Example Headings
If commissioning an external provider to conduct a research or evaluation project for you, it's important to be very clear about what you want.
Project Title
Heading to be used for project.
Summary
Briefly summarise who is commissioning the work (e.g. your organisation), what is to be evaluated (e.g. Pedestrian training) and the timescales.
Introduction
Provide background to the intervention such as why it is being done and why it is being evaluated.
Research Objectives
Outline aim and objectives. These will be used to determine the methodological approach suggested.
Methodology
You can be relatively prescriptive about the methodology here if you have a fixed idea about what should be undertaken. For example, Tenderers are invited to propose a work programme designed to meet the above objectives, requirements and the timetable outlined below.
Alternatively, you can keep it open for the evaluator to propose. For example, Tenderers should include a time schedule for the work that identifies the main tasks and key milestones that will be used to monitor and report on progress.
Analysis and Reporting
If you require the data collected to be analysed you should specify if there are any particular analyses required e.g. quantitative data by specific age groups. You should also specify what your reporting requirements are e.g. an interim report, main report no more than 40 pages including executive summary and a 4 page standalone summary document.
Timetable and Project Plan
It is important to be explicit here if you are restricted with time because the intervention must take place within a specific time period or you need the evaluation completed by a certain date. This ensures that expectations with regard to the evaluation can be managed.
Budget, Resource Profile and Payment of Invoices
Quality Plan and Personnel
You may have specific quality assurances that you toned to be followed. You may want to specify the minimum level of expertise and experience that will be brought to the evaluation e.g. experience in evaluating similar interventions.
Data Protection
The data that the project collects will have to be done so in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998.
Your organisation may have also have their data protection policy that needs to be complied with.
Evaluation Criteria
In order to make the assessment of proposals fair you need to be explicit about how they will be evaluated. This could include knowledge and experience of team, rationale and strategy for the work to be carried out, understanding of issues and research objective, project management, quality assurances, total cost, total staff days, allocated staff per task.
You could allocate a certain percentage of the overall assessment marks to specific aspects of the bid, for example:
| Expertise |
20% |
| Work plan |
30% |
| Cost |
30% |
| Quality Assurance |
10% |
| Understanding of the research objectives |
10% |