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Office of State Treasurer
San Andreas State Government
State Capitol, 1 Alta, Los Santos, SA
San Andreas State Government
State Capitol, 1 Alta, Los Santos, SA
e-Procurement Guide
INTRODUCTION
Procurement is required when the San Andreas Government requires the services of a civilian-owned business, a set of rules and regulations of public procurement must be met. Any business to business (B2B) or even business to customer business (B2C) can offer its services to the government, but a government contract can only be awarded through a meticulous process in which multiple companies compete for said contract.
Government contracts are an effective tool for the State to serve its citizens. For example, when the San Andreas Government’s project requires a specific set of skills for a limited period of time, the ideal solution is to engage and contract a company with that specific set of skills for the short period.
All contracts issued by the State of San Andreas are handled by the Bureau of State Contracts. The Bureau of State Contracts falls under the Treasury Department and is strictly overseen by the Office of State Treasurer. The Bureau continuously strives to uphold values which are of paramount importance to public procurement such as effectiveness, efficiency, transparency, administrative simplification and fair competition.
In order to be eligible to be a government contractor a business must be officially recognized. The basic rule is that any registered business is considered a potential government contractor. In other words, businesses and/or organizations are automatically and officially accredited and qualified to bid for public procurement contracts upon registration with the Bureau of Licensing under Los Santos City Government. However, your business risks being removed from the registry of eligible candidates for public procurement and therefore automatically excluded from any bidding opportunity if any of the following circumstances apply:
The first stage of e-procurement consists of the publication of an e-notification in which the general terms and conditions of the government contract are listed in addition to a concise summary. A broad range of information can be gathered from the e-notification such as for example the contracting an entity's specific demands, the general profile of the desired contractor, rules pertaining to confidentiality and proprietary information as well as a legal framework for compensation arrangements.
Once a certain period of time has expired allowing all interested parties to take notice of the e-notification, eligible candidates for procurement will be given the opportunity to prepare a competitive tender. Tendering in this context implies the submission of a preliminary bid for a government contract to assess eligibility. The e-tendering stage is an open procedure during which anyone qualified as a candidate for public procurement may submit a full tender. This procedure allows competing companies to take note of each other. All tender offers are filed with the Bureau of State Contracts and will be publicly available for consultation to further encourage a competitive market.
The bureau has the following recommendations to take into account when participating in the e-tendering stage:
In the event multiple applicants have qualified as a plausible candidate for procurement in light of a particular government contract, a final bid must be filed with the Bureau of State Contracts under seal. Only pre-selected candidates from the e-tendering stage may submit a final tender in this stage. It is imperative to note that in this stage the final tender offer cannot be disclosed to any third party under any circumstances, no information in relation to the final bid may be shared with competing companies and the public. In evaluating the final bid, the main focus of procurement management will be directed at the company's technical capabilities, professional integrity and financial strength. After thorough consideration by the State's procurement manager the result shall be announced in the fourth and final stage, namely the e-awarding stage.
In light of a transparent public procurement policy the Bureau of State Contracts shall publicly announce all winning bids. Afterwards the procurement manager in charge of the contract at hand will reach out to and sit down with the awarded contractor to further discuss and finalize the practical terms and conditions of the agreement. Key employees listed on the bidding application must also participate in a comprehensive workshop explaining the workings of the State's e-Procurement Tool.
The Bureau of State Contracts invites any rejected candidate for procurement to receive feedback on their tender offer. Taking on board the lessons from a past rejection may increase the chances of your business winning a future government contract. Irrespective of our willingness to offer everyone a full debriefing, this occasion is meant to be a teaching moment and not an opportunity to put yourself on the defensive.
Here you can find a template of a bidding form which was carefully designed to guide you through the bidding process. When submitting the form, please make sure that you submit the form in the right section and that the title corresponds with the following format:
Government contracts are an effective tool for the State to serve its citizens. For example, when the San Andreas Government’s project requires a specific set of skills for a limited period of time, the ideal solution is to engage and contract a company with that specific set of skills for the short period.
All contracts issued by the State of San Andreas are handled by the Bureau of State Contracts. The Bureau of State Contracts falls under the Treasury Department and is strictly overseen by the Office of State Treasurer. The Bureau continuously strives to uphold values which are of paramount importance to public procurement such as effectiveness, efficiency, transparency, administrative simplification and fair competition.
QUALIFICATION AND ELIGIBILITY
- Any shareholder and/or stakeholder of the bidding party has been convicted of a felony.
- The bidding party has committed an act or omission in violation of the Business Licensing Code.
- The bidding party conducts business practices with a severe disregard for corporate social responsibility.
THE FOUR STAGES OF e-PROCUREMENT
STAGE I. e-NOTIFICATION
The first stage of e-procurement consists of the publication of an e-notification in which the general terms and conditions of the government contract are listed in addition to a concise summary. A broad range of information can be gathered from the e-notification such as for example the contracting an entity's specific demands, the general profile of the desired contractor, rules pertaining to confidentiality and proprietary information as well as a legal framework for compensation arrangements.
STAGE II. e-TENDERING
Once a certain period of time has expired allowing all interested parties to take notice of the e-notification, eligible candidates for procurement will be given the opportunity to prepare a competitive tender. Tendering in this context implies the submission of a preliminary bid for a government contract to assess eligibility. The e-tendering stage is an open procedure during which anyone qualified as a candidate for public procurement may submit a full tender. This procedure allows competing companies to take note of each other. All tender offers are filed with the Bureau of State Contracts and will be publicly available for consultation to further encourage a competitive market.
The bureau has the following recommendations to take into account when participating in the e-tendering stage:
- The very first step before submitting a bid is to assess whether or not your business is up for the task. The bidding process is not to be entered into unadvisedly or lightly in an attempt to coincidentally land a big government project. You ought to be as well-informed as possible about the implications of being awarded the contract you are bidding for as failing to meet your contractual obligations will most likely result in a loss of future potential contracts. The Bureau of State Contracts will always assess the past performance of your business on contracts, so be certain to apply only for those projects that will be manageable for your business. Going forth on the aforementioned it speaks for itself that you are supposed to attentively read what information is requested. A tender offer with missing information will more likely be disregarded without further consideration by the handling procurement manager.
- As required by the bidding form - which can be found below - the evaluation of your offer will to a large extent revolve around the statement of capability. A capability statement includes company information, a brief overview of your business' history as well as its products and services, short biographies of key employees, any information regarding your licensing status, an extensive list of your external business partners, your financial capabilities as well as a list of your clients.
- Try to make your bid as competitive as possible by addressing each requirement in the e-notification. However, do keep in mind that it is highly unlikely that a particular bid will be a "one-size-fits-all". It is more important to convey a realistic approach than it is to portray an idealistic and impractical vision. Researching prior winning bids can be of great help to making your bid more competitive.
- Spend the time necessary for creating workable price estimates. Your company's pricing strategy must not only be attractive to the contracting entity, in this instance the State of San Andreas, but it must also cover your expenses to turn a profit. Mapping out the pricing strategy of a market leader can be a valuable source of information to compile your own rates.
STAGE III. e-AUCTION
In the event multiple applicants have qualified as a plausible candidate for procurement in light of a particular government contract, a final bid must be filed with the Bureau of State Contracts under seal. Only pre-selected candidates from the e-tendering stage may submit a final tender in this stage. It is imperative to note that in this stage the final tender offer cannot be disclosed to any third party under any circumstances, no information in relation to the final bid may be shared with competing companies and the public. In evaluating the final bid, the main focus of procurement management will be directed at the company's technical capabilities, professional integrity and financial strength. After thorough consideration by the State's procurement manager the result shall be announced in the fourth and final stage, namely the e-awarding stage.
STAGE IV. e-AWARDING
In light of a transparent public procurement policy the Bureau of State Contracts shall publicly announce all winning bids. Afterwards the procurement manager in charge of the contract at hand will reach out to and sit down with the awarded contractor to further discuss and finalize the practical terms and conditions of the agreement. Key employees listed on the bidding application must also participate in a comprehensive workshop explaining the workings of the State's e-Procurement Tool.
FEEDBACK ON REJECTED CONTRACT BIDS
CONTRACT BIDDING FORM
#001-06-2021 — Energy Contract
#NumberOfSubmission-Month-Year — Title
Signed,
Sofia Moreno
SA State Treasurer