Accounting expertise: responding to public procurement for audit, statutory audit and financial advisory

Present your registration with the professional body, statutory auditor accreditation if applicable, and specific certifications. Name each team member with qualifications, years of experience, public sector specialisations, and similar engagements completed. Identify the signing partner, engagement manager and assigned staff with their allocation rate.

Detail the engagement phases: understanding the environment and accounting framework, audit planning (risk assessment, materiality threshold), fieldwork (substantive testing, procedures testing), synthesis and reporting. Provide a detailed calendar synchronised with the organisation's budget cycle. Reference applicable professional standards (ISA, national standards) and audit software used.

Demonstrate mastery of public accounting specifics: commitment vs cash accounting, accruals, regulated provisions, asset management, subsidy accounting, public sector VAT. Present 5-10 similar public sector references with organisation type, annual budget, engagement nature, duration and tangible results.

Detail deliverables: audit report with executive summary, prioritised recommendations, management letter, internal control report. Specify presentation format: oral presentation to finance committee, interim report. Collaborative platforms, data analysis tools and GDPR-compliant document hosting differentiate modern firms.

Generic methodology — Copy-pasting standard methodology without adapting to the public context.

Unnamed team — Presenting unnamed roles instead of identified, qualified professionals.

No public references — No track record with public sector clients significantly weakens the proposal.

Vague deliverables — Not specifying content, format and timeline suggests an improvised engagement.