In the wake of ongoing global security pressures, industrial output and supply chain resilience remain strategic priorities for aerospace and defence (A&D) organisations across Europe and NATO. The updated 2025 NATO Defence Production Action Plan reinforces the need for accelerated production, co-ordinated multinational procurement and stronger defence industrial capacity.
For procurement leaders and defence suppliers in the UK, these strategic priorities have practical implications: they demand a more adaptive, inclusive defence procurement strategy. One of the most effective ways to strengthen UK defence industry supply chain resilience is by intentionally enabling small and medium-sized suppliers to participate and compete.
This is not only good practice. It is a route to sustainable production growth, innovation and competitive advantage.
Why small suppliers matter
The 2025 NATO Defence Production Action Plan highlights the need to better understand industrial capacity and production requirements, make supply chains more secure and resilient, and coordinate demand through multiyear and multinational procurement. It also encourages more systematic approaches to industry engagement and capability scaling.
These priorities align closely with what Barkers has long recommended as core elements of a future-fit defence procurement strategy: one that balances governance and compliance with accessibility, competition and innovation.
In this context, supporting smaller suppliers is critical. In an environment where defence industrial capacity must expand rapidly and sustainably, these businesses can contribute:
- Specialist innovation that large primes may not deliver
- Flexible production niches that enhance surge capacity
- Diversified risk across the supply chain
- New technology adoption pathways aligned to national and alliance planning
Small suppliers are often the source of technical creativity, disruptive ideas and niche capabilities. Tapping into their value is a massive advantage: up-and-coming suppliers with fresh thinking and transferable knowledge will put the defence industry in the best possible position to drive up production, quality and savings.
Translating strategy into supplier-centric procurement
Many procurement teams assume all suppliers begin on a level playing field. In practice, however, smaller firms often lack the internal resources to respond to the lengthy or complex tenders that are common in the A&D market.
It’s crucial, therefore, to understand their situation and make the prospect of working together more compelling. Without deliberate support and engagement, capable companies can disengage early, shrinking the supplier base and weakening resilience.
For organisations investing in future readiness, this is both a strategic challenge and an opportunity. Here’s how defence procurement teams can reshape their approach to both fulfil strategic targets and improve operational outcomes:
1) Schedule a period of due diligence
One way in which procurement can support smaller suppliers is by scheduling a period of due diligence. As small businesses depend on cash flow and have their own internal governance standards, it’s important that they feel comfortable with the pricing they submit.
It will require a resource investment of sufficient time – at least four weeks – and a dedicated team member to help suppliers access all the information, people and systems they need in order to do their best.
Reviewing existing bid processes, providing clear documentation portals and simplifying submission pathways can also be incredibly valuable to small suppliers. This is a core part of modern defence procurement strategies and is key to supporting UK defence industry supply chain resilience.
2) Provide accurate, structured data early and openly
Providing accurate data to suppliers drives effective pricing, risk assessment and decision-making. Yet many suppliers struggle with fragmented or inconsistent information, especially early in the bid cycle.
It’s sensible to ask each supplier early on what information they’re likely to need, and then to set up a centralised virtual data room in which to store relevant documents for suppliers. If data quality is poor or missing, inform suppliers and consider a pricing mechanism to pre-agree the cost of any amendments. Providing all suppliers with the same estimates ensures fair quotes and helps smaller suppliers succeed, strengthening long-term relationships.
3) Save suppliers’ time with proactive engagement
Small businesses require a lot of information while bidding, and providing it can take time. They often need direct access to subject matter experts, clarification sessions, and regular touchpoints. Waiting weeks for responses or to secure meetings with busy colleagues slows decision-making and increases risk.
A practical solution is to find out early who suppliers wish to interview and secure time with the relevant experts. Similarly, formalising a process in which suppliers can submit questions and receive relevant responses can be enormously helpful. Procurement can also assess how viable the bidding timeline is for small suppliers by requesting weekly reports, which will surface potential issues.
Another way to help save small suppliers time, both upfront and down the line, is to absorb the job of writing contracts. It’s sensible for procurement, with its vast experience in contract writing, to pen the first draft and help both parties yield a positive result.
Building resilient supplier relationships
These small-supplier-centric approaches may pose initial costs to procurement teams, but it’s a worthwhile investment. It demonstrates that procurement teams respect the supplier’s time and understand their value, which helps to strengthen these crucial relationships.
The 2025 NATO plan encourages ongoing engagement with industry throughout capability life cycles. For defence procurement teams, this means procurement activities should support small and medium suppliers not just at bidding and award, but into:
- Onboarding and integration
- Performance monitoring
- Contractual review and operating rhythm
- Future requirements planning
The entire lifecycle ought to matter if the goal is to make the most of these bright young businesses. Receiving their best work, fresh ideas and cost-saving solutions is best done from a collaborative outlook. Defence procurement functions that take this approach unlock higher quality outcomes, lower rework costs and stronger supplier loyalty, all of which underpin UK defence industry supply chain resilience.
Reshape your defence procurement strategy with Barkers
The evolving defence landscape requires that procurement leaders adapt their mindset and operations. A world-class defence procurement strategy should:
- Balance compliance and accessibility
- Strengthen smaller supplier participation
- Improve industrial visibility and capacity
- Align with both national and alliance-wide resilience goals
At Barkers, we help organisations do exactly that. With deep experience in procurement strategy, supplier engagement frameworks and capability building, we support clients in modernising defence procurement processes to deliver measurable strategic outcomes.
If your goal is to strengthen your supply base, optimise procurement performance, and build lasting industrial resilience, we can help you define and realise the roadmap.