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Did you know that with an RFP it’s much easier to choose the best vendor for your company?
It’s very common these days to see companies developing and implementing a new project.
This task can be very challenging, as it involves many different phases. One example is the step where you purchase the necessary inputs for the realization of a given project.
There is a way, however, to make this process easier by using an RFP. This document provides a much more efficient approach. It can help avoid several inconveniences during negotiations and acquisitions.
What is RFP?
The RFP (Request for Proposal) is intended to help companies to standardize their negotiations with suppliers.
It’s a formal document, used to describe information about the company in general. It also includes important information regarding products and services to be obtained from external vendors.
With such document, you establish the specific requirements that the supplier needs to meet when responding to the offer. In addition, the contracting company needs to describe how it will review and evaluate other proposals.
Creating and developing an RFP can become a painstaking and time-consuming process. Nonetheless, it’s very important for procurements and for ongoing supply contracts as well.
Benefits of using RFP
Among some benefits of using the enterprise level RFP, there are some main ones, such as:
- Provide a thorough description, making suppliers able to respond with more competitive and comprehensive quotations in terms of quality and price;
- Standardization of proposals makes it easier to analyze and compare;
- It clearly points out all the benefits as well as the risks involved, filtering the suppliers that will bid for the contract.
How to write an RFP?
The preparation of this document may differ from company to company. After all, each one has its individualities and needs. But it has to inform the business situation, the planning for this project, the selection, and expectations for the future.
To sum it up, an RFP needs to contain:
- Project objective;
- Company history and project summary;
- Requirements and specifications;
- Terms and conditions;
- Description of the person responsible for the project;
- Selection criteria;
- How suppliers should respond;
- Schedule and payment methods.
If the intention is to bring effective results, tough, some points must be followed when creating the company RFP:
Get the right people onboard
When it comes to drafting the RFP, it’s important to get the right people involved. After all, they will be able to clarify exactly what they are looking for in a new product or service.
The idea is to put a person who really experiences it, who knows what the needs and difficulties are. Thus, besides being useful, the development of this document becomes more objective and assertive.
Detail your requirements
It’s essential to describe in detail the need that the company has for that new product or service.
That is, explain in detail the system and also the interface, what precisely is being sought, and how much will be invested.
Describe how the project will be carried out
Detail information about how the work is to be done on the project, the service or result to be obtained, the preparation period, and the responsibilities of each party.
Also, explain the management model and confidentiality. Even budget and payment methods must be clearly defined in the RFP.
Confidentiality
Confidentiality clauses are important to ensure that information about the operation is not disseminated.
In this sense, it’s a measure that protects both parties, the applicant and the supplier. It assures that the values and services practiced will be under complete secrecy.
RFP Review
It’s critical that, prior to its publication, a thorough review takes place of the entire corporate RFP.
The review should be done preferably by people specialized in the area. This way, you can be sure that the proposal is clear, well defined, and understandable.
Appoint a responsible person
It’s interesting to appoint one person responsible for sending the response to the supplier.
This strategy minimizes problems because it designates and unifies communication in a single person. This ensures consistency of information, regardless of the supplier.
This company’s RFP structuring is an important step in process standardization. After all, it provides your business to be seen with more seriousness and organization.
In addition, it makes the organizational routine more structured and the project development will have more solidity. In this sense, as a consequence, it brings direct results for the company.
RFP and technology
As you can see, writing an RFP requires the collection of a lot of information, mainly to delimit needs and requirements.
In this sense, those who use a BPMS tool have more agility when preparing a company RFP. The requirements can be easily found, since the information is all centralized.
Another issue is that BPMS enables control over response deadlines, and even contracts that are expiring and need to be renewed.
Furthermore, the BPM methodology allows for clear communication. In other words, the parties interested in the project can describe what they need to facilitate the negotiation department’s understanding.
Furthermore, low-code tools allow you to customize templates so that the preparation of RFPs follows an internal standard. This means that regardless of the requesting sector, there is a standardization of information and requirements for the proposal elaboration.
Neomind’s Fusion Platform is a low-code solution, with a friendly and intuitive interface designed to automate processes, documents, and indicators management.
Moreover, it’s totally collaborative and adapts to your needs, making your business paperless and centralizing document management as a whole. These factors are essential for those who need to search for information and develop an RFP.
To find out in practice the differentials that a BPMS platform can do for your business, try Fusion Platform for free for 15 days.
Still have any questions? We can clarify it in the comments. Or, ask an expert for help.
Does your company use RFP for its negotiations? Write about your experience in the comment section bellow. Or tell us how you go about requesting proposals without an RFP.
