Glossary

BPM – Business Project Management 

Business process management (BPM) is the process of organising operations management to measure, improve and automate business processes.  

DMS – Document Management Software

Document management is the use of a digital storage system to store, manage and track electronic documents, including bid papers. 

E-Tenders - Electronic Tendering 

The process of tendering in an electronic format. This tendering process is usually paperless. 

EOI – Expression of Interest

An Expression of Interest (EOI) is to gauge interest in tendering. 

Framework Agreement

A framework is an agreement with suppliers to establish terms governing contracts that may be awarded during the life of the agreement. 

Governance

The framework of authority and control within an organisation.

ITT – Invitation to Tender

This is the initial step of a competitive tendering process, where suppliers and contractors are invited to submit offers for supply or service contracts.

Lots

Tender categories of products, works or services are commonly known as Lots.

Mini Competitions

These are formal mini tenders. 

OJEU - Official Journal of the European Union

OJEU is an online publication where all tenders from the public with higher value must be published. 

PQQ – Pre-Qualification Questionnaire

This is a questionnaire that suppliers and contractors must fill out when bidding for work. It is designed to identify the most suitable supplier, to invite to tender for contracts, and helps make shortlisting potential suppliers easier.

SQ – Standard Selection Questionnaire

An SQ is used to collect information to help decide which suppliers should be selected to participate in a tender exercise above EU thresholds.

RFI – Request for Information

An RFI is a formal process to obtain service and resource information from potential suppliers of a product or service.  It is a fact-finding document which helps determine which suppliers can best meet a buying organisation’s needs, to narrow down a list of candidates.

RFP – Request for Proposal

Designed to level the playing field for businesses that want to work with a particular organization, an RFQ is a document that solicits proposal, often made through a bidding process, by a company interested in procurement of a commodity, service, or valuable asset, to potential suppliers to submit business proposals.

RFQ – Request for Quotations

An RFQ is a document that an organisation will use to invite one or more potential suppliers to submit a quote for the completion of a specific job or project.

RFT – Request for Tender

An RFT is a formal request or invitation that asks suppliers to submit a bid to supply products or services.

Procurement 

Procurement is the process of receiving goods/services from an external source, through a tendering or bidding process. 

Proposal

A proposal is a formal written document which is sent to a prospective client in order to obtain a specific job or project.

Quote

A quote is a formal document which provides a detailed breakdown of goods or services offered and the cost based on what you think the job will involve.

Tender

A tender is a formal offer to provide products or services at a fixed price.

SLA - Service Level Agreement

An SLA is a proposed agreement between the issuer and tenderer that defines a working relationship between parties to a service contract. 

SOR - Statement of Requirements 

This document type descrives the procurement deliverables.