Case study 1

A large IT company in the United Kingdom was examining a major UK Government procurement. They had to decide whether to lodge an expression of interest with a view to being selected to receive an Invitation to Tender, and then ultimately if they would submit a formal bid. The company had much experience of dealing with the UK Government but lacked the business knowledge in the department concerned to make a fully informed decision on whether to qualify in or out. Border Management Solutions were contracted to assist them in reaching this decision.

The tasks undertaken by Border Management Solutions included:

• A presentation on the Government strategy;
• A presentation on the requirement and what was driving it;
• Research into potential references;
• Compilation of references and presentation of their relevance;
• Assessment of potential designs and their impact on business processes and ability to meet business requirements;
• Quality assurance
• Risk assessment.

The Consultant from Border Management Solutions quickly became embedded into the bid team and was accepted as a colleague by the other members and by the Bid Director. This excellent working relationship enabled a frank exchange of views on the potential level of risk involved in the project, balanced against the potential cost of mounting a full bid. As a result, the Board considered that other commitments for its resources increased to an unacceptable level the risk of taking on another major bid, and therefore decided not to proceed.

case study 2 | case study 3