Testimonials

With the limited resources we have here, we recognised AWARD’s value as an effective evaluation tool. It is available online and can be configured to suit our own processes and approach. What we had not anticipated was how well the evaluators and users were going to respond to AWARD. The ease with which AWARD can be used means that we plan to become self sufficient in using the tool on all projects valued from £30k upwards.

Alison Shaw, Head of Procurement, NHS North East Essex

The evaluation panel for the Schools Recruitment Service project was drawn from a number of geographically dispersed Local Authority and school staff who were impressed both with how easy AWARD software was to use and how much time it saved them. AWARD also assisted us in the process of maintaining the highest level of buy-in to the project from our stakeholders and in delivering a clear and transparent audit trail.

Paul Howard, Head of Sector & ex-DIUS Procurement Shared Services, DCSF

I would recommend AWARD software. Its advantages over a paper-based system are numerous. Not only did it help us produce a better outcome but it also significantly reduced the procurement cycle time and made the whole process far more efficient.

Colin Browne, Deputy Framework Manager Research Framework, Department for Work and Pensions

Using AWARD, we were able to focus our resources during the competitive dialogue process on risk reduction and design improvement while maximising the use of our limited resources.

Peter Parkes, Head of Strategic Projects, Worcestershire County Council

The experience and expertise of the QinetiQ Commerce Decisions consultants really helped us to examine our evaluation process and to consider how we could use different approaches and methodologies to handle challenges.

Carol Keane, e-Sourcing NI Project Manager, Department of Finance and Personnel, CPD

We recommend that the use of AWARD is crucial to future procurement projects within the Welsh Assembly. We would no longer recommend a paper-based process.

Bethan Webb, Senior Funding Policy Manager, Department for Children, Education, Lifelong Learning and Skills (DCELLS)

AWARD gave me tremendous project control, which allowed me to deliver the project on time and to a consistently high quality. It enabled me to focus on the right areas and gave me clarity of purpose. I will definitely be using AWARD again.

Pat Desmond, Senior Frameworks Manager for Corporate Support, OGCbuying.solutions

We could see the value that AWARD brought to us and how it significantly improved the quality of the EADS bid, particularly in terms of being able to present complex information effectively whilst adhering to a uniformed process in our approach. It definitely helped us with the quality of our response, which was recognised by the customer. We would certainly use AWARD again but much earlier in the bidding process. In fact, we are looking to see how we can fully integrate AWARD into the EADS bid management process.

Steve Whitby, EADS FiReControl Project Director.

The costs associated with the procurement process were lower, and the whole process was much faster using AWARD compared with traditional procurement tools such as spreadsheets. AWARD's powerful search and analysis tools allowed the evaluators to spend more time on the evaluation, which produced a better overall result.

Lesley Pyne, Senior Procurement Manager, DCA

QinetiQ Commerce Decisions and AWARD software played a key role in helping us carry out a very successful competition. QinetiQ Commerce Decisions were also very responsive to our requests. I was very impressed with the quality of their consultants, the value that the AWARD tool delivered, and the way they worked with us throughout the project.

Anne Holden, UK MOD IPT Leader

I was very impressed with the quality, experience and professionalism of the QinetiQ Commerce Decisions team. AWARD played a fundamental role in enabling us to let the contract on time and to cost. It allowed us to assimilate the right information and to do this very quickly. At the same time we were able to generate reports in real time at will.

Lt Col Mark Beardsell, UK MOD Food Supply Contract Team Leader

AWARD streamlined the whole process for us allowing us to concentrate on the content. It was easy to use both by the internal and external individuals and teams involved in the project. The ability to generate audit trail information at will and get regular progress updates gave the project reviewers significant levels of confidence in the whole process. I would definitely use AWARD again in the future projects.

Vickie Lamb, PFI Project Director, Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust, UK

The use of AWARD in the JAMES program has helped us to structure our activity, speed up the process and allowed us to provide clear and transparent reports on the decision making process. It gave us the ability to demonstrate and understand where bidders had failed to address important issues, or where they had been answered inadequately. We plan to use AWARD as the basis for future competitive elements of the ongoing JAMES program.

Colonel Toby Mills, UK MOD Team Leader

Feedback from the MOD indicated that we had clearly understood their requirements and had submitted a clear and coherent bid. We are of the firm belief that using AWARD enhanced the quality of our bid and made it easier for the MOD to evaluate our submission.

Andy Toms, Sales and Marketing Director, J+S Ltd

We worked very closely with the QinetiQ Commerce Decisions consultants to help us set this project up and they played a crucial role in developing the approach. The support we get from QinetiQ Commerce Decisions is very professional and the AWARD system always delivers.

Lesley Kippax, Strategic Procurement and Market Manager, Greater Manchester Commissioning Business Service

I would not hesitate to recommend AWARD and QinetiQ Commerce Decisions professional support. I can’t imagine how we would have done such a thorough job on this complex project without AWARD.

Colonel Alan Brown, Assistant Director, Future Delivery, Service Personnel and Veterans Agency

Working with QinetiQ Commerce Decisions and using AWARD allowed us to show the market we were serious about taking a ‘best practice’ approach. We were able to tap into the deep knowledge and experience of the QinetiQ Commerce Decisions’ consultants who understood the needs and approach of both the private and the public sectors. I would have
no hesitation in using AWARD again and in recommending it to others for use on strategic procurements.

Mike Smith, Procurement Manager, Aberystwyth University

Using AWARD gave the project team a tremendous sense of control over the project and confidence in the final results. The audit trail, supplier debriefing support, evaluation process and document management that AWARD delivered played a fundamental role in the ability of the project team to deliver a successful project. QinetiQ Commerce Decisions worked with the project team and together did an outstanding job on this procurement project.

Helen Oliver, Senior eSourcing Project Manager, Value Wales xchangewales project

Through our use of AWARD, we found a tool that can significantly help local authorities to reach good quality procurement decisions and manage risk effectively. Its inherent flexibility allowed us to tailor it easily to match our specific processes. With the support of QinetiQ Commerce Decisions we have configured AWARD to support our BSF programme in a comprehensive and powerful way.

Pramod Nayak, Deputy Project Director, South Tyneside and Gateshead Building Schools for the Future

We used AWARD extensively throughout the project. I would estimate that it saved us close to 50% in time versus what I would normally spend on this type of assessment. It also improved the overall quality of the outcome. I would definitely use AWARD again for projects of this nature.

Denise Phillips, Improvement and Development Advisor, Local Government Data Unit, Welsh Assembly Government

AWARD hugely speeds up the evaluation process, providing a robust outcome. It is so much easier than using a paper-based system. It increases the efficiency of the procurement, is easy to use and gives us an update on progress in real time.

Clare Houghton, Procurement and Market Manager, Great Manchester Commissioning Business Service

Using AWARD saved me a huge amount of time. The reporting capability made it phenomenally straightforward. It was very easy to give quality feedback to the unsuccessful bidders and show them where they had fallen short of our requirements. Most importantly, using AWARD gave the Criminal Justice Performance Board a great deal of confidence in us and our process.

Jo Jones, UK Home Office MIS Project Manager

By using AWARD we were able to ensure that we had a clear and robust audit trail in case we were challenged at any stage during or after contract award.

Jim Ayres, UK MOD Deputy IPT Leader and Senior Commercial Manager.

QinetiQ Commerce Decisions involvement has had a major impact on the Hadley Community procurement process. The combination of their professional services team and AWARD software has had a fundamental effect on our ability to make this project fly. Time to market has been reduced and the overall quality of the procurement process substantially enhanced.

Tracy Penrose, Project Manager, Borough of Telford and Wrekin, UK

By introducing QinetiQ Commerce Decisions to support the procurement process we were able to manage a complex process with a small team whilst providing valuable management information throughout the whole process. Access to information to any authorized users was instant across the web whenever they needed it. This, coupled with the power of the software, had a major and very positive impact on the outcome of the preferred bidder selection.

Graeme Struthers, Project Manager, West Lothian Council, UK