Offshore Outsourcing RFPs: Are They Encouraging Copy and Paste?
Are your offshore vendors' proposals original?
Recent blog articles from TheStrategicSourceror and SpendMatters challenge the need for traditional RFPs the cause suppliers hours and hours of formal proposal development, which, based on discussions we have had with suppliers, are enormous copy and paste exercises from other proposals. The gigantic responses can fill hundreds of pages, putting even the most astute evaluated into deep sleep. Are they worth the effort for offshore outsourcing projects? For vendor managers, the short answer is…
…yes. Yet, the outsourcing leader and vendor management team must focus the vendors’ efforts on essential elements that can be written.
A proper RFP should:
- Clearly State Requirements – The vendors need to understand the work they are bidding on, including volumes, process, technology, integration requirements, performance specifications, training, quality efforts, and any other specific requirements.
- Define the Pricing Model – Avoid apples-to-oranges pricing comparisons by clearly defining the pricing and pricing assumptions. Include a response grid to make it simple.
- Include the Contract – Vendor pricing should be based on your contract template. Negotiated outcomes can lower the pricing, but should never increase the price. However, ask the vendor to identify areas requiring negotiation and their starting position.
- Ask the Supplier for a Solution – Require the vendor to describe the solution they will provide, including transition planning, transition efforts, technologies, and business process characteristics. Business process flows are great ways of making the vendor process clear. Ask, “How?”, not “Do you?”
- Allow Suppliers to Ask Questions – Despite your best intentions, offshore vendors will have questions. Give them an opportunity to ask them.
That’s it.
Then you need to conduct supplier presentations and, most importantly, visit the suppliers’ offshore locations and see how they perform the work today – while asking them how they would do it differently for you. If you omit the travel, you’re buying shoes without first testing them. Sure, you should pilot services, but pilots are expensive and difficult to reverse after you’ve given notice to existing employees or the incumbent vendor.
These face-to-face meetings with the actual offshore outsourcing team members your organization will work with (NOT the sales people) and real life viewing are similar to behavior and case interviews. You should evaluate every resource you meet and rarely assume the resources will improve. What you see is what you will get… use our site visit agenda to drive the meetings to create consistency among vendor presentations.
…and that’s entirely comforting compared to lengthy written (or copy and pasted) proposals.
Related posts:
- Offshore Outsourcing Management – What’s the Problem?
- Offshore Outsourcing Vendors, Customers, and Advisors: They Should Know Better
- Offshore Outsourcing Vendor Governance Organizations
- The Black Book of Outsourcing – Invaluable Resource or Red Herring?
- Vendor Management Differentiates in a Commoditized Offshore Outsourcing Industry
