How do I find out about tenders before they are published?

Every non-corporate Commonwealth entity must publish an annual procurement plan on AusTender by 1 July each year and keep it current. It lists significant procurements the entity expects to undertake. This is the earliest published signal you get, often months ahead of any approach to market.

Contract notices publish the contract end date. That means the forward pipeline of expiring Commonwealth work is a matter of public record: a contract ending in March is likely to be approached to market months before then. Watching expiry dates in your UNSPSC categories is the most reliable early signal available to an Australian supplier, and it also tells you exactly who the incumbent is and what they are being paid.

Requests for information and industry briefings are the third signal. No contract is awarded from an RFI, which is precisely why it is worth responding: it is where the requirement is still being shaped and where you can educate the buyer before the evaluation criteria are written.

FastTender watches all three automatically and scores what it finds against your profile.