Invitation to tender: the process rules matter as much as the answers

An invitation to tender is the formal document inviting selected or open suppliers to submit priced bids against a specification, under stated conditions. Compared with a general request for proposal, an ITT usually carries stricter process rules: fixed deadlines, defined submission mechanics, and a commitment to evaluate exactly as published.

That commitment is the substance of it. In public procurement the process is enforceable, and an unsuccessful bidder can challenge a departure from the published rules. Even in private tendering, the value of running a tender comes from the discipline — without it you have an RFP with more paperwork.

What the invitation to tender pack contains

• Instructions to tenderers: how to submit, in what format, by when, and what makes a bid non-compliant.
• The specification or scope of works.
• The pricing document or bill of quantities, to be completed as issued.
• The proposed contract terms.
• Evaluation criteria and weightings.
• Any qualification requirements — financial standing, insurances, certifications.
• The forms bidders must return: declarations, conflicts of interest, confirmation of compliance.

Rules that have to be applied literally

Deadlines are the classic. A bid arriving one minute late is non-compliant, and accepting it treats other bidders unequally — the correct response is the uncomfortable one. The same applies to format requirements you published: if you said the pricing must be on the issued schedule, a bid priced on the supplier’s own template is a decision, not an oversight.

Clarifications are the other. Answer in writing, distribute to all tenderers, and never give guidance to one bidder that others do not receive. Where an answer changes the requirement, issue a formal addendum and consider extending the deadline.

Keep the evaluation records as they are made, not afterwards. Individual scores with reasons, the moderation notes, and the final decision — reconstructed records are exactly what a challenge is designed to test, and a file assembled after the award reads that way.

Running it without a procurement department

1. Write the specification before deciding the process, not after; it determines what can be compared.
2. Set the timetable backwards from when you need the work to start, and add time for clarifications.
3. Publish the criteria and the weightings in the pack.
4. Use one mailbox or portal for submissions, and record the receipt time of each.
5. Score independently, then moderate, and minute the moderation.
6. Notify all bidders on the same day, with reasons for the unsuccessful ones.

A tender leaves an evidence trail whether or not anyone plans it: what was issued, what was asked, what was answered, when each bid arrived, how it scored. Ettex Records keeps the pack, the clarification log, the submissions and the scoring against one procurement, so the file that answers a challenge is a by-product of running the process. What to buy, and from whom, remains the buyer’s decision — the record only shows it was made the way it was published.