Three Passkeys to change management
Lisa C. Stuebing
GIS Program Manger Mason County Department of Public Works
Mapping Services Center 411 North Fifth Street
P.O. Box 1850 Shelton, Washington 98584
Abstract
The evaluation of proposals for geospatial projects is a challenging proposition. The objective is
to select the proposal that yields the best value for the project. Persuasive low pricing can result
in a failure to meet project expectations and goals. This paper will introduce and explain
successful techniques that can be used in the selection process to level the field of competitors
and to identify the best value proposal based on solid, objective, and time-proven criteria.
Introduction
The selection of a vendor to provide a service for a GIS project is a significant event in the
implementation of a project and can have a major impact on the success of the project. A
structured approach to procurement is crucial to the orderly selection of the vendor who offers
the best value to the project. The process begins with a Request For Information (RFI), followed
by the receipt of Statements of Qualifications (SOQ), a series of reference checks, the selection
of a group of vendors who are considered to be qualified (usually 3 to 6), and then the issuance
of a Request For Proposals (RFP). Our focus will now be on the identification of the proposal
(vendor) that represents the best value to your project.
Evaluation of Proposals
Evaluation Team
The evaluation of the proposals should involve a team of people (generally 4 to 6). This team
will typically consist of representatives from the user and purchasing organizations as well as
members of the project implementation team. Each member of the team should read and score
the proposals independently.
Content
The Request for Proposals should be checked carefully so that information is not requested in
more than one location in the proposals. Whenever possible, questions should be phrased to
require a statement answer that explains how the task will be accomplished rather than to list the
solution and ask the respondent to say that they will comply. However, the RFP should ask the
respondent to give specific answers to crucial questions. In a recent example, the RFP said that a
Performance Bond would be required from the selected vendor. This statement was in a lengthy
legal “Terms and Conditions” section of the RFP that asked the respondents to list those items
that they could not comply with. Only one of four respondents took exception to any part of this
section. However, when the selected vendor was asked to provide the Performance Bond, he
stated that he had never intended to provide one and essentially he was unable to comply with
this item. But this did not become evident until all of the other bidders had been notified if the
selection.
Scoring
The RFP should also clearly define the format that is to be followed in the preparation of the
proposals to be submitted and should tell responders that they will loose points in the evaluation
if they do not follow the requested format. Adherence to a consistent format simplifies the use of
a spreadsheet for scoring the proposals. Each proposal evaluator should be given a copy of the
spreadsheet to use in scoring each proposal as it is read. The evaluators should decide on the
weight to be given to each section and subsection of the proposal. The team should also agree on
the point range (i.e., 1-5, or 1-10) that is to be used in scoring each item and the point penalty
that will be assessed to any section or subsection that is not answered in the correct place.
When all evaluators have scored each of the proposals the individual ratings should be combined
into one composite spreadsheet. The scores can either be averaged for each section and
subsection or the team can meet and discuss each section and subsection to come up with a
consensus score for each item. Once the scoring is complete the weighting of the various sections
can be changed in the spreadsheet so that you can see if a heavier weight on one section such as
“Technical” or “Company and Financial Background” will change the ranking of the vendors.
Reference Checks
The next major activity is the conducting of interviews to check each vendor’s references. These
reference checks are usually best conducted face to face if you have the time and resources to
travel to visit the references. Remember that most people do like to publicly admit that they
made a bad decision or selection. During this reference check phase you are trying to learn the
good as well as the “not so good” about every vendor. Sometimes it is helpful to extend these
interviews into an informal environment such as lunch or dinner.
You should ask detailed specific questions about the personnel assigned to their project by the
vendor and how easy or difficult the vendor was to do business with. You should get specific
information about the quality of the deliveries made by the vendor. This information should
include the accuracy specified in the contract, the accuracy of each delivery, the turn around time
for each rejected delivery, the number of deliveries on a one for one basis, the number of
deliveries expected (allowing for some rejections), and the actual number of deliveries.
Similarly, you should ask about the adherence to schedule. Was the pilot and each subsequent
delivery submitted on schedule. What was the time interval between when deliveries were due to
be accepted and when they were actually accepted (in days or weeks)?
You should also question the degree of difficulty associated with coming to agreement with the
vendor on the contract. Some companies tend to ignore difficulties with the “Ts & Cs” portion of
RFPs and then expect to request a number of changes when they are selected to negotiate a
contract.
You should also ask whether a Performance Bond was requested and what the outcome of that
request was. Another good question is how the final amount amount of money paid to the vendor
compares with the original quoted price and whether or not there were significant changes made
to the work scope. If the work scope was changed, it is usually good to try to explore what the
changes were and why they were made.
Vendor Presentations
The vendors who have submitted proposals should be asked to make presentations about how
they plan to accomplish your project. The vendors should be required to have their proposed
project manager make the presentation on their proposed technical plan. It is desirable to have
other key members of the proposed project team at this presentation. This will help you to see
how well the proposed project manager and his or her team understand your project. It is
desirable to provide some specific questions and topics that your team would like to have
addressed. In addition to gathering additional information, you will also get a chance to see if the
vendor will methodically address your concerns and follow your instructions. This will also give
your project team a chance to interact with the vendor’s project team so that you can get some
idea as to how the personalities will interact.
