FAQ11

The Art of RFP writing

If out-sourcing is to be pursued for any portion of the project, it is critical to make sure all relevant technical requirements are carefully specified in any "Request for Proposal" (RFP) to be sent to potential vendors.

If a decision is made to out-source all or part of the project, then of the most important tasks to be performed becomes the writing and legal vetting of the RFP, the bidding process and final contract negotiations. Many of the technical specifications which need to be specified in the RFP are the results of decisions that would have to be made in any case, but when dealing with an outside vendor, all technical specifications must be laid out in writing in a completely unambiguous manner. As a result, an RFP for even a relatively small out-sourced digital project can run to at least several dozen pages. Fortunately, several models for digital project RFPs are publicly available for study. Some examples are the RLG Model for Request for Information (RFI) for Digital Imaging Services, the Charles Cushman Slide Project - RFP for Digital Imaging Production Services, and the Russian Periodical Index Project - RFP for Digital Imaging Production Services.

If the out-sourcing model is to be used, it is important to set specific production rate standards in the RFP. If these requirements are agreed to in the final contract with the vendor, then the additional financial burden of adding additional workers and training them in order to meet the stated production goals could fall upon the vendor.