There’s a paradox at the heart of most Request for Proposal (RFP) processes, especially in areas such as people and culture. Often, companies go out to market for expert help. And then tell those experts exactly what to do.
The intention is sound (from a procurement perspective): define the scope, control the spend, and ensure apples-to-apples comparisons. But too often, these RFPs are written with limited subject matter expertise, shaped by assumptions, trends, or anecdotal insights rather than evidence-based and expert understanding. The result? A competitive process that screens for the wrong thing, in the wrong way, and often ends up solving the wrong problem.
As someone who’s sat on both sides of the table I’ve seen this play out repeatedly. Vague ambitions are presented with rigid scopes. Old solutions are recycled for new challenges. Consultants are expected to customise… while conforming.
The Illusion of Obvious Solutions
In my field, workplace wellbeing, culture, and experience, the RFP process is often even less rigorous than in more technical domains. There’s a prevailing sense that because we’re all people, and all work in organisations, we must understand what’s going on.
Unhealthy staff? Let’s add yoga and a nutrition workshop. Unhappy staff? Time for an employee engagement app. Unproductive staff? Let’s develop a hybrid work policy.mThese “solutions” become default line items in the RFP, often copied from what other companies are doing or from a vendor’s glossy deck, without anyone asking:
- What exactly is the problem?
- Who is affected, and how severely?
- Where is this happening in the organisation?
- What’s driving or sustaining it?
- What else is going on that might be connected?
Until you answer these questions, any solution, no matter how well-intentioned, risks being cosmetic. And if you’re not solving the actual problem, you won’t achieve the outcomes that really matter: cost savings, reduced turnover, increased innovation, better reputation, stronger leadership, or healthier culture.
As McKinsey explains,
“70% of change efforts fail to meet their objectives, often due to misdiagnosed root causes or poor implementation planning.”
The failure isn’t in the delivery, it’s in the brief.
That’s why so many wellbeing and culture RFPs don’t feel like true invitations for partnership. They feel more like attempts to outsource a performance. The underlying question might start as “How can we use a consultant to help us solve this challenge and progress sustainably?” but all to often seems to morph into “How can we use a consultant to appear to be fixing this problem, for the best fee?”
Let the Experts Do the Heavy Lifting
This is where the current RFP model often fails both clients and consultants.
By over-prescribing the “what,” organisations limit their ability to receive the “why” and “how” that could actually change things. And by evaluating proposals based on compliance with a flawed or shallow scope, they inadvertently select for vendors who follow instructions, not those who challenge assumptions or solve problems creatively.
Consultants, meanwhile, face a dilemma: match the RFP exactly and deliver something they know won’t work just to get considered, or deviate and risk being scored down for “non-compliance.” Either way, the client loses.
What’s the alternative? RFPs that focus less on the solution, and more on the problem. Less on deliverables, and more on desired outcomes. Less on price-matching, and more on value creation.
A Better Way to RFP
Instead of listing a smorgasbord of surface-level interventions you believe you need, start with a deeper brief:
- What’s prompting this work?
- What do you hope will change?
- What’s unclear or unknown?
- What constraints matter most?
- Where do you want your consultants to think freely, and challenge you?
This reframing doesn’t just make for a stronger tender. It gives you a chance to see how consultants think. What do they prioritise? What models, methods, or data do they bring? Can they help you refine your ambition, not just execute a scope?
It also helps you avoid what I call initiative theatre: a flurry of wellbeing perks, policies, or programmes that look good on the intranet but never address the root cause.
The False Economy of a Flawed Brief
Let’s be blunt: the cheapest fix to the wrong problem isn’t cheap at all. It’s expensive, demoralising, and often reputationally damaging. It fuels initiative fatigue among employees who’ve seen it all before. It drains budgets without moving the dial. It wastes time when time is running out.
By contrast, creating space for genuine expertise early in the process pays off in strategy, clarity, and sustainable results. It also allows for true comparison, not just of pricing, but of quality, creativity, and fit.
Your goal isn’t to “buy” a wellbeing programme, or a culture audit, or an employee experience toolkit. Your goal is to solve a complex people challenge in a way that aligns with your strategy and values. AND delivers measurable, meaningful change.
A Simple Shift
If you’re drafting an RFP, or planning a tender process in this space, try this:
- Start with the why. Focus on the problem and what success would look like.
- Be honest about what you don’t know. Consultants aren’t here to judge, they’re here to help.
- Reward insight, not just compliance. Scoring should reflect the ability to solve, not just respond.
- Leave room for innovation. Invite consultants to offer alternatives you may not have considered.
- Make time for conversation. Don’t just compare decks. Talk to the people behind them.
A great RFP doesn’t have to know the answer. It just has to ask better questions, and be open to better answers.
Through her work at WellWise, Bobbi helps organisations move beyond surface-level fixes to identify root causes, reduce people risk, and build healthier, high-performing cultures.
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