Like most successful marriages, the PPP private sector team needs trust, creativity, and enough money to pay the bills. Having a long-term relationship and clear understanding of team members' roles and responsibilities is just as crucial internally as is the relationship with the public sector client. The creativity of the private side team also plays a role in the development of a winning bid. If there is nothing innovative about a PPP, there is less incentive for the public agency to seriously consider the proposal.
The up-front work to submit a PPP proposal is generally not compensated. Firms have to accept and mitigate the risk that may come from months or even years of courting the public sector in pursuit of a PPP with no foreseeable return on their investment. Conversely, educating the public sector about the risks encountered by private entities in pursuing PPPs and a willingness on the public side to address that exposure through grants or stipends could result in higher quality and quantity of proposals.