Welcome to this issue of The Contingent Compass. Each week, I send two essays to help you navigate the complex world of the Contingent Workforce. If you need support on your journey, upgrade to a paid subscription where you’ll instantly be able to interact with the community through group chat, live Q&A’s, gain access practical program tools and useful how-to guides.
Let’s start with the uncomfortable truth: most enterprise RFPs for contingent workforce programs don’t select the best solution. They select the best RFP writers.
And while that may look good in a spreadsheet, it rarely delivers the transformation that Procurement, HR, or business leaders are promised. Because the game was rigged from the start.
The Illusion of a Level Playing Field
On the surface, the RFP process looks fair and structured 🧾 - a well-meaning effort to identify the most qualified partner. But in reality, it's often just a Frankenstein monster of outdated templates, recycled scoring rubrics, and vague requirements that haven’t evolved with the business.
The questions asked rarely get to the heart of what the organization truly needs. The responses? Carefully curated. Often beautifully written. But not necessarily operationally honest.
If you’ve ever been part of an RFP process, ask yourself this: when was the last time it actually uncovered something bold or new? Or did it just confirm the usual suspects?
📌 One-liner diagnostic: If your RFP can be answered by ChatGPT, it’s not strategic enough.
🧠 Reflection time: Are you running an RFP - or just recycling the last one?
The Misalignment Between What’s Asked and What’s Needed
Talk to your business stakeholders, and they'll tell you what they want: faster access to specialized talent, better cost control, real-time visibility, and meaningful supplier accountability. DE&I progress, too, isn’t just a line item anymore - it’s a cultural imperative.
Now open up the average RFP. Legal jargon. Abstract process questions. Requests for "global capabilities" that aren’t defined. You’re hoping for strategic agility, but you’re evaluating based on historical volume and price.
It’s no wonder so many programs underdeliver. The evaluation process never gave innovation a chance to begin with.
🧠 Reflection time: Are you measuring what matters - or just what’s easy to score?
The Best Bidder Isn’t Always the Best Partner
You’d think the selection process would favor the strongest operators. But more often than not, it favors the strongest storytellers 📣.
RFP teams become masters at presentation polish - slides, scripts, score-friendly language. But delivering a multi-year, multi-million-dollar transformation across dozens of business units and geographies? That’s something else entirely.
And here’s the kicker: many buyers don’t realize the gap until it’s too late.
Did you pick the partner who can truly deliver - or just the one who performed best in the RFP theater?
Vendor Viewpoint: What Suppliers Wish You Knew
Let’s flip the lens for a moment. Ask any seasoned vendor and they’ll tell you:
Most RFPs feel like compliance tests, not partnership invitations.
Creativity is punished, not rewarded 🙅♂️.
Key decisions are made before the RFP is even released.
Good vendors don’t fear transparency. They fear check-the-box RFPs that leave no room to differentiate.
Want better proposals? Write better RFPs.
The Commercial Model Conundrum No One Wants to Talk About
Most MSPs are paid based on a percentage of your total contingent labor spend. Simple in theory. Messy in practice 💸.
Because one of the reasons companies hire an MSP is to optimize that spend. But the more you save, the less they earn. There’s zero incentive alignment.
Even worse? Many clients prohibit MSPs from having their own affiliated staffing firms participate in the supply chain. So the MSP loses another potential revenue stream. And we expect innovation on top of that?
What we’re left with is a commercial model that rewards volume - not value. Everyone keeps the wheels spinning, but no one’s incentivized to change the system.
🧠 Reflection time: If your MSP makes more money when you overspend, how exactly is that helping you?
Try this instead:
Fixed fee + outcome bonus ✅
Tiered incentives tied to measurable savings 💡
Shared-risk models that pay for transformation, not just transactions 🤝
It’s like hiring a personal trainer who gets paid more every time you skip the gym. Not smart. Not sustainable.
Real Talk: A War Story You May Recognize
A global financial services firm once ran what they believed was the perfect RFP. Everything scored, everything vetted. The winner had the best presentation. The pricing was attractive. Boxes ticked ✅.
Six months in? Hiring manager complaints. Talent quality down. Supplier engagement fractured. The program team was firefighting daily 🔥.
They brought me in to assess. The issue wasn’t just delivery - it was misalignment from the start. The commercial model punished efficiency. The provider was incentivized to do more of the same, not better.
Fast forward 18 months: A redesigned model. New scoring framework. Transparent supplier collaboration. Cost down 11%. Quality scores up. And the business actually liked using the program.
The lesson? It’s not the RFP. It’s how you use it.
🧠 Reflection time: Has your RFP ever looked great on paper but delivered chaos in practice?
Executive Blind Spots
Most executives care about workforce ROI - but too often, they’re looking in the wrong direction.
They’re focused on cost-per-head or total headcount instead of asking:
Is the right work being done?
Are we attracting and retaining the right talent?
Are our vendor relationships driving results - or just paperwork? 📎
Good leadership asks uncomfortable questions. Like: “Are we rewarding the wrong behaviors in our supply chain?”
Or: “Would I bet my bonus on this model actually delivering?”
Red Flags Your RFP Is Setting You Up to Fail
If you see any of these signs, it’s time to stop and rethink:
🚩 Every proposal looks eerily similar
🚩 Scoring prioritizes compliance over capability
🚩 Business stakeholders were looped in late - or not at all
🚩 DE&I is requested but not tied to delivery expectations
🚩 Providers are evaluated on presentation, not proof
A Gut-Check Visual: When the Traditional Model Fails
Not all models are broken - some are just badly matched.
📊 Use this lens to gut-check:
If your needs are in the right-hand column, your model must evolve - or it will erode.
Design Principles for a Smarter RFP
Want to build a modern, future-ready contingent workforce strategy? Then your RFP must evolve. Here’s how:
🎯 Co-design the RFP with your business units - don’t go it alone.
📊 Score for delivery capability and business alignment - not just compliance.
💡 Give weight to innovation and scalability - not just status quo performance.
🤝 Structure the commercial model to drive shared goals - not conflicting ones.
📈 Define how success will be measured - from DE&I to cost optimization.
An RFP built this way doesn’t just select a vendor. It selects a transformation partner.
🧠 Reflection time: What would your ideal future workforce program look like - and does your RFP reflect that ambition?
A Checklist for Your Next RFP
📋 If you’re planning an RFP in the next 12 months, ask yourself:
Have we involved Finance, HR, and business leaders in the design phase?
Are we scoring for delivery outcomes, not just polished responses?
Does the commercial model reward innovation and savings - or just volume?
Can we articulate how this provider helps us achieve business growth?
If we picked this partner today, would we be proud to introduce them to our board?
The RFP of the Future
Let’s look ahead 🔭:
What happens when AI-generated proposals pass every scoring threshold - but no one on the delivery team wrote them? What happens when talent supply is algorithmically matched before the RFP is even published?
RFPs must evolve from static selection tools to dynamic design frameworks. Ones that anticipate not only delivery but disruption.
Your next RFP will be a test of agility, not just formality. Are you ready for that?
🧠 Reflection time: If AI can write your vendor response, shouldn't your RFP require something only real expertise can deliver?
Stuck with Underperformance
Here’s where it gets costly. Once you pick your provider, you’re usually locked in for three to five years.
And if the fit is wrong? You don’t just lose time - you lose trust. Stakeholders disengage. Hiring managers go rogue. Shadow spend balloons 🎈.
Instead of managing your workforce, you spend your time managing the MSP. That’s not strategy. That’s containment.
🧠 Reflection time: If you had to explain your MSP model to your CEO, would it sound like progress - or just process?
Final Thoughts: Stop Spinning the Wheel
This isn’t a radical take. It’s a practical one with just a hint of sarcasm.
If your last RFP didn’t lead to the kind of program you’d proudly present to your CEO, then something needs to change.
Reimagine how you write, evaluate, and score. Bring the business in sooner. Design a commercial model that drives shared success.
Because you don’t just want to award a contract - you want to build a workforce strategy that actually works.
🎯 This is your call to break the cycle. You don’t have to keep spinning the wheel. You can redesign it - with help from someone who’s been in the room, cleaned up the mess, and built it better.
Let’s stop rolling the dice 🎲 - and start building with intent.
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If you need support on your journey, upgrade to a paid subscription where you’ll instantly be able to interact with the community through group chat, live Q&A’s, gain access practical program tools and useful how-to guides.