Arequest for qualifications (RFQ) is a step sometimes used in the formal process of procuring a product or service, for example by a government agency. It is typically used as a screening step to establish a pool of vendors (businesses or individuals to provide a product or service) that are then qualified, and thus eligible to submit responses to a request for proposals (RFP).[1][2] In this two-step process, the response to the RFQ will describe the company or individual's general qualifications to perform a service or supply a product but generally will not include specific details or price proposals.[3]
For the procurer, an RFQ provides a pre-screening step, so at the request for proposal phase there are fewer proposals to evaluate.[4] The Request for Qualifications thus becomes a means by which the purchasing agency can add vendors to their select sellers list, i.e. list of vendors eligible to bid.[5]
For the respondent, they do not spend the time and effort to write a full proposal only to find out they were not qualified as a firm.
In some jurisdictions, the RFQ is a required step for some types of procurement.[6] In the United States, the Federal Highway Administration denotes a request for qualifications as a "phase one solicitation" for design–build projects.[7]
^Migliaccio, G. C.; Gibson, G. E.; O'Connor, J. T. (January 2009). "Procurement of Design-Build Services: Two-Phase Selection for Highway Projects". Journal of Management in Engineering. 25 (1): 29–39. doi:10.1061/(ASCE)0742-597X(2009)25:1(29).
