5 questions to ask before issuing a benefits RFP
November 4, 2015 9:33 AM
Whether youre shopping for new talent management software or benefits enrollment system or retirement plan recordkeeper, here are five questions to ask before you issue an RFP, courtesy of RFP365 .
1. Send RFI or RFP?
RFPs are perfect when youre ready to buy a specific product or service (you have exact criteria youre looking for.) But if youre not sure what you need, and are just looking, a request-for-information is a better first step.
2. Re-use a template?
If you frequently acquire similar products and services, you should use a master RFI/RFP template to issue your requests. Otherwise, youre stuck reinventing the wheel with each event, rewriting the same questions over and over.
3. Is it scorable?
Think through how you want to score responses before you write your questions so you dont find yourself deciding to use weighted scoring at the last minute and having to tell your team you need to recreate everything.
4. Questions are tailored?
Generic questions can be insulting to vendors, making them much less likely to respond and engage. Dont waste your time issuing RFPs only to have them be ignored. Take the time to make your questions tailored to each audience.
5. Is it easy to respond to?
Set your partners up to succeed by giving them RFPs that are easy to respond to make questions relevant and offer a response process thats convenient.
