The provision of Communications and Public Relations Services for Strategic Marketing of the Springboard+ Programme in 2026

AI-generated analysis of the documents. Check the official notice and any amendments for current submission details.

1. At a glance

2. Scope of Work

The Higher Education Authority ran this procurement for “The provision of Communications and Public Relations Services for Strategic Marketing of the Springboard+ Programme in 2026” as an operational contract requiring implementation and sustained service execution. The extracted pack showed qualification-stage material with references to later ITT technical depth; practical activity therefore centred on building, integrating, and operating the specified service stack with compliant reporting and handover obligations where stated. Constituent activities and named work elements in the supplied extracts:

• Title: The provision of Communications and Public Relations Services for Strategic Marketing of the Springboard+ Programme in 2026
• The services outlined in this tender will be not exceed €140,000 (excluding VAT)
• • A minimum of three reference sites should be provided which demonstrate track record for the services required/being tendered for Please indicate any other information which you feel might be relevant in evalua
• Relations Services for Strategic Marketing of the
• SERVICES EXPECTED UNDER THIS CONTRACT
• The HEA leads the strategic development of the Irish higher education and research system, with the objective of
• creating a coherent system of diverse institutions with distinct missions, which is responsive to the social, cultural,
• and economic development of Ireland and its people, and supports the achievement of national objectives.
• higher education institutions and the higher education system. In executing our mandate, the HEA works to ensure
• management at institutional and system-levels
• The HEA Act 2022 9(1)(F) references the following function “…to support the provision of a range of programmes of
• strategic planning and strategy implementation at institutional, regional, and national level. Non-binding monetary references in the source were treated as context only and were not used as qualification thresholds.

3. Background & buyer context

The buyer context reflected a formal Irish public-procurement route, with pre-qualification used to control entry into the tender stage.

• Title: The provision of Communications and Public Relations Services for Strategic Marketing of the Springboard+ Programme in 2026
• 7.15 Policy on personal debriefings
• The HEA leads the strategic development of the Irish higher education and research system, with the objective of
• and economic development of Ireland and its people, and supports the achievement of national objectives.

4. Eligibility & selection criteria

• Turnover requirement — — use these verbatim for insurance / turnover. If a category (insurance, turnover) has no entry here, treat it as 'not specified' for THIS tender.
• Insurance — — use these verbatim for insurance / turnover. If a category (insurance, turnover) has no entry here, treat it as 'not specified' for THIS tender.; Insurance type Required value € Employers’ liability €12.7 million Public Liability €6; 5 million Professional Indemnity €1.5 million Technical and Tenderers must declare
• Certifications — not specified for this tender
• Past experience — not specified for this tender
• Personnel — not specified for this tender
• Geographic / facility constraints — not specified for this tender Additional binding lines surfaced in the deterministic extract:
• — use these verbatim for insurance / turnover. If a category (insurance, turnover) has no entry here, treat it as 'not specified' for THIS tender.
• Insurance type Required value € Employers’ liability €12.7 million Public Liability €6
• 5 million Professional Indemnity €1.5 million Technical and Tenderers must declare
• Insurance Type Level required if successful Level in Place Details of Any Excess Renewal Date Employers Liability €12.7 million € Public Liab
• 5 million € Professional Indemnity €1.5 million € AND
• 5 million € Professional Indemnity €1.5 million € AND

5. Award criteria & scoring

6. Submission requirements

• Method statement / response document (template/page limits) — not specified in extract.
• CVs (page count, named roles) — not specified in extract.
• Pricing schedule (format/template) — expected at ITT stage.
• Case studies (number/value range) — client references/comparable project evidence was referenced.
• Declarations (ESPD/Bona Fides/Tax/COI) — ESPD/declaration/statement-of-confirmation language was present.
• Mandatory site visit — not specified in extract.
• Submission portal and formatting — eTenders portal and PDF electronic copies were referenced. Submission-related source lines:
• [RFT - PR Comms and Marketing 2026.pdf] Request for
• General Declarations and Financial Requirements
• [RFT - PR Comms and Marketing 2026.pdf] 4
• [RFT - PR Comms and Marketing 2026.pdf] there is due regard to institutional autonomy and academic freedom
• [RFT - PR Comms and Marketing 2026.pdf] academic freedom.
• [RFT - PR Comms and Marketing 2026.pdf] is eligible to apply for.

7. Key dates & process

8. Contract terms that matter

Contract duration in the extract: 6 months. Payment cycle, SLA/KPI schedule, and penalty regime were not fully disclosed in the snippets unless listed below.

• VERIFIED PHRASES (deterministic regex extract from the documents — treat as authoritative for numerical claims)
• This contract is for an initial term of 6 months with the possibility to extend for a fu
• re parts of the contract may be performed that are in force 7 days prior to the deadline for receipt of Te
• reserves the right to extend the term for a period of up to 6 months with a maximum of one such extension pe
• ontinues for 60 calendar days either Party may terminate at 14 days’ notice
• breach(es) (if the breach(es) are capable of remedy) within 30 days after receipt of a request in writing f
• capable of remedy) within 30 days after receipt of a request in writing f
• For the Term and for a period of 12 months thereafter (and save in respect of publ

9. Risks, red flags & unusuals

• Qualification gate: the deterministic extract included a turnover threshold line (— use these verbatim for insurance / turnover. If a category (insurance, turnover) has no entry here, treat it as 'not specified' for THIS tender.), which can materially narrow bidder pool composition.
• The two-step process (PQQ then ITT) shifted effort to compliance evidence early, with competitive scoring detail potentially deferred.
• Technical and contractual granularity appeared ITT-dependent, increasing ambiguity at qualification stage for non-incumbent bidders.

10. SME fit assessment

This competition looked most accessible to firms with established public-sector tender capability, documented financial capacity, and direct operational experience in the relevant service category.

• Credible bidder profile — mid-sized to large specialist with formal QA/compliance process.
• Consortium / sub-contracting — allowed or addressed in the extracts (Appendix references and reliance provisions).
• Indicative bid-prep effort — 6 to 12 working days for evidence collation, form completion, and review cycles at PQQ level.
• Pwin signal — strongest for bidders with reusable qualification artefacts, comparable references, and low-friction mobilisation capability.

11. Where to dig deeper

• Source RFT/PQQ filenames: RFT - PR Comms and Marketing 2026.pdf, RFT - PR Comms and Marketing 2026.pdf] Request for, RFT - PR Comms and Marketing 2026.pdf] 4.
• eTenders CFT / notice reference: not specified in extract.
• Clarification contact / portal: eTenders message portal (email not surfaced in extract).
• Key attachments to prioritise: RFT - PR Comms and Marketing 2026.pdf] there is due regard to institutional autonom, RFT - PR Comms and Marketing 2026.pdf] academic freedom., RFT - PR Comms and Marketing 2026.pdf] is eligible to apply for..