Invitation to Quote for the Development of Sector Specific Databases to support the promotion of Midlands Engine businesses overseas

East Midlands Business Limited (EMB) wishes to commission a single contractor to deliver a sector-focussed database of businesses that turnover in the region of £500k per annum and already export or have the capability or capacity to export in the near future.

EMB is one of two Delivery Partner for the Department for International Trade (DIT), covering the Midlands Engine region. For this procurement, EMB is acting on behalf of DIT and working in partnership with our fellow Delivery Partner, West Midlands International Trade LLP (WMIT).

The strategic objectives of this project are:

• To refresh and augment the data that DIT already holds on its Datahub system in a number of sectors that deliver, or have the potential to deliver, particularly strongly for the Midlands Engine region in export markets.

• To qualify this data identifying those businesses with an appetite for export and connect them with relevant DIT services.

• To equip DIT Overseas Champions with granular information which allows them to effectively pitch Midlands-based businesses as the solutions for opportunities that arise in their particular territories.

The project deliverables are:

• A data file in an agreed format (see example in Annex A) containing a variety of data fields that can be interrogated by non-data analysts to produce results relating to their own search parameters.

• A subset of qualified data where contact has been made and export capability assessed, using a series of questions supplied by DIT. The number of questions will not exceed ten in number and will be straightforward for respondents to answer without reference to detailed business information and can be therefore completed in a single conversation.

• Documented consent for DIT to contact individuals further to discuss programmes and support that may be appropriate to their business needs in the instances where businesses have been contacted as part of the qualification element of this commission.

All work must be completed and the databases supplied by 5pm 31st March 2021.

The maximum available budget for the commission is £60,000, exclusive of VAT.

Further details, including how to apply, are included in the attached Invitation to Quote and Annex A.