
Common questions
Not necessarily. The process is scaled to the decision - a lighter approach for smaller choices, a fuller one when the stakes are high.
I design and run it alongside you. The decision is always yours - my job is to make sure it's an informed one.
No. A good process is fair to everyone, including the incumbent - they compete on the same brief as everyone else.
No. I don't have commercial relationships with any vendor, and I don't take referral fees.
Yes - see Vendor & MSP Evaluation.
Start here
A no-charge conversation about the decision and the right process for it.