Pre-Procurement

Jerry Maguire makes a stand - courtesy TriStar Pictures, Sony Pictures

Writing an RFP? I can help analyze your needs and write specifications with you, moving you from vague desire to organized procurement.

Our Fire Department’s core software was acquired by a different vendor, who put a short sunset date on the old system. A new solution was needed. Because it was not a straight upgrade, procurement rules required a competitive process.

Fire had used their system for decades. No one had experience with other systems, and there was no money or time to hire a vendor to do a specifications analysis. As the City’s IT Director, I stepped in.

I met with the Fire Department leadership and helped them identify the key touchpoints for the new system. Not what processes the software should address (Fire Departments are fairly similar - and the vendors have that covered), but what other systems it needs to talk to - like the 911 Dispatch system, the GIS database of addresses, and their separate systems for timekeeping, training records, etc.

We issued a concise RFP and hammered on those key touchpoints with the vendors during proposals and demonstrations.

My guidance made the RFP short and sweet. Instead of hundreds of specifications detailing standard functionality, we focused on what we knew would be the hard parts.

We then wrote a statement of work that set clear responsibilities for the vendor and made sure the vendor followed through on their commitments.

Read more of my guidance for skipping standard specifications and focusing your RFP on the hard parts: https://blog.tectonicspeed.com/2015/02/my-jerry-maguire-moment.html