Abstract
This paper is a comprehensive exploration of crafting an Invitation to Tender (ITT) for Facility Management, with a focus on key elements and advantages of integrating relevant information into the ITT process. The paper is organized into distinct sections, covering topics such as required services, the role of the Command Centre, operating structure, building inventory, registry, information system, Help Desk, and more. It delves into quality policies, service provider requirements, procedures for service monitoring and control, Service Level Agreements (SLAs), Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), penalty and incentive systems, responsibility and ownership of information, information and training, risk management, reporting, and feedback information. This paper aims to offer valuable insights into each aspect of the ITT process, making it a valuable resource for creating a robust ITT for Facility Management, providing a comprehensive understanding within a 10,000-word limit. To delve deeper into the details, the full paper can be accessed through the provided link in the following introduction chapter.
Facility management (FM) is a rapidly growing sector that is expanding its areas of interest within the Real Estate and Construction industry. To help and ensure a correct and innovative approach in line with the progressive requests, several international FM standards have been developed in the last decade, and FM marketplaces are now on the rise in most industrialized countries worldwide. As a relatively new management discipline, FM requires research and original experimentation in various areas, including organizational models, relationships between key stakeholders, supply chain management, shared references and procedures, new skills, and multidisciplinary training. Typically, FM revolves around information management by managing people, spaces, and infrastructures through vast amounts of data and documents handling.
Considered the amount and continuous collection of new data, sometimes that information may be initially redundant, partially lacking, not updated, or unreliable; therefore, it is fundamental that those data are correctly selected, collected, classified, and organized to generate valuable information. In a scenario where such service is outsourced, Invitation to Tender (ITT) are critical to ensure fair and open competition for the contract award, allowing the issuing organization to compare different providers and select the one that offers the best value for money. To help with such a task, this paper takes the perspective of the Client when preparing an Invitation to Tender (ITT).
This document, along with its specifications, encompass the Client’s overarching vision for service management over time and serve as a systematic synthesis of its requirements, expectations, quality policies, its relationship with the Service Provider, its role in decision-making and control processes, and its requests regarding information management and knowledge generation. The potential problems during the preparation of the ITT, when combined in various ways, can lead to several consequences during service delivery. They may complicate the relationship between the Client and the Service Provider, impact service quality and Client satisfaction over time, increase nonconformities, result in penalties, and reduce the efficiency and effectiveness of the Service Provider.
Given the overall 10,000-character limitation, please access the Full paper by clicking on the Link.
Facility Management (FM) plays a pivotal role in ensuring the functioning of an organization’s infrastructure. As organizations deals with the decision of how to manage and deliver FM services, they are presented with three distinct approaches categorized by their source: In-House, Outsourcing, and Hybrid. Each approach brings its own set of advantages and challenges.
To determine the most suitable FM service delivery approach, organizations can turn to the guidelines provided by ISO 41012:2017. This international standard outlines the principles and processes for effective facility management according to minimum set of information that have to retrieved prior to the decision. For the correct assessment the client should firstly define and articulate the organizational needs and the final objectives desired and understand the related strengths and weaknesses and the potential consequences of each. The outcome of this process will then direct on the correct approach. This will be either managed:
In-House: In this model, an organization establishes and manages its FM services internally. This approach offers a high degree of control and customization but demands a substantial investment in human resources and infrastructure.
Outsourcing: Outsourcing involves contracting external Service Providers to deliver the required FM services. This approach can lead to cost savings, as the client can leverage the expertise and efficiency of specialized vendors. However, it requires a careful selection process (i.e. through ITT), and ongoing management to ensure service quality and compliance.
Hybrid: The hybrid approach combines elements of both in-house and outsourcing models. Some services are managed internally, while others are outsourced to external providers. This allows organizations to strike a balance between control and flexibility, tailoring their FM strategy to meet specific needs.
If after careful review and analysis the result is in favor for an outsourcing strategy, the Client must be capable of clearly, comprehensively, and accurately specifying the scope of services and expressing their needs without ambiguity at the early stages of preparation of the procurement documentation.
This, would allow the organization to reach the utmost potential from the procurement and from the FM related services. In those scenarios, an in-house FM-related skills and know-how, is still fundamental, since such internal capabilities would allow to retrieve and manage the information received from the contractor; and ensures a correct understanding of the main critical issues occurring.
In the field of FM tendering, various documents play distinct roles in the procurement process. Including but not limited to:
Request For Information (RFI): Its purpose is to gather information about the supply market, market dynamics, trends, factors driving change, and alternative pricing strategies.
Expression Of Interest (EOI) and Registration Of Interest (ROI): EOI and ROI are used to estimate the market’s ability to supply or gather additional information before progressing to an ITT.
Request For Proposal (RFP) and Request For Offer (RFO): Used when the Client seeks solution-based responses to meet its needs. Service providers are invited to submit proposals on how to achieve the desired result.
Invitation to Tender (ITT) or Request For Tender (RFT): ITTs are employed when the Client has already identified and specified a solution to a very specific problem.
Request For Quotation (RFQ): RFQs invite potential service providers to provide price quotes for specific services.
These various tendering documents offer flexibility in how the procurement process is structured, allowing Clients to tailor their approach to their specific needs and the state of the supply market. A properly written version is a crucial aspect with respect to the whole Procurement Process, both from the Client’s side and from the Service Provider’s side. These often prove to be incomplete and lacking, in terms of contents, in significant parts that can sometimes generate misunderstandings and possible future litigation among the involved parties, as well as economic and operating inefficiencies.
For the correct development of a procurement process, it is certainly useful for the client to create a comprehensive introductory overview that highlights its current perspective on organization, people, spaces, and infrastructures. This overview should cover the most relevant topics related to facility management processes and then address all subjects related to the client’s core business and objectives.
The Invitation to Tender (ITT) should, therefore, include a first chapter containing a precise list of the requested services. Each service should be described with specific business-related information, including infrastructure, asset, and personnel details. This section should also outline the actors involved in the procurement and the future beneficiary, as well as include Service Level Agreements (SLAs) and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). Additionally, it is crucial to incorporate Facility Management (FM) related topics for proper management, specifying, at a minimum, the characteristics of the Command Centre (CC), the operative structure, the help desk, and all other relevant specifications for the proper management of information.
The following chapters will, therefore, delve into each topic to address their nature and the related characteristics that need to be considered in the preparation of the ITT.
A Command Centre (CC) is defined as “An organizational structure, mainly dealing with the strategic and tactical levels, responsible for the planning and coordination of interventions, the monitoring of service delivery, and the management of information flows”. This, deals with three main domains directly related to governance strategies: Decision, Knowledge, and Control.
Defining a model of the CC means establishing the tasks within the three domains assigned respectively to the Client and to the Service Provider, considering that the activities of the CC may be carried out in various ways by the different parties involved in the service contract. For support, an information system can represent the core tool helping within the three domains by providing data useful for making decisions and activating processes, managing the flow of information, supervising performances through the application of KPIs.
Considering that the composition of the Command Centre (CC), specifically the roles and skills, may vary depending on the selected organizational model for the business, there are several key topics that must be appropriately addressed to arrive at the best solution and fit. These include establishing the minimum requirements for the team, specifying the necessary skills, outlining the required experience, determining availability in terms of hours and full-time dedication, addressing ownership of tools, and other relevant considerations.
The Help Desk serves as a crucial structure typically found in integrated Facility Management (FM) services. It functions as a communication hub for all issues related to FM services, receiving users’ requests and complaints, activating the Service Provider and operative teams, supporting users in their interactions with the Service Provider’s team, and ensuring a better understanding of the delivered services while tracking requests.
It’s important to emphasize that the Help Desk should not be viewed solely as a function supporting communication with users; it can also be seen as a collector of information related to faults and an activator of unplanned interventions.
Considering all these tactical functions, in the Invitation to Tender (ITT), the Client should clearly specify some fundamental aspects connected with the Help Desk. This includes the structure and hierarchy of charge in regards to its management, operating modalities (specifying operational hours and enabled users), and all the required activities expected to be performed by the Help Desk, along with any other related tasks.
Given the significance and the role played by information in facility management processes, along with the competitive advantage that comes with its correct handling, the management of information is a crucial aspect for the quality of FM services in all phases.
In this context, the standard suggests that a plan for information management could be a valuable support tool for subsequent tender procedures. It states that “A plan for facility information management should be prepared and kept up-to-date. This plan should include a definition of the information management process, the functions or activities within it, the information flows between functions or activities, and the controls that have to be applied.”
Considering the above, in the drafting of the Invitation to Tender (ITT), the Client should take into account various interconnected key topics addressed by the subject of information management. These include Inventory, Registry, Information system, Information flows, Document management, Responsibilities and ownership of information, and Feedback information.
The inventory may be defined as a process based on a plurality of activities and procedures carried out to obtain information about the dimensional and physical characteristics of real estate. It can be interpreted as a continuous process involving retrieval, selection, validation, acquisition, collection, and updating of data. These data, organized according to specific goals, create a base of information necessary for planning, managing, and checking the provision of facility management services.
Given its crucial role, before drafting the Invitation to Tender (ITT), the Client should articulate its expectations regarding the inventory process. According to certain standards, it is suggested to incorporate some predefined steps as part of the information management process. These steps include the identification of appropriate data, the classification method, validation in terms of accuracy and reliability, revision, and the expected gradualism approach for new data acquisition.
The modalities of collecting and organizing information during the delivery of an FM service depend on a structure that can be defined as a “registry system.” This system can be regarded as a framework of criteria useful for the classification and coding of spatial and technical elements. Once assets have been classified and coded, identified in an unambiguous way, it becomes possible to allocate the information.
A registry can be seen as a database containing the information necessary to describe buildings by recording data related to characteristics such as quantities, location, functions, technical configurations, etc.
A registry system typically operates based on a breakdown structure, representing the building as a hierarchical open structure. It forms a tree structure that, starting from a level of maximum aggregation, can be organized into underlying layers, each having a lower degree of complexity, down to the simplest elements that are not further decomposable.
An information system plays an essential role in supporting the collection, retrieval, and processing of a continuously growing amount of information, thereby enhancing knowledge. Information systems can take various configurations, all sharing fundamental features that the Client should consider when drafting an Invitation to Tender (ITT).
Following the indications of the Italian standard UNI 10951:2001, an information system for the management of real estate can be generally defined as “A decisional and operational support tool, consisting of a Database, Procedures, and Functions aiming to collect, store, process, use, and update the information necessary for the setting, implementation, and management of services.”
The database is considered the core of the information system, usually organized according to specific rules and a coding system aimed at identifying the level of aggregation of the analyzed item.
During the service delivery phase, a substantial amount of information is generated, collected, shared, and exchanged among different operators and actors. Given the constant exchange and the vast volume of information, it becomes crucial to establish a system capable of retracing every piece of data back to its source.
The primary aim of this complex task is to prevent the loss of valuable information that contributes to knowledge accumulation over time and enables the monitoring of asset performances and service provider activities.
To facilitate these processes, a useful tool could be the Design Structure Matrix (DSM), a matrix square grid that illustrates how each element in the overall system relates to every other element.
Documents are crucial for the quality and success of processes, serving as a vital source of information in both the pre-tendering phase and during the facility management service delivery phase.
The significance of designing and implementing a suitable Document Management System (DMS) cannot be overstated. It proves highly useful in supporting Quality Management Systems and proposing a methodology for its implementation. In the absence of a DMS, it often happens that laborious and time-consuming surveys are undertaken to search for data, not realizing that the required information is already present within the documents. Alternatively, new documents may be generated unnecessarily, or existing ones may be updated without unified criteria and shared rules.
The information used and shared throughout the entire Invitation to Tender (ITT) process is typically subject to confidentiality clauses designed to protect the Client. These clauses specify that the information is to be used exclusively during the contract period and solely for the purpose of the agreed-upon services. Furthermore, access shall not be granted to third parties without the prior and documented consent of the Client.
The standard BS EN 15331:2011 emphasizes the challenge of predicting the service life of building components, future costs, and asset performance over time without the availability and analysis of feedback data obtained from activities during the service period. It underscores that such data is fundamental for establishing a historical and statistical basis for controlling and potentially revising service results, as well as for developing benchmarks.
The role of feedback data has been defined as “Feedback data is essential for all maintenance plans. The technical and financial information acquired through experience (details on failures, type and frequency, costs and methods of intervention) leads to increasingly reliable forecasts.”
The monitoring and control of the performance and quality of services provided represent a fundamental module within the management of Facility Management (FM) services. This allows for the measurement of the effectiveness of service provision and the associated efficiency-adding value, contributing to the organizational success of the Client.
Performance measurement is considered as “A process of assessing progress towards achieving predetermined goals, including information on the efficiency by which resources are transformed into goods and services, the quality of those outputs and outcomes, and the effectiveness of organizational operations in terms of their specific contributions to organizational objectives.”
Therefore, the process of service monitoring and control is a means of assessing the progress of service provision with respect to predetermined goals, namely the service levels stated in the Invitation to Tender (ITT) and agreed upon in the FM contract (SLAs), in relation to efficiency, quality of outputs and outcomes, and the effectiveness of organizational operations.
In particular, the measurement, monitoring, and evaluation of service performance are executed through a comprehensive performance assessment process. This process should be thoroughly described and specified in the ITT by the Client, including the definition of service levels concerning service performance and quality (SLAs), the selection of methods and metrics to measure service performance and quality, internal and external benchmarking based on the organization’s goals to gain a comprehensive overview of service provision progress, and the reporting of achieved service performance and quality by the Service Provider.
The establishment of Service Level Agreements (SLAs) is crucial, not only for the Client, who gains the necessary awareness to define related metrics (Key Performance Indicators or KPIs) for monitoring and controlling the Service Provider and service performance during the delivery phase but is also a fundamental information tool for potential Service Providers responding to the Invitation to Tender (ITT).
During the process of defining KPIs, the Client must consider that, for using the set of KPIs as an informative tool to support the Facility Management (FM) decision-making process, each KPI must be thought of as a means for measuring and evaluating key performance parameters that are directly or indirectly related to the SLAs agreed upon in the FM contract.
These indicators are defined across four broad categories of KPIs:
To effectively manage the reporting function within the ITT, it is crucial for the Client to provide clear specifications regarding the reporting requirements. This involves defining criteria for reporting performance, specifying reporting frequencies and schedules, outlining procedures for report drafting, determining the structure and contents of the reports, and establishing methods of delivery.
Adhering to the ISO 41012:2017 standard, the Service Provider’s report should encompass essential information, such as the status and condition of relevant building assets, a summary of service performance in the preceding period, an overview of achieved results, references to the previous period’s report for comparative analysis, identification of differences from expected conditions and results, including changes in asset conditions and any unsatisfactory or non-compliant service levels.
Additionally, the report should address implemented or proposed corrective actions, provide evidence of events impacting service performance, and offer insights into future expected changes along with suggested measures to address them.
The SLA&KPI system within the contractual framework may incorporate either a penalty system or an incentive system. The Client retains the authority to structure the payment arrangement by attaching monetary penalties or incentives to the Service Provider based on the attainment of KPI targets, thereby ensuring compliance with the agreed-upon performance levels (SLAs).
The ITT should explicitly specify key details, including the definition of financial penalties associated with each SLA (corresponding to each KPI), identification and definition of potential faults for each service, criteria and methodologies for calculating, communicating, and disbursing penalties or bonuses, and a comprehensive list of SLAs indicating instances where failure to meet the agreed performance levels may result in contract termination.
The Client has the ability to set and outline in the Invitation to Tender (ITT) certain requirements for tenderers or selection criteria. These are prerequisites that potential Service Providers must meet preliminarily to participate in the tendering process and respond to the ITT.
Defining these requirements in the ITT is beneficial to ensure that the Client receives offers only from Service Providers capable of meeting the Client’s needs, thereby avoiding the review of a large number of unsuitable offers.
In particular, the Client can specify in the ITT the requirements for Service Providers, categorizing them into three key areas: Legal and Regulatory Capacity, Economic and Financial Capacity, and Technical and Professional Capacity
The topic of Quality Policies concerning the content of an Invitation to Tender (ITT) involves a reflection on the quality strategies of the demanding organization. Depending on the goals, objectives, and available resources such as know-how, people, capital, funds, etc., the quality strategies can range from a simple framework of quality control procedures to a complete Quality Management System (QMS) and quality improvement programs.
According to the standard BS EN ISO 9001:2015, the implementation of a Quality Management System (QMS) represents “A strategic decision for an organization that can help improve its overall performance and provide a sound basis for sustainable development initiatives.”
A Quality Management System (QMS) serves as a significant instrument for the realization of a quality strategy. It is a structured and systematic system that outlines and describes processes, procedures, and responsibilities to achieve pre-established quality policies.
According to the standards ISO 31000:2018 and ISO Guide 73:2009, the management of risks is “An iterative process made up of several coordinated activities aimed at identifying, assessing, preventing, mitigating, and managing any potential risk, supporting organizations in making informed decisions and setting proper strategies to reach the desirable goals.”
In accordance with the standard ISO 31000:2018, the principles of risk management provide guidance to achieve effective and efficient risk management. These principles elucidate the main characteristics of the risk management process, which aims to create and protect the value of an organization.
Specifically, these features of risk management address the need to be:
The framework comprises key processes including Integration, Design, Implementation, Evaluation, and Improvement. Leadership and commitment are emphasized at the core, requiring integration of risk management into organizational activities aligned with objectives. The iterative Integration process adapts to the organization’s needs and culture. Design involves analyzing internal and external contexts, articulating commitments, defining roles, and allocating resources. Implementation includes developing a plan and allocating resources, while Evaluation assesses framework appropriateness and effectiveness. Improvement involves adjusting the framework based on evaluation results and changing contexts.
Effective information and training play a pivotal role in the realm of FM service outsourcing, serving as essential components for the overall success and efficiency of FM service delivery. The establishment and execution of an Information and Communication Plan, along with a dedicated Training Plan, serve several crucial purposes. These include fostering seamless information exchange between the Client and the Service Provider, disseminating the Client’s strategies, policies, and processes to external staff at various operational levels, and furnishing external personnel with ongoing training and educational support to elevate their skills and knowledge. These plans ensure that external stakeholders are well-informed about their specific roles and responsibilities, ultimately mitigating risks associated with knowledge or skill gaps.
Talamo C., Bonanomi M., Knowledge management and information tools for building maintenance and facility management, Springer, (2015)
Talamo C., Atta N., Invitations to tender for Facility Management Service, Springer, (2019)
