Talk:Request for proposal/Archives/2015

Working definition of RFP
I don't believe the definition as given here is adequate, because it is too restrictive:
 * "A request for proposal (RFP) is issued at an early stage in a procurement process, where an invitation is presented for suppliers, often through a bidding process, to submit a proposal on a specific commodity or service."

Sometimes RFP's are issued very early in the study phase of a project, not necessarily for procurement. For instance, NASA submitted an RFP in 1960 for a feasibility study of the Apollo spacecraft. At this point, it was not at all certain that the Apollo project would even be funded by Congress. As the name implies, it was simply a "what-if" study, with no promise of procurement implied. I also note the source cited for the definition is tagged as possibly unreliable. JustinTime55 (talk) 18:03, 11 October 2012 (UTC)

Should https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invitation_for_bid, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Call_for_bids , https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Request_for_quotation , and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Request_for_proposal be merged, with a section in which the differences between them are explained? One good article might be better than four less developed ones. Davidlark (talk) 18:53, 25 September 2015 (UTC)

This has a very good description of RFP's and RFQ's http://www.investopedia.com/terms/r/request-for-proposal.asp