Ten Rules for a Smooth, Efficient E-Learning
RFP Process
By Karl M. Kapp

Many clients receive an e-learning proposal and complain about its condition: vague...unclear...unfocused. The client quickly blames the vendor, but sometimes, it is not the vendor's fault; instead it is the fault of a poor Request for Proposal (RFP).

When developing an e-learning RFP, you, the client, need to provide a precise and accurate description of your organization's needs. The more explicit you can be, the more assistance the vendor can offer. If your needs are vague or uncertain, the proposals you receive back will be difficult to compare. You want all the vendors responding to the same need, as you see it and not as the various vendors see it. To accomplish this goal, follow the rules below.

Basic Rules for RFPs

There are ten basic rules to follow when writing an RFP. These rules will help you create an effective document that will allow your organization to easily and effectively compare one vendor's solution to another. Providing specific instructions, technical details and an accurate estimate of your future needs provides vendors with a solid document on which to develop a solution to your e-learning need.

Rule One
Begin with an outline. An outline provides a systematic method for describing your needs to the vendor. The more organized you can be in describing your needs, the easier it will be for the vendor to understand the type of solution you are seeking. Below is a sample outline.

Outline for LMS Request For Proposal

I. Overview of the Project
II. Submission Process and Timeline
III. Selection Criteria
IV. Ownership Statement
V. Organization of the Proposal
VI. Orientation of the Business
VII. Strategy That Is Supporting The E-Learning Initiative
VIII. Audience Description
IX. Delivery Environment
X. Technology Infrastructure
XI. System Parameters and Requirements
XII. Quality Assurance
XIII. Administration and Maintenance
XIV. Implementation Schedule
XV. Available Resources

Rule Two
Make sure administrative requirements are clear. Provide explicit dates for submission of the proposal, the review timeline of the proposal, and dates for when the work should start and finish.

The vendor must be able to clearly identify all the due dates for the proposal. A table containing key events and dates is an excellent addition to any RFP.

Rule Three
Provide guidance concerning the format of the proposal. Do you want the proposal submitted by email or do you require a sealed bid? Do you want a double- or single-spaced document? What fonts are required? Do you have a page limit? These may seem like trivial items until you attempt to compare a 5-page proposal with a 55-page proposal or until you attempt to write your notes in the margins of a single-spaced document. Decide ahead of time the submission format and requirements and then explicitly state those requirements in your RFP. Just as you started your RFP with an outline, provide the vendors with an outline and tell them what you expect to find in each section. This allows you to lay the proposals side by side for easy comparison.

Rule Four
Involve your Information Technology (IT) department in the RFP writing process. Vendors need to know about your internal network, hardware and software before they can intelligently make a recommendation. Provide information on your current browser version, current operating system, future upgrade plans and other IT information. If your workstations do not have sound cards, the vendors need to know before they add audio to their solutions. The more you can tell the vendor about your IT infrastructure, the better the chance the vendor has of providing a workable solution. Involve your IT department.

Rule Five
Clarify and quantify your needs. Asking for something like "a lot of interactivity" is not a clear statement of a need. The vendor will not understand whether you mean drag-and-drop questions, true/false or something more interactive, such as online games or total simulations. Be specific.

Also, whenever possible, provide numbers. Let the vendor know how many objectives are within the existing training. Let the vendor know how many users are going to be simultaneously logged into the Learning Management System (LMS). Explain how many hours of stand-up training the existing courses take. The better you quantify information for vendors, the better they can determine the price of your particular e-learning solution.

Rule Six
Require the vendors to document ongoing costs as well as any customization, integration or other costs above and beyond the purchase price. You want to be firmly aware of the "cost of ownership" of the e-learning solution, not just the purchase price.

Rule Seven
Insist on some type of documentation of the vendor's Instructional Design (ID) process. The process the vendor uses to design either custom or off-the-shelf materials for your organization is critically important. If they have no process or an inadequate process, eliminate them from consideration. Poorly designed e-learning is not a bargain, no matter what the price.

Rule Eight
Ask for a clear-cut implementation schedule and an explicit indication of what assistance the vendor offers. Occasionally a vendor will sell you only the software and you must subcontract with a consulting firm or some other organization to actually implement it. You should also make clear what resources you will have available during the implementation. This can help the vendor develop an appropriate implementation strategy. Let the vendor know if your organization has a long history with e-learning or is just getting started. This will have an impact on development or implementation times.

Rule Nine
Involve your procurement people sooner rather than later. Often the procurement department has experience developing contracts and RFPs. You should take advantage of that experience and allow them to provide you insight into the entire process. Your procurement folks will know the proper procedures to follow, the necessary language to include in the RFP and other items that may get overlooked. If you involve them early in the process, they will be a huge asset. If you involve them later in the process, they may become an obstacle.

Rule Ten
Provide explicit instructions on how you will be evaluating the proposals. Do not leave the vendor in the dark. If cost is your number one criteria, the vendor needs to know. The explicit evaluation criteria provide the vendors with information concerning which areas they should focus on and which areas are not as critical.

These rules provide a solid foundation for developing an e-learning RFP. They will help you to understand your internal needs and constraints and convey those needs to vendors. The more accurate, up-to-date and honest you can be with the e-learning vendors in the RFP process, the better proposals they will present. Good e-learning proposals start with good RFPs.

Karl Kapp is assistant director of the Institute for Interactive Technologies and an Associate Professor of Instructional Technology at Bloomsburg University in Bloomsburg, PA, and the author of the book, Winning E-Learning Proposals: The Art of Development and Delivery (J. Ross Publishing, 2003).
You can contact him at www.karlkapp.com.

Reprinted from ASTD 2004 Conference News