A tenderpreneur is a special kind of entrepreneur who deals exclusively or mostly in income generation opportunities that are associated with government tenders. They might also pursue tenders issues by private institutions, but it’s very rare for private entities to truly open up their system of soliciting contractors to come in and complete some big money projects for them.
Many may argue that the same is pretty much true for government departments, that being how the system of tendering isn’t truly opened, which is why there’s a lot of negativity associated with being a tenderpreneur. It’s also why I decided to actually write about it and why it’s not necessarily a bad thing.
So here’s why…
It helps solve the experience riddle
Government tenders probably also require of you to demonstrate that you have experience in delivering the job that you’re applying to complete, but that’s something which can easily be solved by listing consultants as part of your prospective team when you’re applying for the contract. This is meant to be one of the good sides of what the tendering process is all about, but I’m not saying it’s not open to abuse.
There are many other things to consider as well, such as the fact that usually a lot of bribery is involved in the awarding of tenders, albeit not always in an open and direct way.
A great opportunity to cut your teeth
Following on from the consideration of being able to get a contract without having much experience, if you actually manage to land a tender then it makes for a great opportunity to cut your teeth, get a start and gain the experience you’ll need to keep doing the same job or similar jobs going forward. Certain things require you to be involved physically in the business world for you to learn what it’s all about.
A great opportunity to build up your portfolio
Look, even if potential clients in the private sector look upon your completed jobs that were acquired through government tenders with a bit of doubt as to how you landed those projects (connections), if you do a stellar job than ultimately that’s what matters above everything else. It’s a great opportunity for you to build up an impressive portfolio which can be verified in perhaps the most solid of ways – having the name of your company listed in a public ledger of contractors.
So if you land a tender, just make sure to deliver a great job, in spite of how things generally seem to work in the world of tenders.
You’re almost guaranteed work and income
People who have some experience in this world will tell you that the hardest tender to land is your first one. However, once you’ve landed that first one then even if you didn’t necessarily knock it out of the park, you can generally brace yourself for a torrent of opportunities to come further. Sometimes it’s just a matter of other tenderpreneurs coming to you seeking to make some kind of subcontracting arrangement.