At BizVision, we're delighted to announce our new brand FreeLearn and with it comes a collection of online learning and skills hubs giving every business total free membership with access to 100's of learning videos and resources. Here's the FreeLearn launch news.

Free online learning for all businesses

"FreeLearn Leadership and FreeLearn Sales Training are now live," says Malcolm Gallagher of BizVision, " And launching on the 23rd August will be FreeLearn Supplier Training," he added

Mr Gallagher went on to say that FreeLearn will help thousands of small businesses who cannot afford to take time out from work for training and struggle to pay seminar fees.

"With public sector funding cuts, many businesses now find they have to pay for workshops that used to be free, or there just aren't any around, " continued Malcolm Gallagher, "with FreeLearn, which is online learning, all businesses can learn as they want, anytime, anywhere", he said.

FreeLearn Leadership focuses on developing entrepreneurial leadership skills whilst FreeLearn sales Training has videos in the three zones of Find, Winning and Keeping customers. FreeLearn Suppliers Training is aiming to be the flagship of the FreeLearn collection as it will have nearly 100 videos and resources to help SMEs bid for a win public and private sector contracts and encourage them to go global and export.

FreeLearn skills hubs are open to anyone. Each hub requires a separate  but free, membership sign-up. For details go to FREELEARN - free membership

I know it turns people off as possibly being "fluffy" but knowing your business strategy is vital if you want to win contracts. Quite simply to-day's buyer wants to know that his or hgers suppliers (vendors) and themselves are travelling in the same direction. Be prepared in a contract interview to answer the question of "what's the strategy of your business?"

Start your strategy seeking off with a SWOT analysis. OK you may have done this but have you asked deep, probing questions. Here's 3 for your Strengths and Weaknesses:

1. What do we do outstandingly well or badly?
2. What are our special abilities or disabilities?
3. What are our advantages and disadvantages compared with direct competitors?

More to come in future posts or pick up a free SWOT pack at my site  http://bizvision.co.uk/power_downloads

In January, UK Government released an initiative which has to be good if you are a small firm wanting to win public sector contracts - but only if you are willing to do some measurement writes Malcolm Gallagher.

From the Spring of 2010, pubic procurement officers will have to show the OGC (Office of Government Commerce) the value of the contracts they have placed with small and medium sized enterprises. But they will also have to monitor and measure how many apprenticeships have been created through public procurement and the absolute number of suppliers who agreed to disclose their greenhouse gas emissions.

In addition, suppliers (vendors) will be asked to sign a new Supplier Charter which places voluntary commitments on both the procurer and supplier side take forward the policy priorities that are in the new Policy Through Procurement Action Plan (PtP).

If all this sounds a bit complicated then can you imagine its implementation!! But the message to all suppliers is clear. If you want your share of the near £200 billion UK Government annual spend on goods and services, you are going to have to embrace the aspects of compliance, including inclusion, health and safety and environmental matters, much more than ever before. within our Biz-Pulse.com programme.

In the SpotLearn.com Suppliers Academy are all the videos that you need to help you be a compliant suppliers and we are soon to launch a new Compliance Scorecard that will help you measure and manage these challenges. E-mail if you want to get early details.

If you want a copy of the Policy Through Procurement Action Plan please e-mail kim@bizvision.co.uk and she'll e-mail you it. Improve your knowledge, embed compliance and sharpen your ability to compete to win has to be key goals for 2010 if you want your share of those lucrative public procurement contracts.