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RFP Template
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Disqualification Letter
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Non-Binding Letter of Intent
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No-Bid Letter
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Sole Source Protest Letter
Sole Source Justification & Approval (J&A)
Letter to Decline a Proposal
Contract Award Letter
 
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How to write an RFP?

FREE RFP Letters Toolkit, 2011 EditionWhat is an RFP?

A request for proposal (RFP) is basically a publication of detailed requirements by a prospective buyer in order to receive vendor offerings.

In order for the requester to evaluate and compare all offers in a fair, easier, and faster manner, this publication is usually a formal document advising and guiding the prospective contractor through the whole procurement process (solicitation, selection, and award). To do so, the RFP document describes all the information surrounding the project, among other things:

  1. what is the solicitation process (mandatory or optional bidders' conference, due dates for proposal submission or withdrawal)
     
  2. what is the selection process (timeline, proposal format, evaluation method, criteria, and weights);
     
  3. what is the award process (estimated or exact date of award, or deadline, contract, terms and conditions);
     
  4. who to contact regarding the project itself, the contract, the solicitation process, the selection process, and the award process.

Usually dedicated to software evaluation, comparison, and selection, a request for proposal  may be issued to select any kind of products and services. RFP publication is an efficient tool to gather solution capabilities, which are then put into a decision matrix allowing the selection of the solution that best fits the requirements.

Writing a Request for Proposal or RFP

It is highly recommended that you to read the suggestions below in order to write a proper and successful RFP.

  1. Seems obvious but do not handwrite your RFP. Use templates and samples provided in your FREE RFP Toolkit, 2011 Edition to create your own professional RFP document. Indeed, using an a template and sample of an RFP will save you time. So do not hesitate to write your RFP from a template.
     
  2. Identify all the key sections of an RFP you should include by simply answering each and any of the questions Why? Who? What? How? and When? as shown below:
     
    1. WHY?
      Why does your organization need to buy a new solution?
      Answering this question allows you to create the section called Statement of Purpose.
       
    2. WHO?
      Provide a brief description of your organization. Should you have somewhere a template -we call boilerplate such reusable information- describing your organization, use it but don't forget to remove obsolete information and add new information relevant to your project.
      This information will become the Background information.
       
    3. WHAT?
      What is the nature of your project?
      What are the needs?
      What are the expected outcomes?
      Answering these questions allows you to complete the following sections:
      • Scope of Work
      • Outcome and Performance Standards
      • Deliverables
         
    4. HOW?
      What is the contract?
      What kind of information and documents do you expect to receive from providers?
      How will proposals be evaluated and the best matching solution selected?
      This information will be used for the sections:
      • Term of Contract
      • Payments, Incentives, and Penalties
      • Contractual Terms and Conditions
      • Requirements for Proposal Preparation
      • Evaluation and Award Process
         
    5. WHEN?
      When to submit questions, proposal?
      When the decision will be taken?
      What is the whole selection process timeframe?
      Who are the people responsible for evaluating proposals? For taking the final decision?
      Answering these questions allows you to populate both sections Process Schedule, and Points of contact for future correspondence.
       
  3. Statement of Purpose
    Describe the extent of products and services your organization is looking for, as well as, the overall objectives of the contract.
     
  4. Background Information
    Present a brief overview of your organization and its operations, using statistics, customer demographics, and psychographics. State your strengths and weaknesses honestly. Don't forget to include comprehensive information on the people who will handle future correspondence.
     
  5. Scope of Work
    Enumerate the specific duties to be performed by the provider and the expected outcomes. Include a detailed listing of responsibilities, particularly when sub-contractors are involved.
     
  6. Outcome and Performance Standards
    Specify the outcome targets, minimal performance standards expected from the contractor, and methods for monitoring performance and process for implementing corrective actions.
     
  7. Deliverables
    Provide a list of all products, reports, and plans that will be delivered to your organization and propose a delivery schedule.
     
  8. Term of Contract
    Specify length, start date and end date of the contract, and the options for renewal.
     
  9. Payments, Incentives, and Penalties
    List all the terms of payment for adequate performance. Highlight the basis for incentives for superior performance and penalties for inadequate performance or lack of compliance.
     
  10. Contractual Terms and Conditions
    Attach standard contracting forms, certifications, and assurances. You may write and include requirements specific to this particular contract.
     
  11. Requirements for Proposal Preparation
    A consistent structure in terms of content, information, and documents types simplifies things for the people evaluating the proposals. Therefore, you should request a particular structure for the proposal and provide an exhaustive list of documents you want to receive.
     
  12. Evaluation and Award Process
    Lay down the procedures and criteria used for evaluating proposals and for making the final contract award.
     
  13. Process Schedule
    Clearly and concisely present the timeline for the steps leading to the final decision, such as the dates for submitting the letter of intent, sending questions, attending the pre-proposal conference, submitting the proposal, etc.
     
  14. Contacts
    Include a complete list of people to contact for information on the RFP, or with any other questions. Incorporate their name, title, responsibilities, and the various ways of contacting them into this list.
     
  15. Do not forget to send your RFP via certified mail.
     
  16. Since things sometimes get a little more complicated than usual, remember to consult a lawyer for further information before doing anything.

How to write your RFP from an RFP templateWANT TO WRITE YOUR RFP FROM AN RFP TEMPLATE?
Learn tips on how to write a professional, very appealing RFP from the RFP template provided in your FREE RFP Toolkit, 2011 Edition and let providers propose creative, relevant, and cost-effective solutions by focusing on the end, not the means.

You will find in it lots of templates and samples of professional RFP letters, including the template allowing you to write your RFP from a template and sample. So don't wait, write your RFP from a template.

It's FREE!

 

"Write your RFP from an RFP template."
- Pascal PERRY


RFP Cover Letter

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Federal Contract Oversight

by Project on Government Oversight (POGO)
 FREE RFP Letters Toolkit, 2009 Edition

Podcast: How Bad Performance Can Be Good for Business in Government ContractingExpand

POGO's Scott Amey dishes out a post-mortem on a recent Commission on Wartime Contracting hearing--at which he testified--on contractor accountability..

POGO Provides Post-hearing Supplemental Materials to the Commission on Wartime ContractingExpand

Pursuant to the Commission on Wartime Contracting's (Commission) request that the record for the hearing held on February 28, 2011, "Ensuring contractor accountability: Past performance and suspensions and debarments," be supplemented within thirty days, the Project On Government Oversight (POGO) provides the following information. Specifically, POGO believes the Commission should recommend that the Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity Information System (FAPIIS) be expanded in scope and that the Department of Defense's (DoD) revolving door database of senior level acquisition officials be made publicly available.[2].

Solution: How the Government Can Stop Doing Business With Risky ContractorsExpand

It is very hard for the federal government to have a successful criminal or civil prosecution of their contractors and it is the hardest to do with the Department of Defense (DoD). In January, the DoD created a stir when it released its Report to Congress on Contracting Fraud, which examined the extent to which the Pentagon awarded contracts to companies that defrauded the government. The report found that, from Fiscal Year 2007 to Fiscal Year (FY) 2009, the DoD awarded almost $270 billion in contracts to 91 contractors found liable in civil fraud cases, and $682 million to 30 contractors convicted of criminal fraud. .

U.S.Government Rarely Suspends or Debars Those Responsible for Billions in Tax Dollars Lost to Fraud, Waste, Abuse in War ZonesExpand

Tens of billions of dollars are being lost to waste and fraud in Iraq and Afghanistan because of a toothless U.S. contracting system so reliant on a handful of major contractors that it rarely suspends or desbars them, even when those companies have committed serious offenses, according to the Project On Government Oversight's (POGO) testimony today before a independent, federal commission..

Commercial Item Exceptions Must be Eliminated From New Suspension and Debarment RuleExpand

The Project On Government Oversight (POGO) provides the following public comment to FAR Case 2009-036, "Federal Acquisition Regulation; Uniform Suspension and Debarment Requirement" (75 Fed. Reg. 77739, December 13, 2010). The Civilian Agency Acquisition Council and the Defense Acquisition Regulations Council (the Councils) issued an interim rule amending the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to implement section 815 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 (P.L. 111-84), which extends the restriction on contracting to subcontractors at any tier that have been suspended or debarred, with certain exceptions for commercial item and commercially available off-the-shelf (COTS) item acquisition contracts..

Should Debarred Contractors Be Allowed to Build Military Aircraft?Expand

Today, POGO submitted a public comment about a new rule limiting the ability of suspended or debarred contractors to do business with the federal government. The rule prohibits prime contractors from subcontracting with any entity that has been suspended, debarred, or proposed for debarment..

Pentagon Cuts Back Contract Audits, Opens Door for Contractor OverpaymentsExpand

Under the guise of eliminating overlap, the Pentagon last month sharply reduced oversight of defense contracts, according to memos obtained by the Project On Government Oversight (POGO). The changes, which give some of the duties of the Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA) to the less aggressive Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA), were outlined in a January memo signed by Shay Assad, the director of Defense Procurement and Acquisition Policy. DCAA staff were informed of the changes in a Jan. 31 memo from DCAA Director Patrick Fitzgerald..

Testimony of POGO's Nick Schwellenbach on "Improving Federal Contract Auditing"Expand

We believe that there should be an independent Federal Contract Audit Agency (FCAA), as long as it is done right. This isn't a new idea: it is an idea that has been batted around since at least the 1980s, when DCAA whistleblower George Spanton exposed serious problems at DCAA. .

Federal Government Needs Strong, Independent Auditor to Oversee Billions in Contract Spending, POGO Tells Senate PanelExpand

The responsibility of auditing the hundreds of billions of dollars spent each year on defense and civilian contracts should fall to a single, independent agency that is outside of the Pentagon's chain of command, the Project On Government Oversight (POGO) told a U.S. Senate panel today..

Last Modified: Tuesday, March 22, 2011 1:05:58 PM

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