Boss Moves: How to secure a public-sector contract

Expert advice for founders looking to navigate government procurement processes.

In this series we tackle the thorniest questions facing business leaders today.

Dear Stymied,

You’re not imagining it. Government procurement in Canada is a notoriously laborious process. Slow-moving and dense with regulatory requirements, it tends to favour large, resource-rich companies with entire departments dedicated to responding to requests for proposals (RFPs). For an early-stage startup with a novel solution and limited runway, the burden can be disqualifying. And because RFPs tend to be written around existing solutions, truly innovative technologies often don’t fit the criteria to begin with.

For advice on how to make it to the other side, we turned to Andrew Murray, co-founder and CEO of Aslan Renewables, a Canadian cleantech firm that has spent the past six years figuring out how to bring distributed hydroelectric power to communities across the country — and how to secure government funding for those projects. He’s navigated procurement at every level, from municipal committees in Atlantic Canada to provincial utility providers, and with 100 deployments targeted this year, Aslan’s approach is clearly working. Here’s what Murray recommends.

Start smaller than you think

The frustration founders feel toward RFPs is legitimate, Murray says; the process does put smaller companies at a disadvantage. Becoming an approved vendor for federal or provincial governments requires significant resources, and the regulatory work that comes with it can exceed the capacity of many small teams. Trying to compete at that level before you’re ready is a long shot at best — at worst, it can derail you before you make it to the end of the runway.

His advice: don’t fight that system — sidestep it.

Rather than reaching as high as you can right off the bat, Murray recommends identifying the lowest level of government where your solution can make a real difference as an initial target. For most cleantech founders, that means starting at the city level. “Municipalities in this country are the most innovative government groups by far,” he says. Unlike provincial or federal bodies, local governments have concrete, immediate exposure to the problems their communities face. That proximity makes them more likely to take a meeting, more willing to try something new and more motivated to move quickly.

There’s another plus tied to starting locally: A municipal partnership that generates real data, real community buy-in and a real track record becomes the business case you’ll need when you’re ready to approach higher levels of government.

Look for side doors on your way up

When choosing whom to approach at the provincial level, Murray points to economic development bodies such as Opportunities New Brunswick or Invest Ontario as underused entry points. These agencies exist to make connections between companies and government. “They’re the ones who will sit with you, understand your solution and work with you to establish a wider government pitch,” he says. “Plus, they’ll actually take your call.”

As Murray explains, just making it into the room isn’t enough. Your pitch has to go beyond the product. You need to show how your solution creates local value, how it will engage local businesses and how it will benefit the people footing the bill. “The economics have to trickle down to the community,” he says.

Turn time into leverage

A common complaint is that companies need a government contract to raise capital, but they need capital to survive the procurement process. That catch-22 is real — but rather than money, the real constraint is time, Murray says. Muster as much patience as you can. If you’re working in a category where there’s an existing procurement precedent, Murray estimates the process may take roughly a year and a half. If what you’re doing is genuinely novel, expect two years or more. Neither timeline is comfortable, but having realistic expectations upfront lets you plan accordingly.

You want to show decision-makers you’re not going anywhere while also avoiding the trap of waiting indefinitely before you make your next move. A smart strategic step is to keep deploying at the community level while longer provincial or federal conversations play out. Those smaller projects can generate revenue, but just as importantly, they generate proof points: references from local stakeholders and real-world case studies you can present to key government stakeholders when those conversations finally start moving.

Don’t mistake politeness for progress

There’s a common mistake early-stage founders make after getting an audience with government officials — and unfortunately, many business leaders don’t even realize they’ve made it. When you hear something like “we’re fans of what you’re doing — stay in touch,” from a ministry or procurement office, it’s easy to interpret that as momentum. But be warned: “If you treat that as progress, you’re going to be hanging around for a long time,” says Murray.

His advice is simple, but it takes nerve: Push every conversation toward a concrete next step. If a government body signals interest, ask a direct question about what you can do now to move things forward. Make them be specific.

When Aslan arrived in Ontario and found that the province wasn’t yet equipped to procure distributed power at the scale required, Murray didn’t wait. He turned his attention downstream to Conservation Ontario and the individual conservation authorities that manage water infrastructure on behalf of the province. That shift opened up hundreds of potential sites across Ontario, along with a set of active partnerships that would be ready when the province caught up.

The founders who make it through aren’t the ones who wait for the right opportunity. They’re the ones who keep moving — a quality that Murray feels has come to define this country’s entrepreneurial spirit. Instead of endlessly optimizing or waiting to scale, Canadian companies are becoming leaner and more pragmatic, and they’re getting out in the field. “They’ll get in the truck, drive three hours outside of Toronto and sit with the community,” says Murray. “What we’re seeing in Canada is true grit, and it’s making us stronger.”

Are you a business leader with a conundrum? Write to us at media@marsdd.com.

Photo illustration: Stephen Gregory; photos: Unsplash