We’re expanding our Sheffield and London offices and opening a new office in Bristol, where we’ve got a hub of super bright folks starting.

Does it matter if employees know exactly what their company’s values are?

Happily, there are a few simple things we can do to help empty that bucket, and even punch a few holes in it to stop it filling up next time! These can be broken down into 3 categories, I like to think of them as ‘The 3 P’s’; Positive Activity, Positive Interaction and Positive Thoughts.

The world of bid consultancy is a pressurised one. Juggling multiple projects. Word counts. Glitching IT. And the ever-present tick-tock of the looming deadline. It’s stressful. We’re constantly filling our metaphorical ‘stress bucket’.

But as I started to write, I realised that I was missing the wood for the trees. To write a good response, you have to strike a balance between getting the right level of detail and not losing the thread of your argument.

Without the benefit of implementation expertise inputting into the bid response, there is a risk that ‘winning content’ will find its way into the bid, and which in reality is very difficult to operationalise

Writing a bid is a bit like putting a jigsaw puzzle together, except that the all pieces are not in the box and you need to find them from somewhere else or design them yourself…

A good graphic is one that is conscious of the meaning it displays, working with text to send a unified message

It’s safe to say we’re very busy right now… working across multiple continents to support organisations to deliver Better Growth. Please forgive the humble brag, but it’s useful context for what follows…

We’re looking to connect with experienced bid writers who are interested in working with us on an associate basis.

And rather than tacking Social Value onto the end of bid as a stand alone, rather unloved section, we help our clients to see how it can be one of the key design principles underpinning every aspect of delivery. The golden thread of the bid, if you will.

Two weeks ago, I started my first job after graduating from university. For the past year I’d been hearing countless stories of Covid-related problems from friends starting work: from working at a new job for several months before being able to see coworkers in person to a growing list of friends who’ve tested positive for the virus.

Having now started working with 50 Degrees, I was surprised at how similarly the worlds of bid writing and grand strategy, from what I have learnt so far, appear to work.

It's strange how similar bid writing can be to academia – you are writing something to someone else’s criteria, seeking to understand what it is that they want and how you can provide that.

This week I’ve been enjoying the beaches of Cornwall and, amongst the sandcastles and seagulls, have spent a bit of time thinking about what we do, what makes us different to our competitors, and the reasons clients enjoy working with us (we get a lot of repeat business!). 

An article in The Atlantic early this week described Boris Johnson as an ‘optimistic storyteller’ (insert raised eyebrow emoji), in an article that I felt had parallels with the bid development process.

When 50 Degrees set a written recruitment exercise recently, we asked applicants, 'How will the impact of Covid-19 affect government outsourcing?' The principal objective was to examine their critical thinking, ability to construct an argument, and writing quality.

As it’s a new 50 Degrees, we thought we’d try a slightly different tack and talk about ourselves positively and celebrate a couple of our recent successes.

Last September 50 Degrees celebrated its 10th anniversary. A business that I started as a bit of a stop gap has turned into something much bigger over the years. Over the last year or so, during a couple of the quieter periods (when were they?!), I’ve had time to reflect on where I wanted 50 Degrees to be in another ten years’ time, and the sort of business I wanted it to be. The basic question I asked myself was what was the thing I valued most?

I guess ten years does feel like a long time ago, but it’s an odd feeling actually, because it’s also all gone by very quickly. What was actually started as a bit of a stop gap, has turned into something much bigger.