Being Government ready - are you ready to procure to the biggest client possible? With special guest Thomas Pollock from THINQ Learning

Small Biz Matters

Small Biz Matters – #191 Providing the small business community with educational content and advocacy since 2014 with Alexi Boyd, broadcaster, advocate and small business owner. Date: 11 January 2021

Apparently, there’s a fair amount of government money flying around as a result of a pandemic and it’s up for grabs if you just know where to look. No matter which side of politics you fall we all have to agree that the Australian economy and the Australian Government came into this COVID induced recession in the best possible position.

And small businesses should be at the front of procuring and receiving this investment. We are, after all the engine room of the economy, the most innovative sector and the collectively, the biggest employer.

So how do you access, apply for and eventually receive a piece of this pie? Of course there are processes to follow (as all things government) and these can be onerous (because Government) and difficult for small businesses to understand.

Joining us on Small Biz Matters this week is Thomas Pollock from THINQ Learning, who will give us top tips on making your business grant-ready so you can confidently apply for that pool of government funding a grow your business!

QUESTIONS

• Is it true that many small businesses don’t bother to compete for government contracts, simply because they believe larger corporates will always beat them?
• What holds a small business back from competing for a government contract?
• How valuable can Government contracts be to small businesses?
• Through your book as well as you own personal experience as a business owner, you understand how to win government contracts. Can you share some of your secrets?
• Can a business survive on government contracts alone?
• If you were a small business owner today, and you’d just made the decision to try and win Government business, what would your first steps be?
  • Why does business need to know about the process and how is it different from winning other clients’ business?

• In your book you talk about the importance of small business increasing their ‘Government IQ’. What exactly do you mean by that?
  • What not to do – what can listeners learn from your experience at missing out on winning that lucrative Govt contract
  • Does it make a difference if you’re dealing with state, local or federal level of government?
  • Is the process fundamentally different when applying for grants as opposed to winning govt contracts?

• Any advice to a small business which has just won its first Government contract?
• Through your tool, what are the main areas that your experience has shown small businesses need to work on?

To find out more go to their website: https://thinqlearning.com.au/

About our Guest:

Thomas Pollock is the Founder of THINQ Learning, and the author of the book Winning Government Business: The 6 Rules and 9 Absolutes for Small to Medium Businesses. In a continuing 22-year business journey, Thomas progressed from BDM, to Operations, Sales, then General Manager of an education and professional services organisation. Realising that the business was missing out on one of the biggest revenue pools, Thomas set himself the task of finding a way through the confusing maze that Government procurement can be. Following a lot of hard work, wins, losses, and everything in between, Thomas ensured 23% of the business's total revenue came directly from the Government sector, easily making it the largest customer for the business.

Thomas's working life is now taken up with THINQ Learning, helping Queensland small businesses find and open Government revenue streams, and ensuring they don't make the same mistakes he did.