Public sector procurement is evolving rapidly. I remember my 8th-grade history class back in 19-hmm-hmm when Mr. Bagley explained to the class with such passion and vigor how quickly the world was moving, that our generation would find itself in a moment of technological and informational advancement, which would move more rapidly with each passing year. Even that memory feels quite dated, as we are in a moment that even Mr. Bagley couldn’t have predicted with AI, considering student expectations, spending trends, policy, and regulations.
Whether you’re selling into K–12 schools, higher education institutions, or government agencies, the playbook is changing, and vendors must stay ahead of these fluid trends. And yet, many vendors still operate with a surprisingly narrow lens: focused on one sector, one type of opportunity, or one definition of “high value”, or enrollment volume. It always fills my bucket when I can have a conversation with a vendor about expanding their scope, even in just one or two areas that have been overlooked. Organizations that are willing to broaden their perspective across markets, opportunity types, and procurement models are uncovering more pathways to growth, often with less friction and competition.
Opportunity Looks Different Than It Used To
- Solutions built for K–12 are often just as relevant in higher ed or local government contexts. Think cybersecurity, professional development, data systems, student services, AI software, and digitization. If you are focusing only on one sector of government, don’t.
- Beyond traditional competitive bidding, more agencies are utilizing cooperative purchasing, sole-source contracts, and outcomes-based contracting to expedite decision-making and address more complex problems.
- Showing up to partnership sales calls with stakeholders who have a grant is more popular than ever, as it helps create a collaborative relationship from the start, alleviates the funding issue related to purchasing your product or service, and ultimately goes a long way with your potential customer. Opening with a funding path is a foolproof way to build lasting relationships.
- Not every growth opportunity starts with a million-dollar RFP. Pilots, niche implementations, and follow-on contracts can offer faster entry points with long-term potential.
A Few Questions Worth Asking
- Are we limiting our focus to one vertical, or are we exploring crossover opportunities in adjacent markets?
- Are we only chasing high-enrollment or high-dollar bids, or are we open to different types and sizes of contracts?
- Are we actively tracking less traditional paths to procurement (e.g., intent to award notices, sole-source postings, or co-op leads)?
- Not every growth opportunity starts with a million-dollar RFP. Pilots, niche implementations, and follow-on contracts can offer faster entry points with long-term potential.
Moving from Information to Insight
Mr. Bagley was right: the world moves faster every year. But if he were teaching today, he’d probably be using AI lesson plans, interactive dashboards, and gamified assessments to keep up with his students’ methods that didn’t even exist when he stood at the chalkboard. The same is true in procurement: the tools, the rules, and the opportunities are changing just as quickly. The challenge isn’t just to keep pace, but to do it without burning out. Because while strategy demands speed and adaptability, we’re still human, not robots… at least, not yet.
Access to procurement data is essential, but making sense of it is what drives results. More vendors are realizing that how they interpret and act on RFP information is just as crucial as the listings themselves.
At RFP SchoolWatch, we’ve found that the most successful organizations are those that pair smart filtering with strategic reflection. That’s why we offer a Strategy and Coaching Program for teams looking to go deeper, not just in finding RFPs, but in understanding where their best-fit opportunities truly lie.
