Public Tenders VS Private Tenders: Strategic Considerations for Life Sciences Companies

In the Life Sciences Industry, securing contracts can be a fierce competition. But have you ever wondered if there’s more than one way to win? Understanding the key differences between public and private tenders is crucial for life sciences companies to make strategic decisions and pursue new business opportunities. So, what sets apart these 2 tender archetypes? Read below our guide that will help you prepare for and optimize your decision-making process for each tender opportunity.

Public Tenders: Transparency & Accountability

• Prevalence: Public tenders are more common due to the public sector’s requirement for open competition and responsible use of taxpayer funds.
• Source of Funding: Public tenders are funded by public money, demanding strict adherence to regulations and established evaluation criteria that often prioritize cost-effectiveness.
• Transparency: The public tender process adheres to high transparency standards, ensuring fairness and accountability to the public. Outcome feedback is mandatory and objective, allowing unsuccessful bidders to understand the selection rationale.
• Regulation: Public tenders are highly regulated, ensuring a level playing field for all qualified bidders. However, dealing with complex tender regulations can be challenging.

Private Tenders: Flexibility and Potential for Higher Profits

• Prevalence: Private tenders are less common than public tenders but offer greater flexibility.
• Source of Funding: Funding for private tenders comes from the specific healthcare institution’s budget, allowing for a broader range of evaluation criteria beyond just cost.
• Transparency: Private tenders offer lower transparency compared to public tenders. Selection processes are based on internal regulations and there’s no obligation for feedback.
• Regulation: Private tenders are subject to lower levels of regulation, allowing for a more streamlined selection process. However, this can also introduce subjectivity.
• Potential for Higher Profits: The broader range of considerations in private tenders can lead to potentially higher profit margins for life sciences companies compared to public tenders.

Awarding/Contracting:

Public Tenders: Typically present a draft contract within the tender documents. Bidders need to agree to this draft contract with limited room for negotiation on contract clauses or submitted prices.

Private Tenders: Private tenders often allow for more negotiation on price and other contract terms. There may be multiple rounds of negotiation before a final contract is awarded.

Additional angles to consider:

Stay Informed: Regularly monitoring tender publications is crucial for identifying relevant opportunities.

Prepare for Both: Having a well-defined tendering strategy that addresses both public and private tenders allows for greater agility and adaptability in the market.

Cube RM is the leading global Tender Software, AI & Data company, empowering Life Sciences organizations to find more business opportunities and build market intelligence. Our platforms leverage the latest AI, NLP, and GenAI technologies to capture key tender market data globally and transform it into actionable insights. This, coupled with seamless software automation and industry expertise, helps you increase tender process efficiency and secure valuable contracts.

We offer a comprehensive suite of solutions to support you throughout the tendering lifecycle:

• Tender Discovery & Management: Stay ahead of the curve with our advanced tender discovery services that identify suitable opportunities aligned with your specific goals. Streamline your tendering process with our user-friendly software that simplifies bid preparation, collaboration, and submission.
• Data Intelligence & Insights: Better understanding of market & competitors’ dynamics, competitive edge, discovering emerging market trends, improved strategy & decision making.
• Pricing Guidance: Find the optimal tender price, with checklists and relevant information at every step of the way. Simulate lots of pricing scenarios within seconds and predict probabilities to win at critical price-points.