We have met a number of organizations recently who are required (by law or company policy) to release an RFP if a product or service goes over a certain dollar threshold.  While we may have opinions about the RFP process (and the pros/cons), it is just a fact of life with certain business sectors.

With that in mind, we are beginning to see a trend where customers release an RFP before truly defining all of their requirements. A Request for Proposal is intended to garner attention from "like" suppliers to bid on specific products or services as defined by the organization releasing the bid.

The risk of releasing an RFP too soon or without an adequate amount of detail is bidders who broadly meet your requirements, but potentially will not be a good fit for the organization due to a lacking feature, integration into an existing product or a weak roadmap for their product/service. These specifics were not defined in the RFP which is why they submitted a bid in the first place. The organization is now tasked with making the right technology decision with a number of unqualified participants clouding their judgement.  

If the RFP process is required in your organization, Opkalla can help you define specific requirements prior to your release date so you can make the right technology decision for your business.