Organisations would often open a bid for potential suppliers to make their pitch on why they should be awarded a contract. As an organisation, you want as many suppliers to join the process as possible. This will enable you to choose from the best proposals. However, not all suppliers are willing to make a bid for a project, especially if the bid policies are unclear and unfair.
If you are looking for a Lowara pump distributor, for instance, you need to invite different distributors to make a bid. From there, you can find out which distributor can offer the best prices, the fastest delivery time, and the most cost-efficient deals. A competitive bidding process will empower the organisation to choose among the best suppliers in the industry.
Create Impartial Specifications
If you are looking for a solution to your business needs, you should not look at the capabilities of one supplier and try to find that in others. If you are going to host a bid, your specifications should be impartial. They should be focused on what your business needs and not what one particular supplier can deliver. Otherwise, why not simply hire the supplier whose services have already impressed you?
Develop Objective Criteria
What will be your criteria? Will the selection be based on who offers the lowest cost, faster delivery time, faster production turnaround, or functional capabilities? The suppliers will have to know about the selection criteria so that they can prepare their bids adequately. You need to be transparent with your decision-making process. Each item on the criteria should have different weight, depending on its importance to your business. Make sure that the guidelines are clear, and explain to your bidders how each will be scored.
If you are already working with certain companies, it’s perfectly okay to give them preference during the bidding process. That’s to be expected. You just need to inform other suppliers that they are competing with a company you have already worked with.
Set a Reasonable Deadline
Once the potential suppliers have been informed of the selection criteria, give them a reasonable amount of time to prepare their bids. While “reasonable deadline” is different for every company, you should be extra careful about setting tight deadlines. Sometimes, this gives the impression that you simply want a preferred company to get ahead of others. Aside from the submission of the bids, the suppliers should also be given ample time to ask questions, make clarifications, register for the bid, and submit a notice of intent-to-bid.
Share Your Answers
If one supplier asks a specific question regarding the solutions you’re seeking or the selection process, share your answer with all of the bidders. This will give everyone the same knowledge about your company and what you need. This will benefit your company, in the end because the bidding will be free of preferences.
If you have a fair and balanced process that gives equal opportunity for all suppliers, they will want to offer you their best prices and deals. You will gain the respect of your suppliers. On the other hand, if you do not give the bidders a fair chance, your reputation will suffer. The next time you hold a bid, no one will want to join it.
