R.F.P. spells....Frustration!

If someone were to come up to you right now in the hallway at work and speak these three letters in succession….R…F…P…what is your reaction?
YUCK
I hate them
Go away
Noooooooo

If you had any of these feelings I would guess that you have either a) sent out an RFP (Request for Proposal) or, b) responded to one. And if you are not in either camp then you probably have been part of team that evaluated the results of an RFP.

The RFP is a tool that, when used correctly, can help make the right buying decisions. But when it is used poorly it becomes a loathsome project that doesn’t really help make any wiser decisions than if you just threw the dice.

Why is this?

In my experience I have found the same nine sabotage well-intentioned efforts:

1. Templates are used from the past (or borrowed from a colleague) without thought to how the content matches the current situation.
   


2. The number of questions is large and the differences between the questions are few.
   


3. The intention of the RFP is insincere (we HAVE to go bid or we just thought we would see what else is out there).
   


4. The questions asked don’t really match the needs or concerns that the issuer of the RFP is trying to solve (assuming the concerns have been identified).
   


5. Clarity - too often RFP’s are issued without regard to the feelings of the responder and alternatively, questions are answers without regard the feelings of the reader….really, does anyone want to read or write a four-page essay for EACH question?
   


6. Lack of timeline - does the RFP have a timeline and is the company issuing the RFP sticking to the timeline?
   


7. Poor follow up – if you get responses from a vendor, let them know how much you appreciate their time and get back to them when you SAY you will.
   


8. Lack of rationale in scoring or selecting a winner – if you don’t want to hire someone, that’s okay, but be prepared to defend the reasons…and HAVE reasons. This shouldn’t be a beauty contest. If you wanted to hire a specific firm in the first place…JUST DO IT!
   


9. Inconsistent scoring – are the people on the scoring team prepared to review the RFP and will they all score with the same general sense of fairness?

Then we have finalist presentations. While not inherently bad, there are problems with these also:

• Lack of purpose – too often they are held because the issuer thinks they should.
  


• Isn’t really a finalist situation – if you invite all bidders back in, they really aren’t finalists are they?
  


• Lack of preparedness – too often the AV equipment isn’t ready, people don’t show up on time, and a general lack of respect is shown to people who are working hard to get your business.
  


• Lack of specificity – if you invite people back tell them WHY and WHAT you didn’t get from their written document that you want more information about.

In general, I am not a big fan of RFP’s, I believe there are better ways to find and select a vendor that is a right fit for an organization. However, at times they are necessary and even helpful. Don’t repeat the mistakes above and you can be even more successful in your efforts, finding a vendor that truly meets your needs. In the upcoming blogs I will describe my ideas for best practices of an RFP…maybe after you read them you won’t go screaming from the room the next time the letters R.F.P. are uttered.