Submitted by annamarie on Tue, 25/02/2025 - 11:59
Submitting Tender Questions (Q&A)
The Q&A system allows suppliers to post questions directly on the tender page. This ensures that all communication between suppliers and tender authors is centralised, transparent, and accessible to all purchasers.
The system replaces the previous practice where questions were raised by email, telephone or other means; and answered by email to a manually created distribution list of buyers.
Benefits of the system
Improved auditability
- The system retains a secure and accessible record of all Q&As for each tender.
- Q&As cannot be edited, deleted or mislaid by tender staff or committees.
More secure, reliable and accessible
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All Q&As are saved on the tender page.
- A record is retained of all questions and answers and when and by whom they were asked and answered.
- Questions and answers. It is only visible to the tender author and to buyers.
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Improved communication and transparency
- Tender authors receive emailed Alerts whenever a question or comment is posted.
- Tender buyers receive automated email Alerts when the tender author approves or answers a question.
- New buyers will see the entire Q&A history on the tender page, including question asked and answered before they bought the tender
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Reduced risk of misinterpretation
- All communications are saved on the system exactly as intended by the buyer or author.
- This reduces the risk of a telephonic question being misinterpreted, or an emailed question being recaptured incorrectly.
- If an answer is inadequate or confusing any buyer can respond for more clarity
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Better access
- Q&As are accessible online from anywhere at any time, by any user with appropriate permissions.