I’ve been involved in several Request for Proposals recently that it’s made me consider their role and effectiveness. To be clear, I get they can be necessary and do enjoy the thought exercise they solicit, but I’m not entirely convinced the outcome is worth more than what is put in.
I say this both from the perspective of someone who has issued RFPs and has been a participant. Over the course of my career in Public Relations, I have seen quite a number of them and they’re an enormous amount of work regardless of your position in the equation.
As an employee, I often saw it as a box-checking exercise in the procurement process I needed to follow before my department’s budget would be released. I worked for an organization that would not issue a Purchase Order for anything greater than $500 unless I had collected a minimum of three quotes from companies bidding on the same project.
Because the bar was set so low, as values increased, this type of policy would also require socializing my recommendation to such an increasing degree that I would begin to question the value of my endeavour. Perhaps that was the intended point.
It can be a good idea in concept, but then the human dynamic would inevitably interfere with the process. This is when the reality of an abundant workload or the mundaneness of the approval process would occasionally move the boundaries of what was acceptable, either for the requester or gatekeeper.
Either by desire or necessity, I can see how this requirement can encourage someone to follow the path of least resistance.
On the flip side, having been party to the pitching process, it's akin to shooting in the dark. The proposal is a compilation of guesses based on crumbs of information gleaned from the official RFP document, whatever research you did on the Internet, and advice from those close to the sector.
I have submitted case studies and examples of Public Relations initiatives believing that it addresses the factors that motivated the author of the RFP. Often, there would be no follow-up questions (which leads one to question if the proposal is even read) or, when there are queries, it’s on a tangential aspect that seems irrelevant to the task-at-hand.
Further, when there is no clarity on budget expectations, you’re left wondering if your proposal is to an appropriate scale or creative place in the minds of the potential client. When there are budget figures, you invest creative time trying to rationalize the tactics to the stated resources, all the while wondering if the number is actually the number.
Now, as I said above, I do understand the need for a process like the RFP. They put a framework for the courting ritual as two organizations explore working together. They also can address the risk of unseemly deals or kick-backs, particularly with publicly-traded businesses or institutions responsible for spending taxpayer dollars.
I get that and support that rationale.
However, on the other hand, I feel that some of my best work has come from a deep understanding of the factors affecting a client’s organization. By nature of the business I’m in, it benefits everyone when both parties invest in an information-sharing arrangement. That is when the real value of a Public Relations consultant or firm becomes unmistakable.
I’d be curious to hear any tips or advice other people follow while navigating the process. Especially since I’ve encountered so many people that say they "don't usually participate in RFPs” while in the RFP process.
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