Trying to get your SME on the radar of Australian government procurement officers? A generic company profile just won't cut it. You need a strategic capability statement. Think of it as your business's CV—it's your most critical marketing tool for making a powerful first impression and proving you offer undeniable value for money.

This guide, complete with a downloadable capability statement template for Australia, is your key to winning a slice of the nation's massive government procurement pie.

Why a Powerful Capability Statement Is Non-Negotiable

In the world of Australian government tenders, a capability statement is so much more than a simple business summary. It's your opening argument in a high-stakes bid to win a contract.

Often, it’s the very first document a procurement officer looks at to decide if your business is even worth a second glance. A weak or generic statement means you're out of the running before you've even had a chance to compete.

This is your shot to prove, concisely and powerfully, that you understand what the government needs and have the specific skills to deliver. It’s what separates the serious contenders from the hopefuls. For small and medium-sized businesses, it's the ultimate leveller, allowing a specialised local firm to showcase its expertise against much larger competitors.

Your Gateway to Government Contracts

The opportunities are immense. The Commonwealth Government spends over $70 billion annually on procurement, awarding more than 80,000 contracts through AusTender each year. Better yet, SMEs win a significant portion of this spend, proving that government buyers are actively looking to work with smaller, expert suppliers.

A well-crafted capability statement is essential to stand out. It needs to clearly show how your firm’s expertise aligns with AusTender requirements and the specific evaluation criteria.

Your statement must instantly answer three critical questions for a time-poor procurement officer:

What do you do? Give them a clear, jargon-free summary of your core services.

Why are you the best choice? Spell out your unique differentiators, past performance, and specific expertise.

How do you solve our problem? Draw a direct line between your capabilities and the agency’s goals.

More Than Just a Tender Requirement

A capability statement isn't just for a formal tender response; it's a versatile marketing asset. It’s the professional document you leave behind after a networking event, a powerful attachment in an introductory email to an agency, and a credible download on your website.

At its core, a good statement follows strong business communication best practices by clearly articulating your value. If you're new to the world of government tenders, getting a handle on the fundamentals is a great first move. You can get a clearer picture by reading our guide on what is tendering.

A capability statement is not just a document; it's a strategic conversation starter. It tells a government buyer you've done your homework, you understand their world, and you are ready to deliver value for money from day one.

Anatomy of a Winning Capability Statement

Let's move from theory to action. What actually goes into a capability statement that gets you noticed? Think of this as your blueprint for a document that procurement officers will actually read, understand, and value. Each section has a specific job to do, and when they all work together, they build a powerful case for your business.

This diagram shows you exactly where a capability statement sits in the pecking order of business documents when you're chasing government work.

As you can see, it’s the critical bridge between your general business profile and the ultimate prize—a government contract. It’s what elevates your pitch from a generic flyer to a targeted, strategic document that speaks their language.

Key Sections of an Australian Capability Statement

Every solid capability statement is built on a few core pillars. Getting these right is non-negotiable if you want to make it past the first sift. Each section provides a different piece of the puzzle for the evaluation panel.

Here's a quick rundown of the essential components and why each one matters.

Section

Purpose

What to Include

Company Overview

Your first impression—a concise elevator pitch.

Legal Name, ABN/ACN, Contact Person, Website, and a snapshot of your company's size, location, and years in operation.

Core Competencies

The heart of your document, showing what you do best.

A bulleted list of your key services, framed in a way that aligns with government needs and terminology.

Past Performance

Proof that you can deliver on your promises.

3-5 relevant project examples (mini-case studies) with client names, project value, a brief summary, and quantified outcomes.

Key Personnel

Introduces the expert team behind the work.

Short bios for key team members, highlighting relevant government experience, qualifications, and security clearances.

Differentiators

Answers the "Why you?" question.

Your unique selling points, certifications (ISO, etc.), special methodologies, and anything that proves value for money.

Let's dive a bit deeper into what makes each of these sections truly effective.

The Company Overview

This is not the place for your fluffy "About Us" page copy. Your company overview needs to be a sharp, direct elevator pitch designed to grab attention immediately. In under 100 words, it must answer three questions: Who are you? What do you do? And why should a government agency care?

Get the essentials on the page right away:

Legal Business Name and ABN/ACN: This establishes your legitimacy from the first line.

Website and Contact Person: Make it incredibly easy for them to take the next step.

Company Snapshot: A quick line on your size, years in business, and location. This context is crucial for demonstrating stability and local presence.

For instance, don’t just say, "We are an innovative IT solutions provider." That’s generic. Try this instead: "CyberSafe Solutions Pty Ltd (ABN: 12 345 678 910) is a veteran-owned cybersecurity firm based in Canberra, specialising in protecting sensitive government data for federal agencies since 2015."

See the difference? It immediately conveys expertise, location, ownership status, and relevant experience.

Defining Your Core Competencies

This section is the engine room of your statement. It's where you list your services, but through a government-focused lens. The biggest mistake here is trying to list every single thing your business can do. Instead, group your capabilities into logical categories that mirror common government needs.

Use a bulleted list. It’s the easiest format for a time-poor evaluator to scan. Make every point an outcome-focused statement.

Weak example: "Software development"

Strong example: "Secure Application Development: Building, testing, and deploying custom software applications compliant with ASD Essential Eight mitigation strategies."

This approach doesn't just show what you do; it shows you understand the specific standards and language of Australian government work. For more ideas on how to frame your services, checking out a complete sample capability statement can be a huge help.

Showcasing Your Past Performance

This is your proof. For government buyers, past performance isn't just important—it's often the single best predictor of future success. You have to prove you have a history of delivering on time, on budget, and to a high standard.

Pick three to five of your most relevant projects. Ideally, these are previous government contracts, but high-quality commercial work for well-known Australian brands is also powerful. Treat each project like a mini-case study.

For each one, include:

Client: The government agency or company.

Project Title & Value: Be specific about the project and its worth.

Summary: Briefly explain the problem they had and the solution you provided.

Outcome: Quantify the results. Did you save them money? Improve efficiency by 20%? Meet a critical deadline that others couldn't?

Pro Tip: If you're bound by confidentiality, describe the client and project in specific but general terms. For example, "A major Australian financial institution" or "A large-scale logistics project for a Commonwealth Department."

Highlighting Key Personnel

Your people are one of your biggest assets, so show them off. This section introduces the core team members who would be working on the contract. Don't just list names and job titles. Focus on what makes them uniquely qualified for this kind of work.

A short bio of 2-3 sentences for each person is perfect. Make sure to highlight:

Relevant experience, especially on other government projects.

Unique qualifications, like security clearances or specific accreditations.

Their specific role in delivering value to the agency.

This gives the procurement panel confidence that they'll be working with seasoned, credible experts, not a junior varsity team.

Your Differentiators and Value for Money

Finally, you need to spell out what sets you apart. This section is your direct answer to the government's core procurement principle: value for money. What makes your business a better, safer, or more valuable choice than the dozen other companies pitching for the same work?

Your differentiators might include:

Unique Methodologies: A proprietary process that cuts costs or reduces risk.

Specialised Equipment: Access to technology or tools that others don't have.

Industry Certifications: Things like ISO 9001 (Quality Management) or ISO 27001 (Information Security) are huge credibility boosters.

Indigenous or Social Enterprise Status: If this applies to you, make it prominent. It directly aligns with government social procurement policies.

Crucially, you need to show you’re a safe bet. This is where you demonstrate your commitment to compliance and adherence to industry standards. Tying these unique strengths back to the government’s needs is what turns a good capability statement into a great one.

Customising Your Statement for Maximum Impact

Submitting a generic, one-size-fits-all capability statement is one of the fastest ways to get your tender response moved to the ‘no’ pile. Government procurement officers are experts at spotting boilerplate content. To win government tenders, you have to show you've done your homework and actually understand their specific needs.

Think of your master capability statement as the starting point, not the finished product. Every single submission to a government department or for a specific Request for Tender (RFT) demands a tailored approach.

Deconstruct the Tender Documents

Before you even touch your template, you need to become an expert on the opportunity in front of you. This means doing a thorough analysis of the RFT and any other documents they’ve provided. You're hunting for the buyer's priorities—both the ones they state outright and the ones you have to read between the lines to find.

Pay extremely close attention to these key areas:

Evaluation Criteria: This is your cheat sheet. The government is literally telling you how they will score your response. Your statement must directly address these criteria, and it’s a great idea to use their exact language where it makes sense.

Agency Goals: Jump onto the agency’s website and read their latest annual report or corporate plan. When you understand their strategic objectives, you can frame your capabilities as direct solutions to their biggest challenges.

The Scope of Works: What are the absolute mandatory requirements? Pinpoint the keywords, technical terms, and desired outcomes they mention over and over. These need to be mirrored in your statement.

This forensic approach ensures your document doesn't just list what you do; it proves you are the perfect solution for this specific problem. It shows you’re not just another supplier, but a potential partner who gets it.

Aligning with Agency-Specific Priorities

It's simple, really: different government departments have vastly different missions. A statement that gets the Department of Defence excited will likely fall completely flat with Services Australia. Your customisation has to reflect this reality.

Just think about these scenarios:

For a Defence Tender: Here, you’d go heavy on your security credentials. We're talking Defence Industry Security Program (DISP) membership, security-cleared personnel, and your experience handling protected data. Your past performance section should be stacked with projects that had similar, heavy-duty security demands.

For a Services Australia Contract: The focus shifts entirely to community impact and user experience. You'd want to showcase your experience with large-scale public-facing projects, stakeholder engagement, and hitting accessibility standards (like WCAG for digital services).

For an Infrastructure Project: Your statement should lead with your rock-solid Work Health and Safety (WHS) systems, quality assurance certifications like ISO 9001, and a proven track record of delivering complex projects on time and on budget.

Tailoring your statement isn't just about changing a few words. It's about re-framing your entire value proposition to align perfectly with the mission and risk profile of the specific government agency you're targeting.

Weaving in Government Initiatives and Policies

Showing that you’re aligned with broader government policies can be a powerful way to stand out. It proves you’re a forward-thinking partner who understands the bigger picture.

For instance, the Commonwealth Procurement Rules (CPRs) are getting a significant shake-up. Updates kicking in from late 2025 will boost SME procurement targets and favour Australian businesses, as detailed in the 2025 Commonwealth procurement overhaul. Now, more than ever, you need to customise your statement to explicitly mention your Australian ownership, local supply chains, and commitment to building sovereign capability.

It works for other policies, too. If the RFT mentions the Indigenous Procurement Policy (IPP), you should highlight your company's Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP), any Indigenous joint ventures you're part of, or your spend with Indigenous suppliers. This directly addresses a key government priority and can give your submission a real edge. This is just one example of how to tackle specific requirements; for a deeper dive, check out our guide on how to address selection criteria in your tender responses.

Design and Formatting That Demands Attention

You can have the most powerful content in the world, but if it’s trapped in a poorly designed document, it’s going to fail. A capability statement that looks amateurish or is a nightmare to read sends a very clear signal to government buyers: you lack attention to detail. In the world of government procurement, that’s a massive red flag.

The visual presentation of your statement is every bit as important as the words you use.

This isn’t about being flashy. It’s about creating a clean, professional, and easily scannable document that screams quality. A polished layout shows you take your work—and their potential partnership—seriously.

Brand Consistency Is Key

Think of your capability statement as an extension of your brand. It should look and feel like it comes straight from your company, creating a seamless experience for anyone who has seen your website or other marketing materials.

Get these core elements right:

Logo: Your company logo should be front and centre, usually in the header on the first page. You can add a smaller version to the footer on subsequent pages for a professional touch.

Colour Palette: Stick to your established brand colours. Use them strategically for headings, subheadings, and maybe to highlight a key stat, but don’t go overboard and overwhelm the page.

Fonts: Use the same fonts that you use on your website and other business documents. A common approach is a clean, professional font for headings (like Arial, Helvetica, or Calibri) and another easy-to-read font for the body text.

This kind of consistency builds brand recognition and projects an image of stability and professionalism—two things that government evaluation panels absolutely love to see.

Readability and Professional Layout

A busy procurement officer might only give your document a few minutes of their time. Your job is to make those minutes count. A cluttered, dense document makes their job harder, and that reflects badly on you.

Focus on a layout that’s dead simple to scan and digest.

Your design goal is simple: clarity. Use formatting to guide the reader’s eye straight to the most important information, making it effortless for them to see why you are the best choice.

Here are some formatting tips that are non-negotiable:

Embrace White Space: Don't cram everything onto the page. Generous margins and spacing between sections make the document feel less intimidating and far easier on the eyes.

Use Clear Headings: Bold H2 and H3 headings are your best friend. They break up the content into logical chunks and let evaluators jump straight to the sections that matter most to them.

Lean on Bullet Points: When you’re listing things like core competencies, past projects, or your key differentiators, always use bullet points. They are infinitely easier to scan than a dense paragraph of text.

The Power of Professional Imagery

A picture really is worth a thousand words, especially in a text-heavy document. High-quality images can add a massive layer of credibility and make your capabilities feel more tangible.

Consider including:

A professional headshot of your main point of contact.

High-resolution photos of your team delivering a service or of a completed project.

Images that showcase your work in action (if it’s appropriate for your industry).

Whatever you do, avoid generic stock photos. Authentic images that show your actual work and your real people are far more impactful and build genuine trust.

And one final, crucial point. Always, always save and send your final document as a PDF. This locks in all your hard work on formatting, ensuring it looks exactly as you intended, no matter what device it’s opened on. Sending a Word doc is a rookie mistake—it can look messy and disorganised on another computer. Submitting a PDF is standard business practice and shows you know what you’re doing.

Putting Your Capability Statement to Work

So you've built a killer capability statement. Don't let it gather digital dust on your hard drive, only to be dragged out when a tender drops. That's a rookie mistake. An effective capability statement is a proactive business development tool, not a reactive one. Think of it as your company's ambassador—it should be out there working for you 24/7.

Transforming it into a living document helps you build credibility and foster key relationships long before a Request for Tender (RFT) is even a twinkle in a procurement officer's eye.

Proactive Distribution Strategies

Once your document is polished and ready, it's time to get it in front of the right people. Passively waiting for a tender to pop up on AusTender is a surefire way to get lost in the crowd. You need to get ahead of the game.

Here’s how to use your capability statement to outmanoeuvre the competition:

Industry Briefings and Networking Events: Never attend an industry event empty-handed. Have your capability statement ready to go on a tablet or as a sharp-looking printout. It’s the perfect, professional follow-up after a chat with a government buyer or a potential prime contractor.

Your Website: Don't bury it. Add a clear call-to-action on your "Government" or "Services" page, letting potential clients download it. This isn't just about sharing information; it’s about capturing leads and signalling that you're serious about public sector work.

Introductory Emails: When you reach out to procurement officers or agency contacts, attaching your capability statement adds instant weight. It turns a cold email into a credible business proposition and gives them something tangible to review.

Your capability statement acts as your digital handshake. It introduces your business's core strengths and professional approach before you even step into a meeting, setting a positive tone for future engagement.

Building Relationships Before the RFT

The whole point of proactive distribution is to become a known, trusted entity. When an evaluation panel sees your name on a tender response, you want them to already have a positive impression of your brand.

By strategically sharing your capability statement, you position your business as an industry expert that is engaged, professional, and ready to deliver solutions. This subtle, long-term approach can be incredibly powerful. It helps you shift from being just another anonymous supplier in a crowded market to a recognised specialist they should be talking to.

It's all about playing the long game. The relationships you build today can pay massive dividends on future government contracts.

A Powerful Tool for Indigenous Businesses

For Indigenous-owned businesses, a capability statement is an absolutely critical tool for leveraging the Indigenous Procurement Policy (IPP). This policy opens up significant opportunities, but you still have to prove you have the capacity and expertise to deliver real value.

The IPP is a massive driver in Commonwealth procurement, and with ongoing targets for contract awards, a powerful capability statement is non-negotiable for Indigenous businesses to showcase their skills.

For other SMEs, highlighting your own Indigenous participation plan in your statement can be a massive differentiator. You can learn more about these priorities and the impact of the IPP on the official NIAA website.

Your statement must prominently feature:

Your Supply Nation or other relevant certification.

Case studies highlighting successful projects delivered for government or corporate clients.

Your unique value proposition—this could be deep community connections, local employment benefits, or specialised knowledge.

This allows you to effectively engage with government agencies and prime contractors who are actively trying to meet their IPP targets. It’s your primary tool for opening doors and proving you are a reliable, high-performing partner.

Streamline Your Tender Responses With GovBid

Creating a powerful capability statement template is a fantastic start, but the real challenge is managing it effectively. A static Word doc saved somewhere on a server quickly becomes outdated and is a pain to tailor for each new bid. This is where you need to move beyond manual document wrangling and adopt a smarter approach with a platform like GovBid.

Think of GovBid as the central brain for all your tender response content. Our AI-powered platform helps you build a living, breathing system that saves you countless hours and stops your team from reinventing the wheel every single time a government tender lands on their desk.

Your Centralised Knowledge Library

We’ve all been there—frantically searching through old submissions and network folders trying to find the right project example or a team member's CV. It's a massive time sink. With the average tender response already taking 40-80 hours to pull together, inefficient document management just makes a hard job even harder.

GovBid solves this headache with a dedicated knowledge library. You can securely store, manage, and version-control all your essential content in one place:

Multiple Capability Statements: Keep versions ready to go, tailored for different sectors like Defence, Health, or IT.

Project Case Studies: Store detailed past performance examples that are easy to find and drop into a new response.

Team Member CVs: Have up-to-date resumes on hand, complete with security clearances and key qualifications.

Company Policies and Certifications: Instantly access documents like your WHS policy or ISO certifications without digging through folders.

This approach turns your past work into a valuable, reusable asset, ensuring absolute consistency and accuracy across every government tender you submit.

AI-Powered Document Matching

Here’s where it gets really clever. When a new government tender appears on AusTender, how do you know which of your capability statements is the best fit? GovBid's AI takes all the guesswork out of it.

Our system analyses the new tender's evaluation criteria and scope of work. It then intelligently matches these requirements against the content you've stored in your knowledge library.

GovBid instantly recommends the most relevant capability statement, case studies, and personnel for the opportunity. This isn't just a time-saver; it's a strategic tool that ensures your response is perfectly aligned with what the procurement panel wants to see, right from the very start.

By moving your capability statement template for Australian tenders into a smart system, you slash the administrative burden and free up your team to focus on winning strategy. The result is a faster, more consistent, and ultimately more successful tender response process.

Got Questions? We’ve Got Answers.

When you're new to the world of government tenders, a few questions always pop up. We’ve heard them all. Here are the answers to the most common queries we get about building a winning capability statement.

How Long Should a Capability Statement Be in Australia?

Forget the strict one-page rule you might hear about from the US. Here in Australia, things are a bit different. You should be aiming for two to six pages.

The real goal isn't hitting a specific page count; it's about being concise yet comprehensive. You need enough space to properly prove you’re the right choice and can solve the agency's specific problems, without drowning them in fluff. A shorter, punchier version might be perfect for an initial introduction, but for a formal tender response, you'll likely need the extra detail.

Can I Just Use the Same Statement for All Tenders?

Honestly, this is one of the biggest and most common mistakes we see. Sending a generic, one-size-fits-all document is the fastest way to the 'no' pile.

Yes, you should absolutely have a master capability statement template (Australia). But it’s just a starting point. For every single opportunity, you must customise it. That means digging into the tender documents and aligning your capabilities, project examples, and even your language directly with their evaluation criteria.

What’s the Difference Between a Company Profile and a Capability Statement?

This is a crucial distinction. Think of a company profile as a general marketing brochure. It’s written for a wide audience and talks about your company's history, its grand mission, and all the services you offer. It’s about you.

A capability statement, on the other hand, is a highly focused sales document written for one person: the government buyer. It’s all about them. It laser-focuses on answering a single question: "Why are you the best supplier to solve our specific problem?" It's not about your history; it's about proving you can deliver outstanding value for money, right now.

Does it Really Need to Be Professionally Designed?

While your content is what ultimately wins the bid, first impressions count for a lot. A poorly formatted, messy document screams a lack of attention to detail—a massive red flag for any government buyer.

It doesn’t need to be a glossy, expensive design masterpiece. But it absolutely must look professional. Use a clean, simple layout, incorporate your company branding consistently, and always, always save and submit it as a PDF.

Ready to stop juggling documents and start winning more government tenders? The GovBid platform centralises your capability statements, case studies, and CVs, using AI to help you build perfectly tailored responses in a fraction of the time.

Start your free 7-day trial at GovBid.com.au