Free training to help your business win government work

South Australian Business News • Policy

Cathi Buttfield

Thursday, February 19th 2026

Many South Australian businesses tell us the same thing: government procurement is complex, time-consuming, and costly.

Whether you’re bidding directly for government contracts or participating in the supply chain, the process can be hard to navigate, especially for small and medium-sized businesses without dedicated tender teams.

That’s why we’re encouraging businesses to take advantage of the Office of the Industry Advocate’s free Tender for Success training.

Build your government tender capabilities

With both Fundamentals and Advanced training sessions available, the Tender for Success program is designed to help South Australian businesses better understand how to compete for government work. It covers:

How the South Australian Government procurement system works
Where to find tender opportunities
How to prepare competitive, compliant submissions
Tips for improving your chances of success
Common mistakes to avoid

The training is delivered both in-person and online, making it accessible for businesses in metropolitan and regional South Australia.

If you’re seeking to diversify your business revenue, grow through government supply chains, or better understand what buyers are looking for, this training is a practical and low-cost way to build capability.

CLICK HERE for upcoming session dates and register via the Office of the Industry Advocate website

Our procurement advocacy

At the South Australian Business Chamber, we regularly hear from businesses that:

Tender documentation is overly complex
Compliance requirements are disproportionate to contract size
Timeframes are tight and costly to meet
Feedback on unsuccessful bids is limited
Protecting IP during procurement processes can be challenging
Indirect suppliers struggle to understand where they fit in the process

We are actively engaging with the Office of the Industry Advocate to share lived experiences from SA businesses and advocate for procurement processes that are fair, transparent and genuinely accessible, particularly for small and medium enterprises across both metro and regional areas.

If your business has experienced challenges with government procurement, whether as a direct tenderer or part of a supply chain, we want to hear from you.

Your insights strengthen our advocacy and help ensure real-world business experience informs policy and process improvements.

Please contact our Policy Team to confidentially share your experience, raise broader concerns, or suggest opportunities for improvements you would like us to pursue.