Are you in need of an architect? Not sure how to find the most fitting one for your commercial project? One way is to solicit Requests for Qualifications (RFQs) from architectural firms. Most people are not regularly involved in selecting an architectural and engineering team, so it can be difficult to know what an RFQ should include. Yet the questions you ask and the information you provide directly affect the quality of the responses you receive.

I have seen and responded to thousands of RFQs throughout my career. I can usually tell which ones have been carefully crafted and which ones will make it difficult for the selection committee to compare firms when they receive the submittals back.

Whether it’s your first proposal or you’re building on previous documents, including the right questions to gather the information that matters to you is crucial. You need to articulate your ask with proactive and purposeful questions. A good RFQ helps architectural firms understand your project, respond to your priorities and demonstrate what it would be like to work together. Here is how to write one that leads to more relevant proposals and an informed selection.

What Is the Difference Between an RFQ and an RFP?

Before you begin, determine whether you should issue an RFQ or an RFP, or Request for Proposal. An RFQ generally focuses on a firm’s experience, team, capabilities and approach. An RFP additionally requests a detailed technical proposal and fee.

In some states, such as Ohio, for instance, laws are laid out for public entities, such as townships, cities, and the state, that require you to publicly advertise RFQs first before asking for a fee. (See the Ohio Revised Code Chapter 153:1.) Even if you are not a governing organization, using RFQs will allow you the freedom to review and rank firms based on their experience and qualifications first and then negotiate a fee.

What Should You Include in an Architectural RFQ?

Start by deciding what matters most. Before writing individual questions, consider what factors are most important in choosing the right partner for your project. Priorities might include project-type experience, stakeholder engagement, budget management, sustainability expertise, speed, technical expertise or local knowledge.

Use those priorities to shape both the RFQ questions and the evaluation criteria. Every question should help you make a decision. If you will not use the answer to evaluate firms, consider whether the question needs to be included at all.

Introduce Your Organization and Project

The more clearly firms understand your organization, project and expectations, the more relevant their responses can be. If requesting fees, a well-defined scope also supports more accurate estimates and fewer assumptions. Begin with the basics. Explain who your organization serves, why the project is needed and what you hope it will accomplish. Include as much confirmed information as you can about:

• • • The project location and existing conditions
    • The anticipated scope and required services
    • Project goals and desired outcomes
    • Preliminary construction budget
    • Desired design and construction schedule
    • Anticipated project delivery method
    • Key stakeholders and decision-makers
    • Known challenges, approvals or constraints

You will not have every answer yet. Identify what is known, what is still being determined and where you want the selected firm’s guidance.

What Should You Ask the Team to Provide?

Asking for more information does not always lead to a better submittal. Too many requirements can add unnecessary length and make the most important qualifications harder to find. Focus on the information your committee will actually use to evaluate firms and make its decision. Here are my recommendations for what to include.

Ask for a project-specific statement of interest

Submitting a response already indicates that a firm believes it is qualified. Instead of requesting a general overview, ask for a concise executive summary explaining why the firm is particularly well suited to your project. What does it understand about your goals, and what relevant strengths does the proposed team bring?

Request a Thoughtful Project Approach

Ask firms how they would approach your project, not simply for a standard description of their design process. If certain issues will influence your selection, name them. You might request their approach to quality control, community engagement, decision-making, sustainability, budget management, phasing or an accelerated schedule.

Ask for Relevant Experience

Ask for three to five projects relevant to your needs, defining relevance as a similar building type, budget, scale, location, funding source, stakeholder group or technical challenge. Request concise, visual case studies that explain the challenge addressed, the role of proposed team members and what the experience demonstrates.

Get to Know the Proposed Project Team

The people presented should be the people you expect to work with. Ask who will be your primary contact, who will lead each phase and what role every key team member will play. Request short, relevant resumes and identify proposed consultants and their responsibilities.

Request and Contact References

Ask for and contact references from comparable projects. Use consistent questions about communication, problem-solving, budget and schedule challenges, and whether the client would work with the firm again.

How Can AI Help You Write an Architectural RFQ?

AI can help you organize your project’s information, brainstorm questions, identify missing topics and clarify instructions. As you are writing your RFQ, you might also use it to flag vague language, duplicated requirements or questions likely to produce inconsistent answers.

However, AI cannot decide what matters most to your organization. Before using it to develop questions, your selection committee must agree on the information needed to compare firms. Review every AI-generated question and ask: How will the answer help us select the right partner? If it will not affect your evaluation, it probably does not belong.

Also, follow your organization’s policies for using AI and avoid entering confidential, financial or other sensitive project information into tools that have not been approved.

What Not to Include

A good tip is to review your RFQ and remove or clarify anything confusing or unnecessary. In additiona I would be careful about asking:

Availability
When inquiring if a firm is too busy to complete the project, asking for ‘hours already devoted’ to other projects by project personnel is irrelevant. This is because schedules are fluid and based on our clients; hours are subject to constant change. Better than asking for the allocated hours, ask what percentage of time will be given by each position on the overall project. You will better understand who will be your main point/s of contact and who will only have smaller roles.

Vague Questions
Instead of asking the what-ifs and issues not specific to the project, ask directly about working with us. Often, RFQs include subjective questions about our firm’s capabilities, communication, or equipment. If you want to work with a firm with virtual reality software, ask, “What are your virtual reality capabilities?” Asking “What technology do you have?” gives no indication as to what you are looking for.

Key Reminders

To make the process as smooth as possible, set out your expectations and the logistics for firms that are submitting.

Page Limit
If I were writing an RFQ, I would definitely set a page limit. Although, as a creator and overseer of RFQ submittals for my firm, this makes my job more difficult, I would still recommend it for you. Page limits force us to pare down our information to only what is most important. While there is no ideal number, please allow enough space for us to answer all your questions. The more questions, the higher the page count.

Your Evaluation Process
Let us know your evaluation process. Do you have a reviewing committee? What does your scoring matrix look like? This section will serve as a constant reminder to respect your time, write for the intended audience, and hit on all key information. Include the expected turnaround time, but be realistic. You might need more than a few days to review, especially if it’s not your full-time job, you need multiple approvals, or you get tons of responses. Include this in your schedule for selection. List out all the tentative dates for the selection process, including periods allowed for questions or when the shortlist will be announced.

Give Instructions for Submitting
To avoid multiple follow-ups or guesswork on our part, provide clear instructions on how you want the RFQ submitted. Include your preferred medium (hard copy and/or digital? Emailed PDF or USB?), and consider how many copies of each format are necessary. Most importantly, be sure to include where we should send our final materials. Last, but not least, be sure to give a realistic submittal date. Typically, a two to three-week timeframe is sufficient. Shorter than a week turn around and you will most likely get less responses and not as customized of a response. Fees could be higher as well as we have to make assumptions, including the one that you typically expect things on non-realistic timelines.

After reviewing thousands of RFQs, I can easily identify which ones have been carefully considered and written and will elicit the best responses. Confusing RFQs will garner confusing responses, making it difficult to compare firms and make informed decisions. Reach out to me, Suzanne Cody, Director of Marketing, with questions on writing your own RFQ.