Buyer Toolkit
Enterprise software RFP template.
Nine-section RFP scaffold built from the same evaluation criteria we use in our reviews. Adapt to your category — keep the scaffold, change the specific requirements.
Word + PDF downloads coming this month. The full template is rendered below for immediate copy + adaptation. Subscribe at /subscribe to be notified when the downloadable formats publish.
1. Organization profile + scope
- Organization size, industry, geography, regulatory context
- Stakeholders: business sponsor, technical lead, procurement lead
- Project scope: in-scope user populations, geographies, processes
- Implementation timeline: target go-live, must-haves vs nice-to-haves
- Budget envelope: 3-year TCO target, license vs services split
2. Functional capability requirements
- Core feature checklist (must-have vs preferred)
- Workflow scenarios — describe 3-5 most common user workflows
- Reporting + analytics requirements (specific reports + KPIs)
- Edge cases — describe 3-5 atypical scenarios platform must handle
- AI / agentic AI capabilities (auto-routing, recommendation, autonomous workflows)
3. Integration architecture
- Source systems requiring integration (CRM, ERP, HRIS, ITSM, etc.)
- Integration approach (native connector, iPaaS, REST API, batch ETL)
- Data residency + governance constraints
- Identity provider integration (SAML, OIDC, SCIM provisioning)
- Event-driven integration patterns (webhooks, message queues)
4. Security + compliance
- Required certifications (SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001, HIPAA BAA, FedRAMP, etc.)
- Encryption requirements (at rest, in transit, BYOK availability)
- Audit log requirements + retention
- Vulnerability management + penetration testing program disclosure
- Incident response SLA + customer notification commitments
5. AI sprawl assessment
- Which AI capabilities are built into the platform vs require add-on AI service?
- Where does AI inference run (vendor cloud, customer cloud, on-premise)?
- How does the vendor handle hallucination risk + grounding requirements?
- Data handling policy for AI training (customer data inclusion, opt-out)
- AI feature roadmap + customer influence on roadmap prioritization
6. Total cost of ownership
- License model + per-seat / per-volume pricing
- Implementation services scope + estimated cost
- Training + change management investment
- Custom integration + professional services estimates
- Ongoing maintenance / support / managed services fees
- Contract length + renewal terms + price-escalation caps
7. Vendor stability + roadmap
- Vendor financial stability (revenue, growth, profitability disclosure)
- Customer base composition + retention rates
- Product roadmap visibility (12-24 month)
- Recent acquisitions or organizational changes
- Customer advisory board representation
8. Implementation + support
- Implementation methodology + customer responsibilities
- Reference customers (same industry, similar size, similar complexity)
- Training program (admin, end-user, train-the-trainer)
- Support tiers + SLA terms
- Customer success program + named CSM availability
9. Commercial terms
- Pricing structure + tier breakdowns
- Discount levels + volume thresholds
- Contract length options (1yr, 3yr, 5yr) + corresponding pricing
- Termination + data portability terms
- Service Level Agreement (uptime, response time, credit calculations)
How to use this template
- Adapt the functional capability section (Section 2) to your specific category — pull category-specific must-haves from our buying guides at /best.
- Run the TCO calculator at /methodology/tco-calculator before issuing the RFP — gives you a baseline to evaluate vendor pricing proposals against.
- Use the vendor scoring rubric at /buyer-toolkit/vendor-scoring-rubric to score responses consistently across your evaluation team.
- Shortlist 3-5 vendors based on capability fit. Demo all shortlisted vendors using the same scripted scenarios — described in our demo question checklist.