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Consortia Development

Do you want to work with others to tender for larger contracts?
Do you see the value in working with others to grow and develop your business?
Do you want to venture into new markets or develop new products or services but need to innovate to do so?
Do you want to reduce costs in your supply chains?
Are you worried about the risks involved for your business but tempted by the opportunities that working with others may offer?
Are there any funding or grants available to you to help your business, social enterprise or third sector group?
How can the Procurement Centre help?

The information provided here aims to kick off the thought-process and encourage businesses, social enterprises and third sector groups to explore the options and what this way of working may offer for the future.

STEP 1

Review your business and identify where you feel you have gaps in skills or knowledge that might be limiting your development. Be clear where you want working with others to take you. Paint a picture in your mind of your ideal partner or partners. What can you offer them and what would you hope that they could offer you?

STEP 2

Good business relationships are the key to success and developing these relationships takes time. Good social relationships and developing your networking skills can open the door. The crucial questions to think about are;

Can you work effectively with your proposed partners;

And

Are the advantages or potential profit to your business worth investing the time and energy to make it happen?

If you are interested in working with others and would like some assistance to find potential partners, then please click here (Takes you to dating service page)

Do you need financial help to explore your options? (Takes you to the Funding Page)

STEP 3

You have identified your partners and you are now in discussion with them. Negotiation is a key skill at this stage as you need to decide the following:-

• The strategic purpose, aims and objectives of working together

• The legal entity which will define your collaboration

• Your expectations

• The day to day operation – how will it all work.

For more information on what legal entity might be right for you and your partners click here.

You must formalise your consortium. One of the main reasons for failure is that alliances haven’t been formalised and have unravelled at a later date, leaving a costly mess and damaged reputations.

The University of Northumbria Law School have developed factsheets for The Procurement Centre, written to provide basic, easy to understand and up to date guidance, to ensure you have enough information to take the next step and obtain legal advice.

Partnerships

Limited Liability Partnerships

Companies

Joint Ventures

Sub contracting

Supply agreements

Distribution and agency agreements

Do you need financial assistance to help you explore your ideas further?

Business Collaboration Networks – North East

These provide businesses with the opportunity to work collaboratively with other businesses to develop and pursue opportunities that they are unwilling to exploit alone.

These opportunities are likely to have positive impacts on the longevity, productivity and turnover of existing businesses. Network participants will usually be small and medium sized although some networks may have more large firm participants than others. Participating businesses must be operating in a priority sector or market or looking to diversify into one.

Contact Business Link for more details - http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/

Futurebuilders investments are available to third sector organisations in England that are delivering or planning to deliver public services and are unable to secure investment from commercial lenders.
http://www.futurebuilders-england.org.uk/

The Consortia Fund offers a combination of loan finance, £50,000 or above, and professional support specifically for consortium groups aiming to work together to win public service contracts.
http://www.futurebuilders-england.org.uk/what-we-offer/products/consortia-fund/

Communitybuilders offers loans, grants and business support to multi-purpose, inclusive, community-led organisations (sometimes known as Community Anchors). There may be scope for smaller organisations to access the fund to explore how they can grow and/or increase their sustainability.

http://www.futurebuilders-england.org.uk/what-we-offer/products/communitybuilders-programme/

How can the Procurement Centre help?

If you are looking for potential partners, you could fill in the Partner Search form outlining what your business does and the skills or knowledge you are looking for from other partners.

This is just an initial step that will save you networking time and effort.

Once you have decided to work together, you could advise the Procurement Centre of the types of contracts you are interested in and via our Business Linking Service, we could link public sector contract opportunities to you. You will then be able to assess how much of a demand there may be for your partnership.

If you decide you would like to begin to tender for opportunities, Shirley Watson, our Business Adviser, can assist you to become “bid ready” as a partnership, alliance or joint venture and can then tender coach on specific opportunities.

Contact Sinéad Moloney for further details on (01670) 534094.

Partnersearch
Name of Company (Will not be published):
Tick Box that describes you:	Sole trader Employ less than 5 Employ 5 – 20 Employ 20-50 Employ 50 – 100 More than 100 staff
What areas of business are you providing?
What would your ideal partner offer you?
Where are you based?
Contact details:

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