Go4Growth podcast.

Episode SummaryIn this episode of the Go4Growth Podcast, Lauren and Louise explore the growing role of artificial intelligence in bid writing and tender submissions.Using a series of light-hearted “Bid Blunder Files”, they highlight some of the most common mistake’s organisations make when relying too heavily on AI — from American spellings and invented achievements to generic responses and tone inconsistencies.While AI can be a powerful tool to support bid writing, the episode explains why it should never replace your organisation’s real knowledge, experience, and authenticity. Lauren and Louise share practical tips on how to use AI responsibly, safely, and effectively when preparing tender responses — helping you avoid common pitfalls and submit stronger, more credible bids.Top Tips from the Episode1. Always review AI content carefullyAI-generated responses should never be submitted without thorough review and editing. Treat AI as a starting point, not the finished answer.2. Check for American spelling and terminologyUK public sector buyers quickly notice American spellings like organization, center, or optimization. Always run a British English check before submitting.3. Never trust AI with facts about your organisationAI can confidently invent awards, statistics, services, or history. Always verify every claim and ensure you can evidence anything included in your bid.4. Replace generic wording with real examplesAI responses can sound professional but vague. Strengthen answers by including specific examples, local context, and real outcomes from your organisation.5. Be cautious of copyrighted or sourced materialAI can unintentionally reproduce or paraphrase copyrighted guidance, frameworks, or policy content. Always ensure you own or can reference the material used.6. Keep the tone clear and consistentAI can switch between corporate jargon and overly dramatic language. Aim for clear, professional, practical writing suitable for public sector evaluators.7. Give AI the right information to work fromThe best results come when you feed AI accurate facts, real examples, and key points first — then ask it to help structure or refine your content.8. Use AI as support, not a replacementAI works best for:Structuring responsesTurning bullet points into narrativeEditing for clarity or word limitsBut it should never replace your expertise, evidence, or organisational story.9. Always check tender rules on AI useSome contracting authorities restrict or prohibit AI use in bid submissions. Always read the tender instructions carefully before using AI tools.

What really makes a bid stand out to an evaluator?In this episode, Lauren and Louise go behind the scenes of the bidding process to share what buyers actually look for when scoring submissions. Drawing on real evaluation experience, they unpack common mistakes, practical tips, and simple changes that can help suppliers write clearer, stronger, and more scorable bids.Ideal for SMEs, VCSEs, and anyone navigating public sector procurement.

In this episode of the Go4Growth podcast our host Gill wears a different hat. One of the voluntary roles Gill has is as Trustee of a Multi Academy Trust and today she is joined by the Head of Business Transformation for the Trust (Nexus) and they talk through the role of procurement in Education through the lens of both practitioners and governance.They talk through the journey Nexus has been on from a procurement perspective, including how the Procurement Excellence Programme (PEP)  has changed how Procurement thinks and acts and the impact it has had so far and will have in the future. They consider the role procurement plays in supporting teaching and learning, and share a specific project which is based around Biophilic Design. The impacts are pretty staggering! Gill & Lana also discuss how procurement can align with the employability agenda? Connecting suppliers and students can be really powerful and Lana shares some of the successes and future plans in this area. We hope you find it an empowering, inspiring and interesting conversation about the power good procurement can bring to education and we'd love to know what you think. Equally, if you're a supplier who would like to know more about supporting employability opportunities through the many ways this can be done, give us a shout at [email protected] and we'll get chatting! 

In this episode, we listen to a podcast version of a recording we made for the CIPS West Yorkshire Branch event back in May 2024.You'll hear Go4Growth co-founder Gillian Askew talk through some facts and stats about the challenges and barriers to working with SMEs through the procurement lens and similarly how the marketplace themselves view the barriers and challenges to working with the public sector. There's a look at some research findings from research projects Go4Growth has done and some top tips for buyers and commissioners who want to support the SME marketplace. To finish off we explore the use of AI in bids (amongst other support) and the Procurement Act 2023 and how it could impact SMEs going forward. If anyone would like to have a look at the iGov survey we did with YPO and the broader results and insights it gave, you can find it here: https://www.ypo.co.uk/public-sector/go4growth - Public Sector Attitudes to Working With SME SuppliersWe hope you find it useful and as always if you'd like to chat more, get in touch at [email protected]

In this episode founder of Go4Growth Gillian Askew talks through some of the key areas of the Procurement Act 2023 which comes into force in October 2024. In the podcast you can hear about some of the key changes such as: The bidding processEnhanced transparencyMEAT vs MATSupplier performance and contract managementThe Central Digital PlatformDynamic markets and frameworksGillian discusses how the Act will change things for smaller businesses, looking at what the current challenges and barriers are and the impact that the Act will have. There are lots of reasons for real optimism that Gillian explores discussing the positives of change for smaller organisations. There is also information on how to get prepared for the changes in the regulations with some guidance for both procurement and the marketplace about how barriers to entry and growth can be removed. 

In this episode co-founders of Go4Growth Gill and Jimmy discuss the Carbon Net Zero. They discuss how critical this agenda is and how the focus has really increased over recent years. Jimmy talks through what it's all about and gives an overview of Scopes 1, 2 and 3  Did you know that 80-90% of the total carbon of an organisation will be in one part of Scope 3 emissions? In the Purchased Goods and Services. It's no wonder that Go4Growth, like others, are focussing on building support for both clients and the marketplace in this area.   They talk about the programme Go4Growth has developed and how it helps public sector organisations and both their supply base and the local business and voluntary sector communities calculate the carbon footprint baseline and create and deliver a government compliant carbon reduction plan.   They talk about data, about how crucial it is and how they are working with primary data (actual data) as opposed to secondary data, which is made up of averages and how this de-coupling the data from spend is really transforming the actual view of the carbon reduction challenge ahead of us. It's also crucial in helping to report on accurate progress, and impact of the decisions and activities being undertaken.  As is always the way with Go4Growth, the programme is fully funded and so therefore free at point of use for the marketplace. Not just free for the first plan, or for a finite period of time, free at point of use forever.   We hope you find this podcast useful, give it a listen and tell us what you think. If we can help you with your carbon reduction priorities, get in touch at [email protected]

Episode 13 of the Go4Growth podcast is now live.Episode 13 see's your usual hosts, Gill and Lauren discuss Procurement Reform. The pair discuss the changes expected to come as the Procurement Act 2023 comes into play and how providers to the public sector can prepare for these changes and make the most of resources available.In addition to procurement reform, Gill and Lauren introduce Go4Growths latest social media venture, Tik Tok. Tune into the podcast to find out more about our plans for Tik Tok or simply find us on the platform @go4growth .To stay up to date with Go4Growth events visit: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/o/go4growth-34413476799  

Episode 12 is the third instalment in our Procurement Heroes series and although we might be a bit biased, we think this is another really good one! This time, Gill chats to Mike Fairbotham and Paul Smith about their careers in procurement, how they got into it and the kinds of changes they’ve both seen in our profession over the years. The group also talked about what still needs to change to really elevate procurement and to make sure it is fit for the world we live in both now and in the future. Connect with Mike and Paul on Linked In:Paul Smith: linkedin.com/in/pdsmithMike Fairbotham: linkedin.com/in/mikefairbotham 

Episode 11 sees Gill and Lauren discuss their observations on transferable skills between public sector bidding, private sector bidding and business to consumer, retail type stuff.  Secondly the pair run through what Go4Growth's events calendar is likely to look like for 2024 so people get a heads up with what’s coming next year. To keep up to date with Go4Growth's upcoming events visit: https://bit.ly/G4GEventsGill and Lauren can be contacted on:[email protected]@go4growth.co.uk

Episode ten sees Gill and Lauren discuss all things tech and data.The episode explores Go4Growth engagement figures over the past two years,  how we manage our data currently and how we plan to use AI technology going forward.  Ironically, in a podcast when technology is on the agenda, we have a couple of technical glitches during this episode so please bear with us when they do happen.To speak with a member of the team or to suggest content you'd like us to cover in the future, get in touch on [email protected] or on 07557773837.

Episode nine sees Lauren and Gill discuss Go4Growth's journey to becoming a social enterprise. Gill shares details of useful resources organisations can access to help them in their own journey to becoming a social enterprise. Find links to the resources mentioned in episode nine below:https://www.gov.uk/set-up-a-social-enterprisehttps://www.socialenterprise.org.uk/https://getpurpose.ly/If you would like to know more about becoming a Go4Growth client, please feel free to get in touch at [email protected]. Equally if you’re a provider and would like our help or support, you can get in touch at [email protected]. 

Episode 8 introduces the 2nd episode of our procurement heroes series featuring Simon Kempston who is just about to take up the role of Head of Operational Planning at Evri.

Episode 7 sees Gill and Lauren discuss the ways in which Go4Growth work to support businesses who are interested in working with the public sector, the types of support frequently requested and how the support can be accessed. Episode seven also introduces Go4Growth's most recent development PSSR. What is it? How does it work? When will it be available?Listeners can find out more about Go4Growth by visiting https://go4growth.co.uk/ or by contacting [email protected] or [email protected] you would like to stay up to date with all things Go4Growth, subscribe to our mailing list here: http://eepurl.com/icr1jH

 Introducing the Procurement Heroes Series.We’re starting close to home with Gill & Lauren from Go4Growth. Gill’s been in Procurement for nearly 30 years and so has seen much change over that time. She’ll share her experiences of being a woman in Procurement in what was a male dominated profession, working also in male dominated industries and how the gender balance landscape is slowly changing. Gillian’s passionate about widening participation so we’ll chat about her views on how Procurement should be visible and accessible to all as a career option. Lauren is new into profession and has chosen the apprenticeship route as access. We’ll be exploring how she’s finding it and her views on what it’s really like versus her perception of it prior to joining. We’ll explore with Lauren from this early career viewpoint, what changes she might like to see in the profession and we’ll chat about how future life and work plans may not always feel like they can co-exist. If you’re in procurement, or want to get into the profession or you might have left it (for any reason) and would like to join in the conversation on one of our podcasts, please get in touch. We’d love to hear from. You can do so via the usual channels – [email protected] or [email protected] or you can fill out our contact form on our website www.go4growth.co.uk

Episode 5 of the Go4Growth Podcast sees the team get together to discuss all things Carbon Net Zero. Gill and Lauren are joined on this episode by Go4Growth directors Sheri-Leigh Miles and Jimmy Brannigan.To connect with Sheri-Leigh and Jimmy, below are links to their LinkedIn pages:linkedin.com/in/jimmy-brannigan-325ba98 linkedin.com/in/sheri-leighListeners can also contact Go4Growth by emailing either [email protected] or [email protected]. 121 mentoring sessions can also be booked using the following link: https://bit.ly/G4GCalendar

Episode two of the Go4Growth podcast see's the team host a Q&A session with procurement officer Toni Hanson from Barnsley council and John Mellor from Enterprising Barnsley. The Q&A covers spend goals, support for local providers and tips for a successful bid.

Welcome to the Go4Growth podcast.