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Request for Information - Project Management Tools At some point in your career as a Project Manager, you will need to appoint a preferred Supplier to your project. Finding the right Supplier to deliver the right goods and services at the right time is always a challenge. To ensure that you appoint the best Supplier available, you need to undertake a formal Tender Process using these online project management tools . The first step in the Tender Process is to document a Statement of Work (as described in our previous newsletter) which describes the procurement requirements of the project using the right project management tools. Now that you have clearly described your procurement requirements, you need to give potential Suppliers in the industry an opportunity to register an interest in becoming the preferred Supplier for the project. You can achieve this by creating and releasing a comprehensive Request for Information (RFI) document to the market. RFI project management tools descri...

By using an RFI , you will be able to obtain the necessary information to complete your current or future project plan so it can be correctly documented. The Request for Information is one of the many form letters that have to be sent out in the discovery phase of a project to collect the latest details on costs, availability and deliver times of the raw materials will be known when planning a project. One of the important qualities of a RFI is for it to be consistent. To help do this the project management template specifically designed to create a request for information letter has been created.  This template makes it possible to send out an informed message of just what your organization is in need of. This information gathering letter will follow the same pattern each time you use it because it will be generated from the same template. The advantage of using this RFI template is the requested information will be placed in the letter in the same place each time. This consistency ...

One of the reasons to use a request for information template is so your company is sending out a consistent message to its third party vendors. This is very important so the message you are sending is received as it was meant to be interpreted. The use of a request for information template for creating this formal document will bring the consistency your business needs so what you have requested will be answered correctly. The details inside your request need to be precise and accurate with no ambiguity so there will be no misinterpretations on the side of the recipients. Another very good reason to use a request for information template when creating this document is the speed in which it can be created will be increased. Speed during the planning of a project is important. It is also very important to be accurate. With the template you will have a guide that will help you layout t what has to be said and in the correct order so those receiving it will fully understand what you nee...

The request for information (RFI) is a formal document sent out to locate data and knowledge a business does not current have, but wishes to possess. The main reason for this document is to give your business an edge in dealing with third party vendors. The more you know about them and how they operate, along with what they have available, the better chances you have at making any exchange work in your favor. In the business world, knowledge is power and the request for information is the most common process for acquiring this knowledge. This process is initiated by the creation of the RFI document. This can be successfully accomplished by the project manager looking at a sample, or using a project management template program that is in use at their place of business. In the template for the creation of a request for information, there will be a section that will allow you to describe in detail your company’s needs from a supplier. This document will also include a section on the cur...

With a request for information being sent by a company, they are informing the recipients that they are in search of a supplier of certain goods or services. This by no means is a promise to pay for any goods or even a proposal for goods, just the need for information. The formal request for information is just as it sounds, it is a polite way of asking what is available, for what price and when can it be delivered. This type of document can be easily made with the help of a template. This template can be found in many of the project management office programs that are widely available on the market. The reason a template from this type of program is recommended is because the request for information is not the last form that will be required to obtain the necessary goods or services that all projects need during their execution phase. Along with the request for information , the other form that will be needed is the Request for Proposal. This is the one that specifically indicates ...

The document called the request for information (RFI) is a formal but non-committal submission to a third party vendor on the need for information to assist with a company’s project or business needs. This is a mechanism that businesses can use to locate information on a particular subject that they are in need of. A request for information document is sometimes the first contact between two different businesses that may lead to a further business deal, but not in every instance. The reason an RFI is sent out is so an informed decision can be made on a subject matter that there is little to no knowledge in the company at the present time. In some instances it is an inquiry to gain updated information when there is a possibility that the current data a business has might be out of date. After the initial contact is made with a request for information , there may be further contact that takes place were interaction between the business is to take place. This further contact can be in t...

One of the acronyms for RFI is a reference to a request for information. This is a standard practice in business to collect information that is needed on a particular subject matter. The request itself is usually in the form of a written document that has a set format. This is done so the responses can be competitively compared. The RFI is primarily an information-gathering device businesses use to find out what is available to them that can be used in their business. The information that is sent out in response to one of these is generally information that is publicly available. Proprietary information and details are generally reserved for later communications, if so desired. An RFI document is at times sent out alone. There are other instances where a RFP or request for proposal, a RFT or request for tender, or a RFQ or request for quotation accompanies the request for information document. When this is done, it is a clear indication that some sort of interaction between the two b...

At first glance, the words “ terms of reference ” appear to be a vague description of an informational source. This could not be farther from the truth. This is a specific description of the set purpose for a committee, negotiations between different parties, meeting, or project of a group of individuals that have decided on achieving a goal together.  In a business plan, this is referred to as the Project Charter. In the terms of reference , how the scope of a project will be defined is described, along with how it will progress until the conclusion is verified. Every step of this process should be properly documented so reference to it can be accomplished in the future. This is where attention to detail is crucial. Specific definitions that need to be defined are to be created, the overall objectives in creating this project, and how it is to be achieved. This is to be fully documented with no ambiguity on any point.  If during the review there are any questions or confusion, it shou...

When you encounter customers who ultimately want to have everything despite the fact that it is actually impossible to be given to them, project management templates may be a way to handle them.  As a project manager, one must take the extreme caution when it comes to facing this kind of ordeal because if he won’t, chances are he will consume cost that is way above the budget.  To stop this from happening, the application of a project management template may be considered. Customers may sometimes be very demanding.   It is inevitable when you are running a business or a project.  The best thing you can do in this situation is to lay down the scope of the project for them using a project template and allow this to manage them.  Here is what you need to do: 1.  Hold a formal statement to your customers.  Make your customers understand the statement of work you are actually offering and have an assurance that both of you gain mutual understanding about everything.  If there are confu...

New Request for Information template release announced by Method123 Industry leader Method123 announces the release of their newest project management template – the Request for Information. The Request for Information document is a tool used to provide potential suppliers with an opportunity to take part in the Invitation to Tendor process or Request for Proposal process.  By issuing this document to potential suppliers, a company can hopefully get enough information to decide whether or not to include them in the overall process of seeking a supplier for the business or project needs. Method123’s new Project Management Template will help an organization complete the request for information process smoothly and get them ready to move into the actual vendor selection process with confidence. “All companies want to do everything they can to select the right suppliers for their needs.  No one wants the headache of contracting with a supplier on a critical project only to find that they ...

The company that brought you the Project Management Kit stocked with over 50 key Project Management Templates has just announced the release of its new Project Review Form for the initiation phase of a project. Method123’s latest offering will allow the user create this critical document directed at the project sponsor to let them know what objectives have been met as the project moves toward the planning phase. As part of an overall Project Management Methodology, when the project team has completed a specific phase of the project, a project review is conducted.  The general concept of the project review is to review the phase just completed – in this case the initiation phase – and check project progress.  The objectives of the specific phase are reviewed to see if they have been met as part of the project team’s effort and progress on the phase. This type of review and oversight allows the project sponsor a level of control over the progress of the project.  It can help those makin...

New Project Management Templates Released for Change Request Form Change on a project is inevitable.  It happens whether your are adequately tracking it or not.  In the long run, it’s critical to your project’s timeframe and budget success to do the best job you can tracking any and all project changes, and Method123 can help you do that through the use of the Change Request Form . As Jason Westland , CEO of Method123 Ltd states, “The Change Request Form is the mechanism by which you and your team can easily and seamlessly document all project request.  Change happens and change request forms should always be part of any project management methodology.  Whether or not they get used, is another question.  With Method123’s Change Request Form template you will now have the tool you need to track all changes and your team will have no excuses documenting all change requests because it’s so easy and built right into the Method123 Online Project Management process.” The Method 123 Change Fo...