Is the cheapest bid the best value for donated money?
No. A cheap quote that does not deliver wastes more than a slightly dearer one that does, which is why responses are scored against the brief on fit as well as price.
Blog
How to run a charity tech tender to Charity Commission standards
Run it as though the Charity Commission is watching, because trustees and funders are entitled to see that donated money bought the best value. Write the brief before speaking to any supplier. Invite a handful, including the incumbent if there is one, and have them all answer the same brief. Let the team who will use the system hear the presentations, choose on value and fit rather than the lowest price, and write down why. I have run charity technology and website tenders to this standard.
What should the brief say before any supplier is approached?
What the website or system has to do, grounded in how your team works and what the people you serve need. A line such as "we need a new website" gives suppliers nothing to answer. Every later decision, and every supplier's response, is measured against the brief, so without it you are comparing suppliers on impressions.
How many suppliers should a charity invite?
A handful is enough. Include your current supplier if you have one: it is fair, and they know the organisation. What matters more than the number is that every supplier answers the same brief, so you compare like with like instead of a set of differently shaped sales pitches.
Who should hear the suppliers present?
The team that will use and run the system, as well as the person signing the cheque. The people doing the daily work spot practical problems a decision-maker misses, and being involved means they own the result rather than having it done to them.
How do you choose, and show the choice was fair?
Score the responses against the brief, weigh fit and culture alongside price, and record the reasoning. The cheapest quote that does not deliver wastes more than a slightly dearer one that does. Tell suppliers in advance how the decision will be made, give the unsuccessful ones a straight reason, and keep the paper trail. That record is what lets you show a board or a funder, a year later, why you chose who you chose.
Related evidence: Care home charity – digital strategy. Earlier in this journey: Is your charity's agency marking its own homework?.
Questions people ask
Why keep a written record of how a supplier was chosen?
Because someone will ask, a year later, why that supplier was chosen, and the recorded reasoning is what lets trustees show a board or a funder that the process was fair.
Not sure where to start?
Most clients begin with a conversation. No pitch, no hard sell.
Just a straightforward discussion about where you are and whether I can help.
Book a free 30-minute call