You’ve decided to bring in an external partner for your training initiative. Maybe you need custom eLearning development, a curriculum overhaul, or a full end-to-end learning solution. The next step is writing a Request for Proposal.
A good RFP attracts qualified partners who understand your challenge and can propose a thoughtful solution. A bad RFP attracts generic responses from agencies who copy-paste their capabilities deck without addressing your actual needs. The difference is in how you write it.
Start with the business problem, not the deliverable
The most common RFP mistake is leading with a solution. “We need ten eLearning modules on compliance” tells an agency what to build. It doesn’t tell them what problem you’re trying to solve.
A better framing: “Our compliance completion rates are at 52%, our most recent audit identified training gaps in three departments, and we need to reach 90% completion with demonstrated competency within six months.”
When you lead with the business problem, you invite agencies to propose solutions you might not have considered. The best partners will challenge your assumptions constructively and recommend approaches you hadn’t thought of. If you dictate the exact deliverables, you eliminate that expertise from the equation.
Include the context an agency needs
Beyond the business problem, a strong RFP provides context about your organization, your learners, your existing infrastructure, and your constraints.
Describe your audience — how many learners, what roles, what locations, what technical proficiency level, and what their current training experience looks like. Describe your technology environment — what LMS you use, what authoring tools you’ve used, what standards you require like SCORM, xAPI, or WCAG accessibility. Describe your timeline and budget range — agencies can’t propose realistic solutions without understanding your constraints. And describe your decision-making process — who’s involved, what the evaluation criteria are, and when you expect to make a decision.
Agencies that receive this level of context produce dramatically better proposals than those working from a vague two-page brief.
Ask questions that reveal capability, not just capacity
Your RFP should include specific questions that help you differentiate between agencies. But the questions need to be the right ones.
Avoid questions that every agency will answer identically, like “do you have experience with eLearning development?” or “do you follow an instructional design methodology?” Every agency will say yes. These questions waste space and tell you nothing.
Instead, ask questions that reveal how an agency actually works. “Describe a project where the initial client request changed significantly after your needs analysis. What did you discover and how did you adjust?” This reveals whether the agency does real analysis or just takes orders. “Walk us through your quality assurance process for a typical eLearning module. How many review cycles do you build in, and who’s involved?” This reveals whether quality is built into their process or bolted on at the end. “Who specifically would work on our project? What’s their relevant experience?” This reveals whether you’re getting senior talent or being handed off to juniors after the sales process.
Specify your evaluation criteria
Tell agencies how you’ll evaluate proposals. This isn’t a secret — sharing your criteria improves the quality of every response you receive. Common criteria include understanding of the problem and proposed approach, relevant experience and case studies, team qualifications and availability, timeline and milestone structure, pricing and value, and references from similar engagements.
Weight the criteria according to your priorities. If you care most about the approach and team quality, say so. Agencies will allocate their proposal effort accordingly.
Red flags in responses
Once proposals arrive, watch for these warning signs. Proposals that don’t address your specific problem suggest the agency didn’t read your RFP carefully or doesn’t understand your challenge. Generic capabilities decks repurposed as proposals signal a transactional relationship, not a consultative one. Unrealistic timelines or pricing that’s dramatically below market rate often indicate hidden compromises in quality, team seniority, or scope.
Vague team descriptions — “our experienced professionals” without names, bios, or specific roles — mean you don’t know who you’re actually hiring. And any agency that doesn’t ask clarifying questions before submitting their proposal probably isn’t thinking deeply about your problem.
The best proposals look different
The strongest proposals you’ll receive will have several things in common. They’ll demonstrate that the agency read and understood your specific situation. They’ll ask smart clarifying questions. They’ll propose an approach that addresses your business problem — not just the deliverables you listed. They’ll commit specific, named team members. And they’ll include realistic timelines with built-in review cycles.
A strong RFP produces strong proposals. Invest the time in writing it well, and you’ll spend less time sorting through mediocre responses.
