From tender to delivery - what now?
That moment when you find out you’ve won the contract is a rush.
Pride, relief, excitement - all flooding in at once.
Emotions fight for space as you realise that the next part of your journey is about growth and you’re so grateful for the recognition of the hard work your team has put in. You think about what it means on so many levels, and about the people it’s there to serve, the change you’re about to be able to make.
And then, almost in the same breath, the weight of it lands, the importance of it feels very real and your thoughts turn quickly to some big questions:
Where do we begin?
How will we do this?
How will we get it done in time?
And how will we get this right?
This isn’t just a win, it’s a responsibility. A promise to deliver for the people counting on you and a commitment to spend public money wisely. A chance to prove that the vision you put on paper really does translate to real-world practice.
With Inclusive Employment Australia (IEA) contracts now moving from tender to announcement to rollout, many providers are standing in the in between — between celebration and the reality of delivery. Between scaling and compliance. Between experience and innovation. Between culture and workforce expansion.
And the challenges are familiar. We’ve seen them across NDIS, aged care, and other reform-driven programs:
Scaling teams without losing the culture that brought you success in the first place
Embedding rights-based, person-centred practice
Turning KPIs into outcomes that matter
Recruiting and onboarding at pace
Finding the right people so that recruitment doesn’t become a churn
Training and embedding the new contract delivery
Building governance that supports delivery, not slows it down
Understanding the financial bottom line
Getting it right early to demonstrate performance
Capturing stories that show impact
We’ve been there too - and we remember the flood of feelings that came with it. When we got the call the adrenaline was high and sleep was low!
We’ve lived reform from the inside, leading the rollout of a national tender from paper to practice, building systems, staff capability, and culture that could hold under pressure without losing sight of the people it was for. We get it.
What we’ve learned
We know that excitement can quickly give way to the reality of delivery, as contracts are rolled out. What helped us, and what helps organisations we work with now, are a few simple but important things:
Begin with the end in mind. Be clear on what success needs to look like for the people you serve, your funders, and your team. Then plan backwards from there.
Start with the basics and don't overcomplicate. Get clear on the purpose of the contract, the people who need to be involved, and priorities across the program before building systems and processes.
Know and articulate culture while you grow. Without it, retention and engagement can quickly drop.
Share both numbers and stories and do it consistently.
Support and develop your middle leaders early. Team leaders, coordinators and supervisors carry much of the responsibility for day-to-day delivery. When they’re equipped and supported, frontline staff feel more confident, and services stay consistent.
These are not theories. They are lessons learned through doing the hard years, through hands-on leadership experience, lived on the ground. We have led and supported the rollout of national contracts and programs, grown workforces at speed, and built governance and culture that held under pressure.
We’re here to help
Now we bring that same experience to IEA and other reform contracts. Not as auditors, not as compliance checkers, but as delivery partners who know what it takes because we’ve done it ourselves. As people who know how to balance people, quality and performance.
If you’re in the thick of rollout and want to move from promise to performance in a way that’s sustainable and true to your values, let’s talk. We can unpack what’s clear, what’s heavy, and where to focus next.
Contact us to start the conversation. We'd love to work together.
