How does the tender process work?


Collins Dictionary defines the tender process as ‘a formal offer to supply goods or to do a particular job and a statement of the price that you or your company will charge.’

Tenders in the form of RFT - Request for Tender or ITT Invitation to Tender are usually offered by government departments or private sector businesses or community organisations. When a RFT is advertised it is inviting suppliers to provide a written proposal to supply the goods, service or complete a specified job through a competitive process.

A tender writer will carefully check the invitation to tender document to ensure the applicant whether an individual or a business entity meets the conditions set out in the documentation. These conditions delineate the qualities the supplier must possess in order to proceed in the tender process. They usually include the requirements or needs of the requesting organisation, their criteria for selection and instructions that need to be followed when tender writing.

So what can be included in a request for tender?

The notice to tenderers includes detailed information about the tender that is being opened for proposals.

Conditions of tender often includes details of the tender process before and after the tender is closed, closing time and date and method of lodgement required. It also often includes the criteria for evaluation of the tenders. It is imperative that the tender writer submits the tender document on time – late submissions are usually dismissed and rejected from consideration.

The tender deliverables section informs the tender writer what information is required about the tendering applicant or organisation. This information is vitally important as it a basis for the evaluation process. They will want to know background information about the business or individual and their financial track record as well as the pricing that will be the bid from the tenderer.

When tender writing the purpose of the specifications section in the request for tender document is to provide comprehensive details of the requirements for goods, services or completion of a specific job for the advertising organisation. Specifications will include the background information relevant to the tender and a description of the objectives or outcomes required. This can also include any site plans, drawings or maps that will be needed by the tender writer to complete the tender submission.

The draft contract terms included in a request for tender includes information such as confidentiality expectations, intellectual property rights, obligations of both parties, any insurances that are required and draft information regarding payment terms and contract termination.

A professional tender writer will peruse the request for tender document many times ensuring that they put in place a plan for proceeding with drafting the tender submission and develop an organised and systematic approach to make certain all required information is supplied and criteria addressed.

Obviously, complexity of the tender process varies from tender to tender and is dependent on the requirements specified in the request for tender document. The amount of time required to prepare a tender proposal therefore varies and the tender writer needs to plan carefully their method of attack to ensure everything is completed and submitted prior to that final deadline.

Once they are received the tender proposals are evaluated and the one that best suits the needs of the organisation will be awarded the tender contract. This will not necessarily be the lowest priced proposal as there may be an applicant who has offered added value and more bang for their buck or is more appropriate to the organisation’s requirements. 

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