Only 10% of Irish SMEs compete for contracts in a public procurement programme worth more than €9 billion each year, but TenderCon Cork, a seminar featuring lessons on ‘tactical tendering’, aims to change all that.

The public procurement budget in Ireland is essentially the largest sales pipeline in the country, yet the vast majority of smaller companies don’t try for a slice of the action. TenderCon Cork, which takes place in UCC’s Western Gateway Building on June 14, is one of a series of events around the country aimed at demystifying the process and demonstrating how to go about winning public contracts.

The event features speakers from some of Ireland’s largest buyers of SME goods and services, as well as small businesses that are successfully winning contracts, and professional advisors on tendering for public contracts.

Among them will be Tony Corrigan, chief executive of TenderScout, who has spent 20 years working with SMEs in procurement. TenderScout is a tech platform that helps firms win more government business by discovering new opportunities and improving their tendering process.

From the buyers’ side, Dermot Callaghan of the Office of Government Procurement, and Sean Bresnan, HSE head of procurement, will explain how it works from their standpoint, including procurement systems design, supplier and contract management, cost savings and procurement legislation.

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Mike McGrath (pictured), who has been part of a European Commission Expert Group for e-Tendering,  will also contribute to the discussion aimed at demystify the art of bidding for public contracts.

The organisers believe the speaker lineup and techniques presented will demonstrate how small businesses can enjoy average win rates of 70%, once they approach tenders in a systematic, process-driven way.

Corrigan says the event will dispel some of the popular myths about tenders and empower SMEs, so they understand that they can win state contracts, and also how to go about it. “It’s a combination of telling the right story and understanding the buyers’ requirements that makes winning a strong possibility,” he said.

Tickets for the 8am to midday event are free but delegates must register online. The venue is the Western Gateway Building, UCC,.