Finding a supplier

Once you’ve ensured you are following your organisation's rules, there could be a number of options for engaging suitable digital partners, including:

Recommendations

When awarding a contract directly you need to find a suitable supplier.  There are a number of ways of going about this, including:

• Asking trusted contacts if they have any recommendations - particularly those who are looking to deliver similar digital products or services
• Speak to Sport Wales to see if they have any suggested contacts
• Speak to a past supplier, if they are unable to help with this project, they may be able to recommend an alternative

Using a framework such as Digital Marketplace 

Digital Marketplace is a great place to start when looking for digital suppliers. Suppliers register on Digital Marketplace, providing detailed information about the services they provide, which you can search and review in order to see whether they fit the bill. There are a number of areas that are covered, most usefully:

Digital Outcomes and Specialist Framework

• Finding individual specialists - i.e. a developer or user researcher
• Finding a team to deliver an outcome - i.e. a booking system

You can begin your search here https://www.digitalmarketplace.service.gov.uk/. 

If you require an individual specialist or team for delivery of an outcome you will need to:

• Write your requirements and decide on your evaluation criteria
• You’ll then publish your requirements and evaluation criteria on Digital Marketplace for suppliers to review and apply for
• There will be an opportunity for suppliers to ask questions and for you to reply - this activity should all take place through Digital Marketplace
• You will then shortlist and evaluate the applications
• Finally awarding the contract to the specialist or team which best meets your needs.

This process generally takes around four weeks and there is a guide to help you work through the steps in detail here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/digital-outcomes-and-specialists-buyers-guide?_ga=2.82347286.1447134981.1658917720-891678234.1643108547

G Cloud

• Finding cloud hosting, software and support - i.e. accounting software

You can begin your search here: https://www.digitalmarketplace.service.gov.uk/buyers/direct-award/g-cloud/start

When looking for a more general piece of software or tool you can buy through G Cloud - this process involves:

• Searching G Cloud with a keyword (or keywords) based on the software you are looking for
• Export the results that match your search and asses the services against your requirements
• Award a contract using the G Cloud templates

This process can happen relatively quickly and there is a guide to help you work through the steps in detail here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/g-cloud-buyers-guide?&_ga=2.14214327.1447134981.1658917720-891678234.1643108547#contract

Use an invitation to tender

Sport Wales has produced a guide to tendering which is available here.

Evaluating proposals from potential suppliers

When selecting appropriate suppliers, you will need to review their applications or proposals.The following considerations can be a helpful starting point:

Feel free to ask any further questions during the process, for example, are there any requirements that the supplier is not able to deliver? Do they have examples of similar work that they’ve delivered to similar audiences? Are they able to provide any reference contacts who you could speak to?

Throughout this process communication is key, informing successful and unsuccessful suppliers should be done promptly.