Turning a Failed PQQ into a Pass and a Repeatable Process
How Wordsmith Projects helped Zems Academy submit a high-quality, fully compliant tender. This Midlands based training provider needed to understand where their first Pre-Qualification Questionnaire (PQQ) went wrong and we gave them the tools to get it right every time after that.
The Client
Zems Academy is a Midlands-based training provider, established and capable in their field. They had attempted to bid for new work on their own before they came to us for support.
The Challenge
Zems Academy had submitted a PQQ on their own for a contract they were well placed to deliver and failed it. PQQs are marked pass/fail rather than scored, and this one came down to a single question worded in a way that was genuinely easy to misread. The team interpreted it differently to how it was intended, answered accordingly, and that misunderstanding alone was enough to fail the submission despite the business being fully capable of doing the work.
Understandably, they were frustrated: they had lost the opportunity not because they couldn't do the job, but because they had completed the PQQ incorrectly and been disqualified.
Our Approach
We sat down with the Zems Academy team and went back through the failed PQQ, identifying exactly which question had caught them out and why.
From there, we shared our PQQ cheat sheet, a tool we have designed to help businesses read PQQ questions correctly and answer them the way assessors actually intend, while also storing their core information (financial, insurance, health and safety, experience evidence) in one place so it is ready to drop into the next PQQ rather than rebuilt from scratch each time.
The Outcome
Using the cheat sheet, Zems Academy passed their next PQQ. Just as importantly, they now have a straightforward way to read and answer PQQ questions correctly, and a ready reference that makes every future PQQ faster to put together, not just the one we worked on together.
"We couldn't understand why we'd failed until Joanne walked us through it. It turned out we'd read one question completely differently to how it was meant. Her cheat sheet has been brilliant since; it means we're not starting from zero every time a new PQQ lands on our desk."
Abid Ali, CEO, Zems Academy
Let’s talk
Need help with your pre-qualification questionnaires (PQQ)! Get in touch today to see how we can your PQQs.