Tender Document for the Provision of Business Advice and Support to Social Enterprises

TENDER DOCUMENT FOR THE PROVISION OF BUSINESS ADVICE AND SUPPORT TO SOCIAL ENTERPRISES AS PART OF THE YORKSHIRE VENTURE PHILANTHROPY (‘YVP’) PROGRAMME

1. THE YVP PROGRAMME

The YVP Programme is a new initiative part-financed by the European Regional Development Fund Programme (2007 to 2013). The lead partner is the Leeds Community Foundation working in partnership with the Community Foundation for Calderdale and the South Yorkshire Community Foundation. Key Fund is also a partner to the overall programme through the provision of loan finance.

The programme consists of a number of different elements that are combined to provide a support package for new-start and established social enterprises. This includes:

• a small grants programme up to £5,000;
• a combined grants/loan programme for investment of up to £100,000;
• provision of specialist business advice and support; and
• pro bono / mentoring support.

The key objectives of the YVP Programme are to:

• promote a culture of enterprise and entrepreneurship within third sector organisations, particularly those that are in the most deprived communities in the region;
• help establish and support new social enterprises, as well as providing support for existing ones to grow;
• create new jobs, safeguard existing posts; and
• raise the profile of social enterprises in the private sector.

The programme is open to applications from a range of third sector organisations and social enterprises including: Registered Charities, Voluntary and Community Groups, Start-up’s or established social enterprises including: CIC’s; Development Trusts; Industrial & Provident Societies; Co-operatives

In order to be eligible for support theapplicant organisations must be looking to develop and / or implement ideas that will help their organisation grow and develop. This may be: by having clear plans to generate income from trading through sales of goods/services; and/or by finding ways of becoming more sustainable. Projects must have a clear economic focus such as increasing income from trading, job creation etc.

Not all projects that apply for support will be successful. A detailed assessment will be undertaken, of each applicant, to select those that most closely fit the priorities of the programme.

The YVP programme can fund pilot projects and start-ups, or contribute to expanding or developing current trading or enterprising activity.

Support is available initially only for third sector groups based in Leeds, South Yorkshire and Calderdale, or organisations that are clearly benefiting people living in these areas.

1. TENDER PROCESS

This tender document focuses on the provision of specialist business advice and support. All tenderers are expected to cover the costs of submitting the tender.

The tender process will consist of 2 stages.

• The first stage is to enable the YVP Programme Board to develop a list of “Approved Suppliers to the YVP Programme”. The details of how to apply to be an approved supplier are outlined below. We anticipate approving no more than five suppliers for each work package.

• The second stage will involve the choice of the most appropriate supplier to meet the needs of specific groups that are successful in their application for support. The details of how the decision will be made for each group are detailed below.

The required support has been divided into a number of work packages, as detailed in Section 3below. You can apply for any one or more of the work packages, providing you can provide proof of expertise in the relevant areas.

The programme of support will commence in January 2013 and run until May 2015.

The YVP Team anticipate providing consultancy support to approximately 20 separate organisations each year and anticipate that a group may typically require between 1-3 days support, depending on the nature of their needs. Until the applications have been assessed, we are not able to identify how much support will be required in each of the individual work packages.

All applications need to be submitted by email or post by 5.00 pm on Friday the 14th December2012 and will be assessed in week commencing 17th December 2012 using the scoring mechanism detailed in Section 4. Allowing time for the follow-up of key references, we anticipate making a decision by the middle of January 2013. We reserve the right to contact you to request further details and / or ask specific questions during this assessment period. All applicants will be notified of the results of the assessment.

We anticipate approving no more than five suppliers in each of the key areas of work. We estimate that approved providers could be receiving requests for support within two weeks of the decision-date. It is important, therefore, that your references are available between 17/12/12 and 11/1/13 and that you are able to commence work after the 14thJanuary 2013.

Payment for services will be made directly to the advisors, by one of the Community Foundation partners, when the YVP Team are satisfied the service has been delivered.

1. BUSINESS CONSULTANCY AND ADVICE SERVICES REQUIRED

Our experience leads us to conclude that the majority of social enterprise applicants will require specific support in one of fiveareas: Business Diagnostics; Business Planningand General Consultancy; Sales and Marketing; People Development and Leadership; and Legal and Governance. These are therefore being tendered as separate work packages.

Suppliers can tender for one or all of these packages; however in each instance they will need to demonstrate a proven track record of supporting social enterprises in the respective areas.

Suppliers are also encouraged to provide details of other support they can provide that fall outside of the work packages described, for example SROI or specialist tax advice.

Work Package 1 – Business Planning and General Consultancy

We anticipate that many groups will need general advice and further assistance with the development of their business plan and cashflow forecasts. This assistance could be particularly relevant where an investment and or loan is envisaged or where groups are planning to develop new products or services.

Note that all applicants will be expected to have done some work on their business plan prior to application to YVP. The Business Planning work package is likely to include support in: defining products and services; identifying markets and competition; considering price and promotion; SWOT analysis and follow up action planning; building budgets and cash flow management.

We are also looking for support in 4 more specific areas.

Work Package 2 – Business Diagnostics

It is envisaged that the needs of some organisations will require be more complex and the required support may not be as immediately apparent. We believe this may apply, in particular, to those organisations that have been established for some time and are seeking to grow or branch out into a new line of business.

The Business Diagnostics work package is aimed at groups that fall into this category. They may require a more detailed assessment of their structure, people and processes in order to identify strengths and weaknesses. The assessment will conclude with a written report making recommendations for the next phase of their development. The report should highlight, in particular, which areas of their business operations may require further development and /or specialist advice.

Work Package 3 – Sales and Marketing

Some social enterprises may have a well-developed business plan but need some specific assistance to produce a more focused sales and marketing plan.

The Sales and Marketing work package is likely to include support with: product positioning; developing a marketing strategy to attract new customers; developing a pricing policy; promoting products and services (via PR, advertising and social media); and advice on maximising sales opportunities.

Work package 4 – People Development and Leadership

Building, developing and maintaining a motivated team is a critical success factor in any business. Some organisations will need support in developing leadership skills and building effective teams.

The People Development and Leadership work package is likely to include work around: assessing the current team; helping clarify individual roles and responsibilities, as well as employer responsibilities; developing a strategy for communication and feedback within the group; and core leadership development of key individuals.

Work Package 5 – Legal and Governance

Identifying the most appropriate legal structure to adopt and designing and implementing governance processes are challenges that all organisations face during their early stages of development. New and existing organisations will require support and advice during the process of creating or approving contracts for a range of services. The legal and governance work package will advise groups on best practice and leave them with the knowledge needed to make the right decision for their organisation.

1. SCORING

Stage 1

Each application under Stage 1 of the tender will be scored by staff in the YVP Team. Scores will be allocated based on the criteria below. Those organisations receiving the highest overall scores will be invited to join the Approved Suppliers List.

Area of Operation / Maximum number of marks
Robustness of business and capacity(length of time in operation, turnover, access to skilled staff) / 25
Feedback from references / 15
Value for money (fee basis, relevant experience in specific area of advice / consultancy, specific expertise of staff) / 60
Total available marks / 100

Stage 2

Once an organisation has been selected to benefit from specialist support, we will use the following process to determine the most appropriate consultant to appoint.

1)The relevant Community Foundation will provide a 1 page summary of the group that requires support. This will be provided to all Approved Suppliers for the work package(s) for which the group requires support. The summary will include the background of the group, the type of enterprising activity they are involved in and what specific support have been identified.

2)Each Approved Supplier will be invited to respond to the summary with a briefproposal and quote summarising their experience relating to the specific needs of the group and the timescales within which they can provide support to the group. The deadline for submissions will be 10 working days from provision of the 1 page summary from the Community Foundation.

3)The YVP Programme Board will each rate each Approved Supplier response using the following criteriaand suppliers will be given a score out of a potential 15 points. A decision will be taken within 5 working days of the deadline for receipt of proposalsbased on the highest average score. N.B. The example given relates to a group requiring support for Marketing and Sales for the field of digital music

a)Experience

i)1 point for general experience in Marketing and Sales

ii)4points for more specific Marketing and Sales experience in the field required by the group e.g. other digital media such as film

iii)6points for Marketing and sales experience in digital music

b)Value for Moneyand environmental impact– up to 6 points awarded for:

i)1 point for use of green travel arrangements e.g. public transport / shortest journey by car will be favoured

ii)1 point for the lowest travel costs

iii)4 points for the cost of the support to be provided

c)Capacity

i)1 point for the ability to provide support within 6 to 8 weeks of award

ii)2 points for the ability to provide support within 3 to 6 weeks of award

iii)3 points for the ability to provide support within 1 to 3 weeks of award

All applications need to be submitted by 5.00 pm on Friday the 14thDecember2012 either by post or email to:

Leeds Community Foundation, 51a St Paul’s Street, Leeds LS1 2TE. Email: . Telephone (0113) 242 2426 with any queries.

APPLICATION FORM FOR THE PROVISION OF BUSINESS ADVICE AND SUPPORT TO SOCIAL ENTERPRISES

1. Your Organisation

Your Name
Organisation Name
Address
Website
Email
Telephone

Please provide brief background details about your organisation: how long established; approximate number of clients assisted; specific areas of expertise etc. Please limit this to no more than 250 words.

1. Work programme
2. Please indicate which of the work packages you are applying for. You can apply for more than one work package if you have the relevant expertise.

□Business Planning and General Consultancy

□Business Diagnostics

□Sales and Marketing

□People Development and Leadership

□Legal & Governance

2.2Relevant Expertise. For each of the areas you are tendering for in 2.1. above, please indicate what relevant and specific experience and expertise you have. Please use no more than 500 words and head each page with the name of the work package you are tendering for.

2.3Personnel. Please provide brief details of the key individuals who will be providing the advice to groups and indicate if they are employed directly by you, or not; attach pen portraits as appropriate.

2.4Other Areas of Specialism Please use this space to provide of other specialist support that your organisation can provide to groups applying to the programme.

1. Financial Information

3.1Company information

When were you established?
What was your turnover for the last financial year?
Of this, how much was for the provision of consultancy advice similar to that detailed in this application?
How many employees or associates do you have (please distinguish between the two)?

3.2Fee basis. Please provide details of your hourly or daily fee rateand the basis on which this is calculated. Please indicate whether you are VAT registered and make it clear if the fee includes VAT. If you are able to provide discounts (for the provision of a certain number of days’ support for instance), please provide details.

3.3Other Concessions. The provision of support is directly targeted at social enterprises who aim to re-distribute profits to provide social benefits. As such, providers of specialist support as part of this tender may be willing to incorporate some element of corporate responsibility in their bid. We do not wish to prescribe what this might be but examples could include: reduction of standard day rates; offering a specified amount of time to speak at seminars and workshops that will be part of the on-going YVP programme. If you are willing to include this in your bid, please provide details here.

1. Other Information

4.1 Insurance. Please provide details of what insurance you have in place including the limits of any professional indemnity cover you have in place.

4.2Geography. The YVP programme initially covers organisations based in Yorkshire. Please indicate below which areas you are willing to provide support for.

Leeds only
South Yorkshire only
Calderdale only
All of S & W Yorkshire

4.3Capacity. By submitting this tender, you are confirming that you have the capacity to provide the above support afterJanuary 2013. Please provide details here of any factors that might influence your capacity to deliver.

4.4Provision of one-to-one support. As part of your contract, we require you to produce a brief report on the support provided, and any key observations/ conclusions reached. Copies of this are to be made available to the social enterprise and to the YVP programme. Please tick here to confirm acceptance of this requirement and use the box below to add any extra comments.

□

4.5Provision of one-to-many support. There may be occasions where one or more of the applicants require the same kind of overall advice / support that could be provided on a one-to-many basis via group work or seminars. If you are willing to provide this kind of support, please provide brief information about the relevant experience you have in this area and the level of support you would be able to provide.

4.6References. Please provide contact details for a minimum of two social enterprises you have worked with in the past 18-month period. All these references will be followed up so they need to be prepared to talk about the support you have provided.

Reference 1 / Reference 2
Contact Name / Contact Name
Organisation Name / Organisation Name
Address / Address
Phone Number / Phone Number
Email / Email

All applications need to be submitted by 5.00 pm on Friday the 14th December2012 either by post or email to: Leeds Community Foundation, 51a St Paul’s Street, Leeds LS1 2TE. Email: . Telephone (0113) 242 2426 with any queries.