How to Write a Crystal Clear RFP When Choosing an LMS

Typically, we write requirements for creating something from scratch: a website, an app, or a design. But sometimes requirements are prepared for choosing a ready-made but complex and expensive product, such as a learning management system (LMS). This list of requirements is called a request for proposal, or RFP.

Over the years, the iSpring team has received hundreds of different LMS RFPs, from one-page lists of essential features to documents of hundreds of pages, filled with diagrams.

In this guide, you’ll learn what you need to include in an RFP, check out some actual examples to see how it can be structured, and find our custom LMS RFP template that is free to download.

What is a Request for Proposal (RFP)?

A request for proposal (RFP) is a document that companies create and send to potential LMS vendors when they need to launch an eLearning project. It outlines details on the company, its project, and the expectations regarding the solution they need. If a vendor concludes it is capable of meeting your demands, it will send a proposal. The company compares the solutions that are offered and selects an LMS that aligns with its training needs and business objectives.

What is the Purpose of an RFP and Why Do You Need It?

The purpose of an LMS RFP is to formally document the requirements for a new learning management system. It allows organizations to evaluate proposals from potential vendors, helping them find the perfect match for their specific needs.

Spending time composing a detailed LMS request may seem like an unnecessary task because good vendors do their best to gather as much information about clients and their projects as possible and offer a suitable solution anyway. Still, there are five reasons to take the time to develop a good LMS RFP.

1. Define what you really need

The LMS RFP specifies what exactly you’d like to achieve with a learning platform and puts it in writing. Having clear goals defined before the start of the project, you’ll be able to evaluate the effectiveness of the project after the launch: have you managed to get the expected results, or not? Just giving a random solution a try and waiting for it to sink or swim is a bad strategy when making a decision for thousands of dollars.

2. Prioritize

To make your way from point A to point B, you can drive a Mercedes as well as a horse cart; both will carry you to the destination. So, when you start an eLearning project, you need to understand which features are required, which ones are nice to have, what you’re ready to pay for, and which features you can forego due to budget constraints.

3. Determine the limits

It’s better to inform vendors of all your criteria before they get started with a presentation. These include deadlines, budget, number of users, and the need to use a specific technology, for example, on-premise installation. If the deadline for a full-scale launch of eLearning is in two months, it makes no sense to waste time listening to the presentation of solutions that will take up to six months to deploy.

4. Make your way through the crowd

An Amazon search shows over 100,000 results for “t-shirt”: for men, for women, for children, even for cats. It’s impossible to have a look at each of them. The good news is that there are only about 500 LMS providers, but even so, you still need a filter to cut out the irrelevant solutions.

5. Get exactly what you need

This is possible when you manage to minimize the difference between the views of the client and the service provider. A winning LMS RFP helps find gaps in understanding the task and brings to light all the essential details that can make a difference in implementation and final cost.

A project without a clear LMS Request for Proposal (RFP)

Types of LMS RFPs

There are different kinds of RFPs that companies can use based on their specific needs. Some common types of LMS RFPs include:

• Functional RFP. This document focuses on the specific LMS features the company needs. It outlines the desired capabilities and how they align with the organization’s goals.
• Technical RFP. This LMS RFP goes into the technical aspects of the learning platform, such as system integration, data migration, security requirements, hosting options, and scalability. 
• Services RFP. It is focused on the services provided by LMS vendors, including implementation, customization, training, ongoing support, and maintenance.
• Compliance RFP. This type of LMS RFP outlines the regulatory requirements and is a must-have for companies that prioritize compliance with specific regulations and standards.

These are just a few examples of RFPs you might want to create. In our article, we’ll provide you with a universal LMS RFP that’s suitable for most companies.

Components of an LMS Request for Proposal

The chances of seeing two identical LMS RFPs are the same as meeting two people with identical fingerprints. Still, the structures of all good RFPs are similar, as there are general sections that will be of use in all cases. 

1. Project summary

This is a one-page description of a project that outlines key data: the inputs are this and that, the goal is such and such, the supposed solution is the following.

Nobody would read a hundred pages to get a sense of it. In an executive summary, you specify the main requirements for your ideal LMS. If LMS vendors see that their solution works for you and they’re interested in the project, they’ll study the details and start working on the proposal. If not, well, at least you haven’t spent much time explaining.

A strict deadline is a serious filter for potential suppliers that allows you to avoid unproductive negotiations with LMS providers who can’t fit into your framework. Specify the selection and deployment schedule and the date when you expect to get started with eLearning. 

Also, name the person from your company who will lead the project and answer questions. 

Avoid describing your organizational background in every detail. Instead, provide a link to a presentation or to the relevant website section; usually, that’s enough.

Example:

2. About the project

Tell vendors more about your training project and how you plan to work with the learning management system (LMS). This is a large section, so it’s better to divide the information into logical blocks for careful consideration.

2.1. Inputs

Indicate the initial data that you know at the start of the LMS project: 

• How many users are you going to train? 
• How many active users do you expect per day or per month?
• How many users will simultaneously use the system? 
• How many courses do you already have? 
• What materials do you plan to upload and what are they?

Example:

2.2. User Roles

LMS users may have different permission levels. By assigning each user a specific role, you set boundaries: what they can do in the system, which files they can see, and which they can’t. For example, administrators can add users, upload courses, assign courses to the learners, and track their progress. The learners are often confused by excessive features, so they can only take the courses which are available to them.

As a rule, the variants and the number of user roles depend on the organizational structure of the company. In a small company, one person often combines several roles: sets up the portal, adds users, and uploads the content. In this case, two user roles — administrator and learner — are quite enough. A larger company may need five or more user roles.

Let’s take a simplified diagram of a chain enterprise as an example.

A simplified diagram of a chain enterprise

Here are the user roles they might need:

• Account Owner (the head of the training department in the diagram) has the fullest access to the LMS capabilities: he manages the platform settings, sees financial information, and can view any files and create organizations within the organization (for example, separate the franchise department from the owned branches).

• Administrator. The head of the training department has assistants with full access rights, save for changing a pricing plan or deleting the company’s account. They set up user groups, and manage learning paths and content.

• Organization Administrator. Each branch is headed by a manager. He manages users, assigns courses to employees, and keeps track of statistics within his organization, but he can’t have a look at these things in another branch.

• Author (or Publisher, or Content Creator). This person uploads new courses and updates the old ones. For instance, corporate trainers, instructional designers, and methodologists usually have author permissions.

• User (or Learner). An employee who simply takes courses and tests.

Think about the scenarios for using an LMS in your company, and what types of users you’ll need.

Example:

2.3. Features

If you are planning to buy an out-of-the-box or partially customized solution, it’s better to describe what the platform should do, not how exactly it should be done.

One problem can have several solutions. The optimal strategy is to clarify the usage scenario for a requested feature, wait for the vendors’ response, and together with your IT team, who should also take part in the evaluation process, select the right LMS.

Example:

The other possible solution is to describe the scenarios and attach another document in which an LMS vendor can check the boxes next to the list of features you’d like to have. On the iSpring blog, there’s a comprehensive guide on LMS requirements.

2.4. Integrations and Compatibility

List the software and services you plan to use in conjunction with a learning platform. Imagine you spent $50,000 to buy the LMS and found out that it can’t recognize the format of your e-courses. Unpleasant surprise, indeed. Therefore, if you already use any services, say, an authoring tool or a service for video conferencing, decide whether any integrations are vital or you can do without them.

3. About the vendor

In the previous sections, you mainly talked about your needs: what your company’s tasks and limits are, and what you expect from the learning management system. The purpose of this section is to get acquainted with a potential LMS provider and learn about the vendor’s qualifications.

You’ll probably send the LMS RFP to several companies at the same time. In order to avoid wasting time on processing disparate responses, offer your structure to the LMS vendor. It can be the following:

3.1. Summary of the proposed solution

Ask potential LMS vendors to prepare a one-page summary of the proposed solution to make it easy for you to catch the key points. As a rule, decisions on purchasing an LMS are made collectively, so the summary will simplify the task for you, your colleagues, and key stakeholders.

3.2. About the company

What to pay attention to:

• How long has the company been on the market?
• How many people are there in the team?
• Who are the customers?
• Are there any prestigious awards?

3.3. About the platform

• Technical requirements. 
• Details on key features, functionality, and limitations.
• Additional features and customization that can be made if necessary. 
• Possibility to start small or run a pilot project and then scale. 
• Data security policy.

3.4. Compliance with the requested functionality

Although we’ve already mentioned that it’s better to describe the desired result, not the way to achieve it, it doesn’t always work that way in practice. When you engage engineers and security specialists to develop the LMS RFP, you’ll likely get a long list of specific requirements that are either must-haves or ‘nice to haves.’ 

Transfer this list to Excel or Google Sheets and attach a link to the RFP. The client manager will go through all the points and mark if the LMS meets each requirement or not. Using such a table saves you a lot of time because all you have to do is compare the responses of the potential suppliers. 

Excel and Google Sheets allow you to filter the data. It’s convenient, especially

when you have a long list of LMS requirements.

 

3.5. Implementation plan

• What are the stages of implementation?
• How long will each stage take?
• What work will the vendor do? 
• What work will be required on your part?

3.6. Proposed budget

The cost of an eLearning project consists of five components: 

• LMS licensing fees (here’s a guide on various pricing models);
• Implementation costs;
• Setup training;
• Technical support;
• Maintenance and updates. 

Ask vendors to specify the total sum and detail the expense items. 

3.7. References

Feel free to ask for some case studies, especially if an LMS vendor has experience working with companies from your industry. However, the most useful practice for making an informed decision is to explore client references. Ask for direct contacts from two or three companies that already use the platform, so you can find out how the LMS solutions function in actual use cases.

Usually, it will take some time for a vendor to get in touch with their client and get permission to share their contact information with a prospect, but if they’re willing to do it, it’s a good sign that you can trust them.

LMS RFP Template and Checklist

Now that you’ve gotten all the important theory down, you can start writing your own LMS RFP. But to make your life a little easier and relieve you from the burden of researching all this on your own, we’ve created a comprehensive LMS RFP template and a feature list for you. Our template is extremely user-friendly and guides you through the entire RFP process. By filling in your specific details, you’re just a few clicks away from finding your ideal learning management system.

Download the free LMS RFP template

Tips for Writing an Effective LMS RFP

Here are some tips for writing a solid LMS request for proposal (RFP):

1. Clearly define the scope and objectives of the project: When describing your project, go into detail about your goals, what you expect to get out of it, and when you need it accomplished. This will help potential vendors understand the LMS requirements and submit proposals that hit the mark.
2. Include specific requirements and evaluation criteria: It’s extremely important that vendors understand what is expected and how their proposals will be judged. That’s why an effective LMS RFP requires detailed specifications for system requirements, such as technical specifications, functional requirements, and any other criteria you’ll use to evaluate proposals.
3. Communicate expectations and terms: Be clear about the terms and conditions of the LMS RFP, including any legal and financial requirements. This will help vendors understand what’s on the table and if there are any constraints.
4. Provide vendors with background information: Share some background details about your company, project, and industry, so vendors can get the big picture.
5. Be open to questions from vendors: Allow vendors to ask questions and seek clarifications about the LMS RFP. This will help you ensure that all vendors have a clear understanding of the requirements before submitting their proposals.

To Sum Up

Writing an RFP is a key step in selecting the right solution for your company. Use our free LMS RFP template to create your request for proposal more easily. If you need to consult about your situation and decide on LMS requirements for your company, contact iSpring support specialists, and they’ll be there for you.

If you’re looking for an all-purpose LMS with powerful content creation capabilities and robust analytics, then sign up for a free demo of the iSpring Learn LMS. Our professionals will dive into your project specifics and help you decide whether it’s right for you.