How to win public software development contracts
Governments commission custom software all the time: case management systems, permit and licensing apps, booking tools, integrations between old systems, and internal tools nobody else sells. Many of these projects are small enough for a team of five to deliver, and buyers increasingly want suppliers who can deliver in small, frequent releases rather than one big bang.
What public buyers are buying
- New builds: a web or mobile app for residents or staff, usually with a discovery phase first.
- Integrations: connecting a new system to an old one, or two departments' systems to each other.
- Modernization: replacing or rebuilding a legacy application, often in phases.
- Ongoing development: a team that adds features and fixes defects on an existing product, often paid by the day.
- Discovery and alpha work: short, fixed-price phases to understand users and prove an approach before a larger build.
Short discovery and alpha contracts are the best way in for a small firm. They are low value, quick to award, and the firm that does discovery well is often in the strongest position for the build.
How the bids are scored
Most software tenders are scored on quality as well as price, with quality often carrying 60% or more of the marks. Expect questions on:
- Relevant experience: two or three similar projects, with outcomes and a reference.
- Approach and method: how you will run discovery, plan releases, test and deploy. Agile delivery with user research is the norm in the UK, Canada and Australia.
- Team: named people, their roles and experience. Changing them after award usually needs the buyer's approval.
- Accessibility and security: how you build to WCAG 2.1 or 2.2 AA and follow secure development practice.
- Price: a day rate card, a fixed price per phase, or both.
Requirements that catch small firms out
- Source code and intellectual property: many buyers want to own the code, or publish it as open source. Decide before you bid whether you can live with that, especially if you reuse your own components.
- Hosting and data residency: the buyer may require hosting in their country or on their own cloud tenancy.
- Security clearances for staff who will touch production data.
- Minimum turnover or team size: if you fall short, team with another firm.
- Warranty periods: a set time after go-live in which you fix defects for free.
How to price a software build
Price to the scope in the tender, not the scope you think the buyer needs. Where the scope is uncertain, propose a fixed-price discovery phase followed by priced options, or a day-rate team with a cap. List every assumption, such as how many integrations or user roles you have allowed for. Hidden assumptions are the biggest source of disputes on public software contracts.
Common questions
Do government software contracts require agile delivery?
Not always, but most digital service tenders in the UK, Canada and Australia expect user-centred, iterative delivery in line with their digital service standards. Showing how you run sprints, research and releases usually scores well.
Who owns the code on a government software contract?
It depends on the contract. Many public buyers require ownership of custom code or an open-source licence, while allowing suppliers to keep pre-existing components under a licence. Read the intellectual property clause before you bid.
What is a discovery phase?
A discovery phase is a short piece of work to understand users, the problem and constraints before anything is built. Public buyers often tender discovery separately, which makes it a good first contract for small firms.
Find this work
Browse open custom software tenders, and read how to win government IT contracts for the bid itself.