Public Procurement and Property

Top tips on entering the GO Awards Scotland

August 5, 2022 by Melissa Reilly No Comments | Category Best practice, GO Awards Scotland

Top tips on entering the 2022/23 GO Awards Scotland!

The GO Awards are a unique opportunity to showcase the Power of Procurement. The innovations, initiatives and achievements of organisations that are leading the way for public procurement in Scotland. This year, four new award categories have been added to reflect the diversity of procurement across Scotland’s public sector. The awards are open to public, private and third sector organisations.

Nick Ford, Director of Scottish Procurement and Property, is one of the award Judges. Watch the short video below to hear what Nick’s Top Tips are for writing a winning award application, and why it’s important to step back and take time to celebrate the best in public procurement. Transcript of video available below.

Celebrate your success and enter the GO Awards to ensure your Power of Procurement story is told!

This year’s entry deadline is 5pm on Tuesday 6 September.

Register to enter today to receive the brand new, exclusive entry kit with top tips, key dates and all the info you need to begin your GO Awards submission!

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For further information on public procurement in Scotland please visit www.gov.scot/procurement

Please email enquiries to scottishprocurement@gov.scot

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Dual-speaker Transcript

Speaker 1 – Eddie Regan, Senior Procurement Consultant, BIP Solutions and Go Awards Judging Panel Member
Speaker 2 – Nick Ford, Director of Scottish Procurement and Property

Speaker 1
Nick, this year we celebrate the 20th anniversary of the GO Awards. The Scottish Government and yourself have been hugely supportive of the GO Awards Scotland. How important do you think it is to celebrate the best of public procurement?

Speaker 2
I think It’s really important Eddie, the people in public sector work extremely hard on really complex, really challenging items. When I think about public procurement, it touches every walk of life really, across the breadth and depth of Scotland. So hugely challenging, hugely complex. So I think it’s really important that we now and again, find time to just take stock, to step back and celebrate successes.

Speaker 2
Look at the great work, really great work that public procurement delivers across Scotland. And I think the GO Awards provides a fantastic opportunity to do that. I think that the other part, just to finish on, and maybe something we can pick up later and build on – the fantastic examples. So how can we spread the learning, the case studies, the examples so we can really maximize the impact of them and be really kind of inspiring to all public procurement professionals.

Speaker 1
I agree with you totally in that respect. I think it is important that we look more at how we deal with case studies because there are some fantastic things out there, there’s no doubt about it. We’ve absolutely seen, some excellent increase over the years but how important do you think it is that people realise you don’t have to be the major organisations to have a chance of success at the awards?

Speaker 2
Yeah, mighty things do happen don’t they and small, they do try and get many cases on this. I don’t know the exact numbers to be fair and maybe you do, but I would think small organisations have won as many as the large ones. And that’s one of the great things I think about Scottish Public Procurement is that diversity, whether it’s from Stornoway or down to Dumfriesshire somewhere, it’s a different size and scale of operations.

Speaker 2
And I think it’s fantastic when you see when you see applications from the smaller ones. And actually I think maybe this in every way is why judges tend to use the merit points. Recognising that a small team with a very limited budget if you’ve provided some fantastic innovation, done something way beyond what would have been expected it as an opportunity to recognise that it can be a bit more challenging for those smaller entries and so maybe use merit points but, yeah mighty things happen so you can’t be too small.

Speaker 1
No, I mean, I think you’re right. I think some of the smaller entries have been really innovative and it’s been interesting to see how they’ve dealt with it because they don’t have the big budget, they don’t have a big staff level. And also, yeah, there’s been some really, really good ones. You’ve been a judge for some time now. You judge entries not just for Scotland but for the national awards as well.

Speaker 1
What are you looking for in the entries that you judge?

Speaker 2
Yeah. I mean, I really enjoy doing it actually, because it just provides me the opportunity to see the fantastic stuff, that goes on across the public procurement. I might have slight regrets when I’m reading 30 entries over the weekend, but overall, I really enjoy it. So what am I looking for? I think overall it’s around what standout, you know the GO Awards fundamentally are Oscars so it’s not about what’s a good film or in that case what’s maybe been a good procurement, it’s what makes it stand out? what makes it award winning?

Speaker 2
I think one of the main aspects of that is what are the impacts, what are the outcomes particularly on the people of Scotland. What’s making that life changing or political, key policy change or policy outcome? What’s been been delivered through the procurement? So really looking for that impact and outcomes. And then and then lastly, maybe just a balance of innovation and collaboration.

Speaker 2
And it’s fantastic when you read the awards, where people collaborated with others and they have brought in innovation or brought in lessons learned from some previous experience and applied it in that context and that’s really brilliant to see.

Speaker 1
Yeah. I mean I should actually mention in highlights of course. Scotland not only has a fantastic award show, but we actually saw a Scottish entry win at the Nationals, and win the overall award band that was a Scottish entry. So yeah, I definitely agree, I think Scottish authorities definitely should be going for it of any sectoral size. If you could offer any advice to entrants on how they should sell themselves to the judges, what would it be?

Speaker 2
My my top tips. Let’s go with three top tips. So number one, look at the criteria and this gives me the opportunity to plug there are four new criteria in this year’s awards. But make sure you understand which is criteria which one lends itself to your to your application, your awards and use it to apply for that one.

Speaker 2
Number two. And I and I say this one with slight reservation knowing I’m speaking to procurement professionals because we must say this fairly regularly to suppliers of the procurements. Read the evaluation criteria, they are there to help guide you through the entry, so make sure you read what it is asking and answer the question. Make it really easy for the judges to pull out those golden nuggets of your award.

Speaker 2
But fundamentally, answer the question. And then number three, and I’ve touched on it before, but what we’re really looking for is, what are the outcomes? what are the impacts? whether that financial savings, whether that’s social value, community benefit, or the great policies and service outcomes of what has been delivered through your procurement, I do regularly see ones which are probably just too early.

Speaker 2
I can understand why people are keen to get that great, great submission in. But I think when you’re trying to answer that question, what have been the outcomes in the impact? If you can’t answer because maybe you’ve just not chance to deliver yet, maybe hold and enter that one next year and find another one. But overall, be really proud, step forward be there to put your name out there and get your entry in.

Speaker 1
Yeah, I agree with you totally. I think one thing that to try and judge whether or not it’s time, can you show the evidence yet?

Speaker 2
Absolutely.

Speaker 1
If you can show the evidence, then it’s probably time but if you can’t show the evidence, it’s maybe a little bit too early. But otherwise, I totally agree with you. Nick thank you very much for your time. We really appreciate it. Hopefully we have a really good range of entries this year and fingers crossed we’ll see Scottish entries heading for the Nationals again as well.

Speaker 2
Hopefully, looking forward to it. Thanks Eddie.

Speaker 1
Thanks Nick!

Tags: awards, Best practice, GO Awards Scotland, Power of procurement

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