How to win a tender on the risk management part: 5 lessons from practice

My name is Aurelia Bejenari, Risk Management Consultant at RiskChallenger, and over the past few months I have supported several organizations with tender processes, both in the Netherlands and Belgium. Quite intensive, I must say. Lots of deadlines, lots of stakeholders, late nights working, far too much coffee, and deliberations about what to include and exclude from the document. If, like me, you want everything to be perfect down to the last detail, it can be quite a challenge. Now that things have calmed down a bit, I thought it would be a good idea to share my most important lessons.

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You don't win a tender with content alone

Content is important. Of course. A sharp risk analysis, realistic planning, and concrete control measures form the basis. But what I've learned is that content alone doesn't win a tender.

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You have to constantly switch between:

• what we consider to be strong in terms of content,
• what the contracting party really considers important,
• and how you can convincingly bridge that gap.

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That requires more than just professional knowledge. It requires strategic thinking. What is the question behind the question? What is the client’s real concern? And perhaps even more importantly: what do they need to read to gain confidence in our approach?

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A tender is therefore not just about showing what you can do, but also about showing why you are the right party for the job. That means: positioning yourself sharply, daring to make choices, and being explicit.

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The perfectionist dilemma: learning to deal with uncertainty

I have always been the type of person who wants to do things well. Not just adequately. Not just “good enough.” When you work in risk management, that instinct is not a bad trait. Details are important. Thoroughness is important.

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But when it comes to tenders, you quickly run into a fundamental problem: you can't be perfect about things you don't know yet.

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When you're writing a tender, so much is still unclear. You're working with limited information. The context is still in flux. You don't know exactly what the project will look like in practice. You don't have a complete understanding of all the risks you'll encounter. And yet you have to come across as convincing, as if you have everything under control. That's difficult if you're used to researching everything down to the last detail before you write anything. I've had to learn that “finished” in a tender doesn't mean that everything has been determined in detail. It means that you radiate sufficient confidence. That you show that you understand where the uncertainties lie and how you deal with them professionally.

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The balance between ambition and realism

A tender requires ambition. You want to show what is possible. That you think ahead. That you offer added value. At the same time, what you write down must be feasible. Not only in theory, but also in terms of capacity, planning, and practice.

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Because if you win that tender with an ambitious story that you cannot deliver in practice, you have not really done anyone any favors. Not the customer, not your team, and not yourself either.

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What does work is to be realistic about your approach and capacity, but ambitious about the impact and results. Describe a feasible plan with concrete steps, but show how that approach will lead to maximum value for the client.

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Keep an eye on the costs

Whether we like it or not, a bid is always assessed in relation to the price. You can have the best approach and the strongest team, but if your price is not competitive, you will often not get through.

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This means that you not only have to think about what you want to offer, but also about what it will cost and how that compares to what others are likely to bid.

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It is tempting to dip into your risk reserve to make your price more competitive. But be careful! If you do that, you will no longer have a buffer if unexpected things happen, and they almost always do. An overly tight risk reserve means that you will have to explain cost overruns later, or absorb the costs yourself.

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Risk allocation: what we do and do not accept

Risks must not only be identified, but also allocated to the party that is best able to bear responsibility for them.

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In practice, you often see the classic game: the client wants to place as many risks as possible with the contractor, and the contractor tries to push them back as much as possible. Everyone prefers to place the responsibility for uncertainties with the other party.

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But you really need to be careful here. The question you need to ask yourself for every risk is: who is best placed to influence or control this risk? Because if you accept risks over which you have little or no influence, you put yourself in an impossible position.

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As far as I'm concerned, the common thread in all my lessons is actually very simple: be strategic, be realistic, and be clear about what you will and will not do. Above all, show that you really understand the client, that you know what is involved in the execution, and that you will handle it professionally and reliably.

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And don't forget: go in with a winner's mentality. Not arrogant, but with the confidence that you can and want to win this assignment. That shines through in everything you write. If you're not convinced that you're the right party, why should the client be?

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At RiskChallenger, we help organizations that want to maximize their tender opportunities in the area of risk management. With our TenderSupport service, you have an experienced sparring partner who has applied all these lessons in practice. Winning the tender? Then we will immediately work with you to ensure that RiskChallenger delivers the promised added value during the project for you and your client! Here's to success!