When I worked for a water district, we evaluated vendors for a project we might not execute on for two years. We had them on site. They educated us on their solutions. They then used all the info gathered to provide education materials on pricing, tech specs, etc. so we could shape our project. Budget, timeline, specs.

I didn't even know how to write an RFP correctly without first talking to these vendors.

Subtle Bias

Of course, some posted RFPs are legitimately open contests worth bidding on. But generally, by the time it's public, the buyer has already named the problem, found the budget and talked to vendors.

There are cases of an RFP written for a specific vendor so only they can meet the requirements. If this happens, you are obviously way too late.

The more common version is subtler. Vendors help the buyer shape the procurement process and how the RFP is structured. Nobody involved would say "we wrote it for them." But if a vendor was part of the research and helped shape the RFP, there's bias built in.

So, the further up the chain you are involved and the more you can be a resource to the person whose job it is to write the RFP, the better your chances.

When someone needs specialized services, the best source to help them figure out what to ask for is... the expert vendor. That's what I'd do if I had that job.

So the question is: what did this buyer say in public before the RFP existed, and how early can you realistically detect it?

What is visible before the RFP?

Once you have an RFP, it gives you something to work backward from. (Hint: You could do this same thing with your closed won deals.)

Let's pretend you sell EHR software to hospitals and health systems, or you are an implementor who can help them move off their old system and get the new one running.

Here's a real chain of events from a large federal health system starting in 2018 prior to the RFP going out in 2022.

Timeline:

  • Fall 2018: 1,380 days before the RFP, the buyer announces a research project to assess its existing health IT and identify gaps in how it supports care and operations via a public announcement on their website.
  • Late 2018: 1,354 days before the RFP, a public letter warns that the existing software won’t meet all certification requirements in time. The buyer is exploring commercially certified modules to help fill the gaps.
  • 2020: Dedicated EHR funding increases from under $10 million to over $30 million, according to the buyer’s publicly posted operating plan.
  • Spring 2021: 440 days before the RFP, the buyer holds an industry day to explain the modernization project and answer vendors’ questions. A publicly available program briefing documents the event and the industry engagement.
  • Summer 2021: 371 days before the RFP, draft objectives are posted on a procurement portal for vendor feedback. The buyer explicitly says that feedback will help improve the upcoming solicitation.
  • Summer 2022: The RFP goes live. The buyer requests proposals for a replacement system, including implementation, training and support. The opportunity appears on the public procurement portal, followed shortly by an announcement on the buyer’s website.

If you'd been watching in summer 2021, you'd still have had a year to help shape what they asked for.

In retrospect, this is obvious. But if you are browsing for published RFPs, summer 2022 is when this comes across your desk. “Oh great, an RFP. Let’s go after it.”

The project has been taking shape for four years. The buyer has announced its research, held an industry day, and explicitly asked vendors to help improve the upcoming solicitation.

The vendor who goes deeper

When I was doing the research for my RFP, I was evaluating two vendors. Both were helpful. Both visited, assessed our situation and gave us materials to review.

One was a lot more expensive than the other. If I’d been looking at them as two prices side by side in RFP responses, the premium vendor wouldn’t have had a shot.

But guess which one visited every site instead of just headquarters? Met with multiple stakeholders? Put together a detailed package explaining the pricing and the benefits of upgrading our system?

By then, I was comparing the options using what I’d learned from those conversations.

There may have been a third vendor who would have been a great fit.

I wouldn’t have known, they weren't in the room.