The biggest RFP mistake I see is describing systems instead of outcomes. Companies explain what they want to build, not what they want to achieve. Vendors then respond with technical solutions that may be correct but misaligned. Outcomes drive architecture, scope, and cost. Without them, every proposal looks reasonable on paper and problematic in reality. An RFP should clearly state business goals, success criteria, and non-negotiables — not just system requirements.

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Agree - and it fries everyone’s brains when they see outcomes on a rfp because they’re not used to thinking in value creation

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Yes. You don’t know what you don’t know. Agreed a common goal needs to be set. You can make architectural recommendations but ultimately it’s best not to box in the engineering. That can vary greatly

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Most organizations don’t have a commercial & contract management function/department. Digital/technology transformations are often spearheaded by IT + Finance (supported by Legal) and, thus, RFx’s are written by them, too. I’ve rarely met a CIO or CFO that’s particularly savvy with business writing. These days, most RFx’s are built with GenAI. Garage in, garbage out.

If it were me, I would probably leverage my corporate communications function to assist in writing or, at the very least, editing a request.

Most clients don’t know what outcomes they want. With the old guard at the helm, Project thinking abounds. Even when they say outcomes, they state outputs. Only starting to see a slow shift here and there

Agreed woth OP.

Quality of RFPs are getting worse. Often they lack actual requirements. Often they have no business input and IT often drives it. Even when engaged to do the work, they fail to realize the importance of business defining the actual need to actually provide value.

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