Guide

Don’t Sell Your Asset Management Firm Short:

5 COMPONENTS OF A ROBUST RFP RESPONSE

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IntroductionJust as a highly personalized, polished and engaging quarterly report impresses and retains existing clients, a similarly executed request for proposal (RFP) response can secure new ones. While completing an RFP can be an arduous undertaking fraught with communication barriers, information holes, inconsistent data, and lengthy approval timelines, the response can have a direct effect on whether or not the firm will earn new business. According to a survey by AM 20/20, a market insight consultancy for asset managers, 63 percent of consultants are more likely to recommend a manager based on a thorough RFP response, and 54 percent of institutions are more likely to hire a manager based on the same thing. In short, sound RFP responses are critical to success, and those that are generic or unorganized will fail.

This guide will not only identify three common characteristics of subpar RFP responses and how they can affect a firm’s opportunity, but also five vital components of a robust one and why they, when consolidated into a single solution, can make the completion process smoother and overall submission more comprehensive.

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The What and Why of Poorly Constructed ResponsesJust as important as knowing how a great response should be built is identifying and avoiding the classic elements of a less-than-stellar one. While the presence of any of these characteristics can generally lead to a missed business opportunity, each one affects a firm’s reputation and perceived quality of work differently.

• Generic Answers: Providing vague, repetitious information that doesn’t address an RFP’s specific questions and concerns can be interpreted as indifference or worse, arrogance. Not speaking to a potential client’s individual needs with at least some customized language and data implies that general answers are considered sufficient to secure business, and that time spent is far more important than impressions made.

• Inconsistent Information or Formatting: If names are misspelled, language improperly revised and edited, or any branding incorrectly displayed, the inquiring party could view the firm as disorganized or even lazy in its efforts to project professionalism and authority. The existence of RFP mistakes can misrepresent and even damage an asset management brand in a market that is already highly competitive.

• Old or Irrelevant Data or Disclosures: Inaccurate or old data could, at the least, poorly convey a firm’s performance, selling short its returns and successes. At the worst, especially when fees and regulatory language are concerned, such loose oversight could be seen as deceptive and then flagged for compliance violations.

These detriments reflect on a firm in a variety of negative ways, but regardless of a response’s errors, the effect of lost business is universal. Don Pierce, CIO of San Bernardino County Employees’ Retirement Association, succinctly summarized his experience in receiving inferior RFP responses. “We get them all the time from people who I would think know better. A well-crafted RFP does not guarantee you the business, but a badly-crafted RFP will definitely lose you the business.”

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The Response: ApportionedThe best method for visualizing and combining the top elements of a robust RFP response, as it is itself yet another piece of marketing content to be distributed, is to imagine a five-spoked wheel that displays the workflow process and interrelation of each step. This is vital to the undertaking, as a transparently collaborative assembly of information only helps a firm achieve the most complete RFP response possible.

CreateAs elementary as this initial step may seem, it is the degree to which each question in an RFP is answered that makes the overall response so thorough and precise. Instead of just creating, asset managers should ask the question: How is each answer created? Building a response based on specific, accurate information requires that the source of the information be as reliable, accurate and centralized as possible. An organized, universally accessible repository of content is a great start to successfully executing this first task, and having the ability to receive live notifications should any changes to the information arise allows for a more efficient and open creation process.

DistributeLargely imperative to creating a robust response is making sure the right individuals within the firm are looking at and answering all applicable RFP questions. While a centralized repository from which information can be pulled into the response is critical, quite often only a handful of people can provide the subject matter expertise necessary for certain questions. For the sake of workflow efficiency and comprehensive content, questions should be assigned to the best person or team within the firm. This also means that the platform being used to distribute the RFP should be responsive enough to allow for mobile access and input to accommodate individuals who work remotely in the field or across the globe.

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PersonalizeTailoring a response includes more than just providing customized verbiage; it also means any supporting data should be presented in accordance with any specifications provided. For example, an RFP might require custom benchmark data, returns calculations in multiple currencies or asset classifications that differs from standard report settings. Personalized responses will reflect these differences and successfully convey how well a firm understands the requirements and parameters of the inquiring entity. Furthermore, having the capability to include live data and insert dynamic tables and graphs that update whenever the originating data is changed during the RFP workflow process allows the firm to dramatically eliminate the number of errant entries.

CollaborateBeyond assigning certain questions or portions of an RFP to individuals or teams with subject matter expertise, it is important for continuous collaboration to occur across contributing members and groups. Real-time comments and edits from various stakeholders allow for a more transparent process and textured response. Since multiple individuals contribute to the management of a client’s assets, it makes sense to have the same stakeholders participate in the RFP response workflow.

For many within asset management, this segment is the most critical because it ensures that the RFP response is not only robust and accurate, but also completely compliant in its inclusion of fee language and regulatory disclosures. Once all assigned parties have contributed to, edited, and collaborated on the response, then any executive-level analysis and legal and compliance review can occur, acting as the final authority in the buildout workflow. With everyone connected through and working within a cloud platform, collaboration can occur with little hindrance.

AnalyzeBut the lifespan a robust RFP response doesn’t cease upon submission. It should not be an out of sight, out of mind condition of business. Instead, the firm should collect and analyze qualitative feedback and quantitative data on which content made the most impact and how additional materials should be tailored to further address the potential client’s situation. Utilizing a solution that can track, in real-time, how the recipient interacts with the RFP response is the simplest form of execution at this stage of harvesting and leveraging actionable data.

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ConclusionIt should be noted that while these five components of a robust RFP response are interconnected in a manner that facilitates a system of checks and balances, only so much protection can exist within and between each segment of the workflow cycle. It’s up to each individual to spend the time and effort needed to build a comprehensive and successful proposal; this is, after all, the best chance for an asset management firm to convince a potential client that it is not only capable of governing over their investments, but also wholly committed to delivering a customized, meticulous experience. Amanda Tepper, president of AM 20/20, stated it this way: “You really need to be paying attention to what you are doing. The more rote you are, the more likely you are to make a mistake and to have wasted a lot of time. Quality matters a lot more than quantity.” And the quality of one’s RFP responses will greatly increase with the integration of the above components, especially if they can be executed from within a singular platform.

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