Won a contract or tender and need cash to deliver it? Your call prep

You’ve won the work. The contract is bigger than usual, the start date is close, and you can already see the problem: materials, extra wages and maybe new gear all need paying weeks before the customer’s first payment lands. That gap is one of the most common reasons owners ask us for a call-back, and it’s one of the easier ones to talk through when you’ve got the right papers open.

This guide covers what the specialist will ask, what to have within reach, and the questions worth asking back.

What will the specialist want to know first?

Most first calls about funding a contract follow the same path. Expect questions along these lines:

1. Who’s the customer? A government agency, a big private company, a builder further up the chain, a local business? How long have you worked with them?
2. Is it signed? Contract, purchase order or letter of acceptance, and the date it was executed.
3. What’s the value and the timeline? Total contract value, start date, end date and key milestones.
4. What do you need to spend, and when? Materials, labour, subcontractors, equipment, insurance, travel.
5. When does money come back? Deposit, progress payments, milestone invoices, retention, final payment.
6. How does the funding get repaid? Usually from the contract’s own receipts, which is why the payment schedule matters so much.
7. How’s the rest of the business going? Turnover, existing debts, ATO position and anything unusual in your bank statements.

None of this is a test. The specialist is trying to see the shape of the gap: how big it gets, how long it lasts and what closes it.

The papers to have open before we ring

Use this as your checklist. You don’t need to send anything before a first call, but having it open means you can answer properly instead of guessing.

Have ready	Why it matters
Signed contract, purchase order or letter of award	Shows the work is real and committed, not just likely
The payment terms and milestone schedule	Tells everyone when money comes back in
A simple delivery budget, week by week	Shows the size and timing of the gap
Supplier quotes for major materials or equipment	Backs up the budget with real figures
Six months of business bank statements	Shows how the business trades right now
Your ATO account balance	Tax debt isn’t a deal-breaker, but it needs to be on the table
Details of any property you own	Can open up secured options for larger gaps

If you’d like a tailored version of this list, the call-prep tool builds one around your situation and suggests a call window in your local time.

How do I show the cash gap clearly?

This is the part most owners skip, and the part that makes the biggest difference on the call. Take a sheet of paper or a spreadsheet and set out the contract week by week:

• Money out: when each supplier, wage run, subcontractor and equipment payment falls due.
• Money in: when each invoice is issued, and when it’s realistically going to be paid. Use the terms in the contract, not the best case.
• Running balance: the gap at its deepest point is roughly what you need to fund.

Then add a buffer. Payments slip, variations take time to approve and the first invoice is often slower while the customer sets you up in their system. A plan that only works if everything is paid on the day isn’t really a plan.

Don’t forget the business you’re already running. Your usual wages, rent, BAS and super don’t pause while the new contract ramps up. Since 1 July 2026, Payday Super means employers need to pay super each pay cycle, so a bigger workforce on a new contract lifts that cash need straight away. Our cash flow gap call prep goes deeper on mapping it.

When the gap is mapped, you’re ready for a useful first conversation. Request a call-back and pick a window that suits, and mention the contract in the notes so the specialist can read up first.

Government contracts: check the payment terms

If your customer is a government agency, read the payment clauses closely. Several governments have published payment-time policies for suppliers, and knowing them helps you plan the gap realistically.

• Commonwealth agencies. Under the Department of Finance’s Supplier Pay On-Time or Pay Interest policy, non-corporate Commonwealth entities have maximum payment terms of 20 calendar days, or 5 calendar days where both sides use eInvoicing through the Peppol network. The clock starts from a correctly rendered invoice and acknowledgement that the goods or services were delivered satisfactorily.
• NSW Government. The Faster Payments initiative means in-scope agencies pay eligible small businesses within 5 business days of a correctly rendered invoice. Suppliers with fewer than 20 full-time employees are registered automatically through their buy.nsw supplier profile, so it’s worth checking yours is up to date.
• Queensland Government. Business Queensland’s On-time Payment Policy covers small businesses with fewer than 20 employees, with payment within 20 calendar days on “correctly rendered undisputed invoices”. You need to be on the On-time Payment Small Business Register.

Two things stand out in all of them: the invoice has to be right, and the work has to be accepted. A missing purchase order number or an unsigned delivery docket can push a payment out by weeks. Find out who signs off delivery on the customer’s side before you start.

For finding work in the first place, business.gov.au’s tenders page links to AusTender and each state’s tender portal.

Private contracts and subcontracting

If you’re working for a private company or as a subcontractor, the terms vary much more. Look for:

• Payment terms: 14, 30, 45 or 60 days from invoice, or from the end of the month.
• Progress claims and retention: in building and construction, part of each payment may be held back until the job is finished.
• Variations: how extra work is approved and paid.
• Termination: what happens, and what you’re paid, if the contract ends early.

Bring these clauses to the call. If something in the contract makes you uneasy, it’s worth asking your solicitor or accountant before you sign. Once you have signed, it helps to tell the specialist about any clause that could hold up payment.

Which kind of funding usually fits?

There’s no single answer, but the shape of the gap usually points the way:

What you need	Often suits
Materials and wages for a few months, repaid as invoices are paid	Short-term or cash-flow funding, or a line of credit
Equipment you’ll keep using after the contract	Equipment finance over its working life (equipment call prep)
A large upfront stock or materials order	Stock or trade funding (stock purchase call prep)
A big gap with property available as security	Property-secured funding

For trading businesses, unsecured and cash-flow options typically run from $5,000 to $500,000, sized on turnover and bank statements. Property-secured business loans run from $20,000 to $5,000,000. Which fits depends on your numbers, not the size of the contract alone.

A worked example (illustration only)

A joinery business in regional Victoria wins a contract to fit out a new community building. The contract runs four months with monthly progress payments on 30-day terms.

• Month 1: timber, hardware and two extra staff. Large outgoings, no income yet.
• Month 2: first progress claim issued. Outgoings continue.
• Month 3: first payment arrives. The gap starts to close.
• Month 4 and after: final claims, then retention released later.

On the call, the owner shares the signed contract, a one-page cash map showing the gap peaks in month two, quotes for the timber, and six months of bank statements. The conversation turns quickly to how much is needed, for how long and how it’ll be repaid from the progress payments, rather than to whether the work is real. They also decide to fund a new edge-bander separately, since it’ll outlast the job.

Questions worth asking any lender about contract funding

Turn the call around at the end. Ask:

• What’s the total cost in dollars if I repay on the schedule I’ve mapped?
• Can I repay early as contract payments arrive, and is there a cost to doing that?
• What happens if a progress payment comes late?
• What security or personal guarantees are involved?
• What will you need from me after the call, and by when?

Our pages on total cost in dollars and exit and early repayment cover these in more detail. If the customer does end up paying slowly, our guide to a big customer paying late has a plan for that week.

Ready to fund the work you’ve won?

Winning a contract is a vote of confidence in your business. The cash needed to deliver it shouldn’t be the thing that makes it stressful, and you don’t have to sort out the gap on your own.

Requesting a call-back takes about a minute, and there’s no credit check when you first enquire, so asking doesn’t touch your file. Your details stay with our team rather than being sent to a pile of lenders, so your phone won’t start ringing with strangers. A real specialist reads your request, including the contract notes, before ringing you in the window you choose.

Please fill the form in accurately: the amount you need, what it’s for, your state and whether there’s property involved. With the right details, the first call can start with the option that suits your contract.

Pick a window and we’ll ring you →