Imperial
What to share first
The public solicitation link or number, every amendment issued so far, and the due date and time including its time zone. This is enough for a first feasibility view and none of it is confidential.
Scope and feasibility review
The consultant reads the instructions and evaluation criteria, counts the volumes and page limits, and identifies what has to come from you. That produces a realistic view of the work and whether the runway supports it.
Past-performance evidence
Have your relevant contracts, values, dates, points of contact and outcomes to hand. Assembling these is often the longest task in the response and it cannot be written for you.
Technical input
Someone in your organization has to supply the technical and operational substance. A proposal writer structures, sharpens and makes it compliant. They cannot originate your delivery approach.
Pricing responsibility
Pricing stays with you. A consultant can structure the narrative that explains and supports the price, but the numbers and the commercial risk are yours.
Approvals and review stages
Name who reviews and who signs, and put their availability into the schedule before agreeing it. Approval is where responses most often lose their remaining days.
Secure document transfer
Do not put confidential files into a first public inquiry form. Establish fit, then arrange suitable transfer with an NDA in place.
How the written quote is produced
After the feasibility review you should receive a written scope, timeline and price. Short deadlines change what can responsibly be supported, and a consultant who agrees to any timeline without reading the solicitation is not assessing the work.