The LMS Request for Proposal (RFP)

What is an RFP?

A request for proposal (RFP) is an organisations guide of essential features, functionalities and requirements that potential suppliers must demonstrate they have and can meet.

Why do I need an RFP?

An RFP is a crucial step to weed out the good from the bad. Not every supplier can do what is asked of them, and some will say they’re capable of more than they actually are.

Tips For RFP Success

Define Your Needs

Defining clear goals will help attain a carefully considered solution as opposed to a random system.

Prioritise Features

Having a sound understanding of features and which ones are necessary ensures avoidance of costly add-ons.

Dictate Deadlines

Be upfront about critical business timelines before a supplier demo to avoid wasting time.

Sift Through Suppliers

Treat this as a long term relationship. Understanding different features, prices and security ensures finding the right solution.

Cover All Bases

Fill in all the gaps to ensure nothing slips through. An RFP helps avoid misunderstandings in expectations, goals or functionalities.

Writing an LMS RFP

Project Summary

The summary encapsulates the main requirements for an ideal LMS solution.

It should cover inputs, current resources, expected timeline, business goals and the organisations point of contact.

About the Project

This part gets into the nitty gritty. It is best to divide this section into smaller blocks:

Input

What organisations know for the beginning of the project: number of users, number of courses, how many users will be active at once, how many users per month etc.

User Roles

Assigning different roles to limit access to materials and functions. Admin and user roles are the most common, but larger organisations might have more.

Functionalities

Where it's made clear what a feature needs to do. Focus on the what, not the how (that’s for a supplier to worry about).

Integrations

Most LMSs have the ability to integrate with third party applications. Some may be standard, but some can be seen as extras (with an extra price tag).

About the Supplier

This is where the supplier demonstrates their suitability for the organisation's needs. It is also best divided into smaller blocks:

Solution Summary

Suppliers must provide a summary of their proposed solution. If they can’t concisely do this, they likely don’t understand the organisations key points.

About The Company

Find out specific details: how old they are, what differentiates them from the competition, how big will the support team be?

About The System

A list of specific system requirements including technical obligations, standard features, additional tools, scalability and security.

Implementation Plan

A full plan including details on timing and proposed costs. Each stage will have a different price tag and should have a respective timeframe.

You can learn more about this topic by checking out the full article:

https://acornlms.com/resources/how-to-expertlycreate-a-learning-management-system-RFP