Absolutely agree! ‘Positioning’ for negotiations begins the moment initial contact is made, in whatever manner (phone, website etc.), by whomever (rarely the eventual negotiator). Policies and guidelines for ‘managed communications’ with (potential) suppliers are critical.
Response from reader on LinkedIn to the question “The outcome of your negotiations are determined long before you come to the table. Do you agree or disagree?“
For the business warriors out there I am certain that you are at least familiar with the book The Art of War.
Of the many great insights that have been provided by Sun Tzu, one in particular has always stood out for me. I am of course referring to the statement that “Every battle is won before it is fought!”
It is a powerful observation to be certain. In fact a recent article in Roz Usheroff’s The Remarkable Leader blog regarding the negotiation process, brought it to mind in the context of an interview I did with government contracting expert Judy Bradt.
The interview, which is available on YouTube through the link below, focused on the assertion by industry experts that 90% of all government contract winners are determined before an RFP is actually issued. You can immediately see the parallel with the Sun Tzu axiom.
Click image above to watch interview.
And if as the LinkedIn reader by way of her comment contends, Positioning’ for negotiations begins the moment initial contact is made, is the reliance on an electronic bidding or tendering platform in terms of facilitating the initial contact with a buyer, a critical mistake that the majority of vendors seem to make?
Or to put it another way, if you as a vendor are only hearing about an opportunity when you receive an electronic notification by way of a tendering platform such as the Canadian Government’s buyandsell.gc.ca website or PEPPOL in Europe, is there any point in responding to a bid request?
It is a fair question, the answer to which seems to be overlooked in the features, functions, benefits rhetoric of most tendering platforms.
What are your thoughts . . . are tendering or electronic bid platforms an exercise in futility for most vendors. If yes or no, please tell us why.
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Procurement Insights 
Market Dojo eSourcing
October 31, 2013
Hmm, interesting debate! As a provider of an electronic bidding platform we do have a biased view, although I can understand the reasoning behind the topic. We’ve certainly been involved in our fair share of eRFPs and would readily agree we had little chance of winning. That said, we’ve been involved in an even greater number email-based RFPs, paper-based RFPs and face-to-face meetings which have met the same outcome. Therefore I wouldn’t say it is to do with the medium, but more the people running it and how committed they are.
Sales conversion rates in B2B opportunities are inherently low. It would be fair to say that on average the majority of such opportunities are futile, again nothing to do with the medium of electronic bidding, but to do with market forces (competition, innovation, reputation etc.) and internal politics that can cause a deal to be recinded. Some you win, the majority you don’t. The key is in picking your battles. It’s a bit like dating really!
Public sector do a lot of tendering via electronic bidding. They must award a contract at the end of it, and so it is fair to say there is a genuine opportunity. However, there may be only one winner, such is life.
piblogger
October 31, 2013
It is great to hear the viewpoints from all sides of the debate . . . what were your thoughts regarding the video interviews – one with both Judy Bradt and the other with Al Gordon (who was the former senior aide to Governor Cuomo whose comments started the debate)?
Bonfire (@gobonfire)
November 8, 2013
I’m not sure if the bidding platforms are solely to blame here. In my opinion the evaluation side of the procurement process could use a refresh from the status-quo. If a vendor has (or knows they can get) access to a clear and transparent evaluation process they would probably be more likely to bid with confidence.
Great interview with Judy by the way.