10 steps to RFP success10 steps to RFP success
What is an RFP and why is it important?
A Request for Proposal (RFP) is used by organizations to invite bids from vendors for a product, service, or project.
Businesses need to compare multiple offers as objectively as possible to ensure fairness, transparency, and competitiveness while selecting the most suitable vendor. It is not just about cost but about accuracy, compliance, scalability, technology, and relationship. There can be much risk associated with global payroll, and errors can result in penalties, compliance issues, and operational and reputational damage. These problems can be mitigated by understanding in detail the needs and services required, and about the potential partner. When RFPs focus on comparative price rather than performance, this will likely end up being more expensive.
The Top 10 Essential Items to Consider
1. Partner Company Background
a. Research the partner’s business, experience, and knowledge.
b. Consider why they are interested. Do they understand and can they deliver on your needs?
c. How does each company’s vision align? Will the partner company get on with you?
2. Clear Objectives and Scope
a. Geographic coverage - confirm that the vendor can operate in all the desired countries and consider any potential future coverage.
b. Compliance acknowledgement - establish how the provider stays on top of local regulations, so you don’t have to.
c. Scalability and Flexibility - organizations dynamically grow and change so can the vendor scale efficiently and be agile?
d. Solution – establish a clear definition of what the vendor’s solution looks like and what success looks like. Incorporate Service Level Agreements and Performance Indicators.
e. Human Focus - throughout this necessary scientific process, always remember the human element of what is being carried out.
3. Detailed Requirements
a. Define specific functional, technical, and process solutions. The accurate definition of this is critical – integration, security, customer service, and flexibility mean different things to different people, which can make it challenging to compare what might seem to be the same service.
b. Specify absolutes and not just aspirations – see what can be provided.
4. Cost Structure
a. Establish a clear pricing model (per employee, per country, per cycle). Again, ensure you are comparing like with like for a payroll cycle, not just a payslip price. Understand exactly what is contained within the service.
b. Look into one-time Implementation/set-up fees versus ongoing fees.
c. Ask the vendor to define all fees to avoid later hidden fees (ie terminations, reports, out of scope work, banking, FX etc).
5. Implementation Plan
a. Implementation/Transition Plans are crucial, and each vendor should show they have this. A simple well-documented onboarding plan shows maturity and readiness and provides the foundation for a long relationship.
b. Avoid trying to fix a broken process by ensuring vendors have the flexibility and skillset to appropriately redefine and re-engineer a business process.
c. Ensure that the provision of key tasks, responsibilities, and deadlines are set for decisions and action. Task dependencies should be listed, and the partner should be carrying out most of the work!
6. Data Security
a. Payroll data is very sensitive. Check for robust data protection protocols, data life cycles, encryption, and access controls.
b. Ask for evidence of accreditation/certification. For example: ISO 27001/9001, GDPR, Schrems II etc.
7. Communication & Support
a. Establish a clear outline of communication channels and plan. Will there be a single point of contact or a ticketing system? Does the vendor provide 24/7 support to contact your specialist and not just a call centre?
b. Does the vendor provide a dedicated Account Manager and Team, and is there any language support?
c. Consider Service Level Agreement (SLA) Metrics & Governance to cover response times, resolution targets, repair loop, and escalation practices.
8. Technology & Integration
a. Ensure you have a clear and concise breakdown of the vendor’s technological and integration capabilities.
b. Consider the scalability and flexibility of the system used.
c. Consider standardization and reporting capabilities.
d. What training options are there?
e. Consider employee self-service and other apps such as expense management.
9. Legal & Contractual Obligations
a. Examine contractual terms and conditions, including termination clauses and dates.
b. Ensure you have full pricing, specific to countries.
c. Establish a change and review process.
10. Opportunities Beyond - Value Creation/Business Transformation
a. Payroll impacts many other business support functions and is at the heart of an organization. Payroll can also represent the largest costs in most companies.
b. Ask what further opportunities the vendor can provide that differentiate and demonstrate a true understanding of the client’s needs and service.
c. For example, at Globalise, we refine processes and provide systems integration, data management, automation, and analytics, to ensure efficiencies and provide substantial savings. This is enhanced by our integration with other supporting business functions, such as Finance, HR, Tax, and Mobility, on our ‘First-Party Platform’.
Summary
Global payroll is a complex field and selecting a provider can be challenging as systems and SLAs are technically and necessarily detailed.
A well-structured RFP helps to compare payroll vendors fairly to find the right solution to your problem, technically and culturally. For Globalise, an RFP isn’t just about ticking boxes or submitting tenders. Instead, it’s a chance to truly showcase who we are, the value we bring, and the way we uniquely solve problems. An RFP process should push organizations to sharpen their story and align with client teams. Most of all, the vendor process must meet your needs, create value across your organization, and help empower your people to do what they do best.
Schedule a call with us to discuss your current situation and goals and find out how Globalise can reshape your global payroll processes to achieve considerable cost and time savings.