Record award decision
Documentation of the result of the procurement activity including any resulting buying outcome.
Refine supplier/service list
The review of applicable suppliers/services within Frameworks to determine those to include in the procurement activity. However, this is not a standard feature within all commercial agreements.
A Request for Information can be used when a buyer/customer is looking for input into developing their user requirements and are seeking input from the marketplace.
This may be due to:
- how detailed the specification for the lot is – on some agreements it is likely that a RFI would be required as the specification is very high level, while on others it may never be required
- the customer if they are unsure of the appropriate delivery model and seek input from the marketplace.
Restricted (or restricted procedure)
The restricted procedure is a two-stage process:
Stage 1 (selection) – suppliers are alerted to express an interest in a contract opportunity by obtaining and submitting a selection questionnaire; this will be used to establish their capability, experience and suitability and so on. The purpose of the questionnaire is to select a shortlist of 5 (or more) suppliers which are likely to meet the tender requirements.
Stage 2 (award) – shortlisted suppliers which meet the selection criteria are then invited to tender. All tenders are evaluated in line with the methodology and award criteria set out in the tender documentation.
Review supplier/service offer
The review of suppliers’ proposal to identify the supplier that best meets the buying requirement.
RFx
Generic term for an event put out to the market. There are several types:
- EOI : Expression of Interest
- RFI: Request for Information
- RFP: Request for Proposal
Not all three need to be run but a buyer can choose to run any number of RFx events within a Procurement Case to elicit the information and cost surrounding a bid. This must however be done compliantly which means a user cannot keep running until their preferred supplier is the only remaining.
A Request for Information can be made when a buyer/customer is looking for input into developing their user requirements and are seeking input from the marketplace.
Example: If the customer is unsure of the appropriate delivery model and seeks input from the marketplace.
Request for proposal (RFP)
It provides buyers the capability to invite potential suppliers to submit a business proposal, through a bidding process, for the supply of a commodity, service, or asset. This is sometimes also known as either an Invitation to Tender (ITT), a Request for Quotation (RFQ) or a Request for Tender (RFT).
RFP supplier shortlisting
It provides buyers the capability of shortlisting (reducing) the number of potential suppliers to submit a business proposal, through a bidding process, for the supply of a commodity, service, or asset. Suppliers should only be excluded if they cannot meet the buyer’s needs in terms of location and service type.
RFP - direct award
Where there is only one supplier on the framework, or if there is an option for the direct award in the commercial agreement guidance notes, you can place an order directly with the supplier. RFP direct award allows buyers to select a single supplier in which they would like to engage with to receive their proposal before progressing to the contract award.
If there are multiple suppliers who can meet the buyer’s needs, direct award can only be awarded if cost is the only factor.
RFP - further competition
It provides buyers the capability to invite potential suppliers to submit a business proposal, through a bidding process, for the supply of a commodity, service, or asset. RFP Further competition is where customers want to engage with multiple suppliers so they can see each supplier’s proposal and pricing before making a decision on who to award the contract too.
RFP offline documents
It provides buyers the capability of uploading offline documents that state their detailed requirements or additional information which would then allow and help suppliers to publish their proposal for the customer’s review.
Route to market
All commercial agreements and lots must define their route to market.