any freelancers bidding for govt/public type work? need some tea and sympathy in the face of fecking bureaucracy

[hatwoman]

aaarrrrgh. part of the reason I went freelance was to escape shit, as it were, and focus on substance. spent this morning wading through some tender documents for an EU project and it just makes me want to weep. the work involved in putting a bid together would be phenomenal (and, of course, unpaid) - even if I did it through a partnership I sometimes work with/for. and when you cut through all the shite it's a great research project that I'd love to do - but the requirements are so fecking onerous I'm just not sure I have the energy for it. it's all so dispiriting

ok. random rant over. just wondered if anyone else did similar work/bids

I write bids and complete tenders for a company.

Some are OK. Some are bloody ridiculous. I can't do the costings so tend to do the pre-costing stage. And as you say the work involved for something that might go no further is ridiculous. I'm currently self-employed (might change to employed) so it costs the company a bit as well.

Oh, Lord. Used to do a bit of work on EU bids for a university. They're the seventh circle of hell.

I had to open FOUR documents before I found something taht actually explained what the work comprised.

I'm reading the Q&As and it's pythonesque. Once they've paid out to design the processes by which they commission research to inform the actual Stuff they're meant to do...they'll get close to doing the Stuff and realise there's no money left...

Ah, fond memories...

sorry but have tp share this with someone.

there's a sheet of questions, submitted by potential bidders. Here's my favourite - so good it's worth typing out.

Will you be awarding contracts to more than one organisation?

As stated in section 2 of Annex A ? Tender Specifications at least three (3) and maximum five (5) multiple framework service contracts per Lot in cascading and descending order will be awarded for the provision of the services of Lot 1-30 ? as specified in Annex A.1 Technical Specification, provided that there is a sufficient number of economic operators that satisfy the selection criteria or a sufficient numer of admissible tenders which meet the award criteria.

so, that'll be "yes" then.

My eyes are bleeding.

Do you think the people who write this stuff can have normal conversations?

you mean people write this? . I couldn't decide if it was monkeys or robots...

I hate the statements which then have a blank space next to them for an answer. But they haven't asked anything they've just stated something.

Oh Christ yes hatwoman

I have almost stopped tendering for anything.

Sad thing is that I cannot see how it benefits "the public purse".

On either side of the equation, it does not seem to be efficient. For example, I was recently part of a bid for a contract which undoubtedly we could deliver. There was a delay in the process because there were four times as many tenders as expected. So... loads of people submitting tenders, lots of management time in assessing the tenders. And in this particular case the contract was awarded to the same company as previously.

There has to be a better way than that. It was crap for the existing provider , the other tenderers (who had not hope of getting a contract) and the commissioners who had more to deal with than they expected.

an update: I decided in the end not to bid for it however I was amused yesterday to get an email from them (I love this...). On the tender documents there was an email address for potential bidder to submit questions - there was a deadline to submit them by, and a deadline by which they would reply (both, obviously ahead of the deadline for submitting bids). Anyway I sent off acouple of questions, within the timeframe. and yesterday (about 8-weeks after their own deadline for replying; 4 weeks after the deadline for submitting bids; 6 weeks after the whole thing had removed itself from my consciousness) I got a reply to my queries. on the bottom it said "If this information would have affected your decision concerning submision of a bid please let us know by return". Part of me just wants to say yes, in order to see what bureaucratic mightmare that would unleash.

Do it. And keep us updated. :-)