A Web-based process model to reduce defects on Requests for Proposals in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

One of the major problems in the current official procedure in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) for issuing Request for Proposals (RFP), communicating with vendors, and evaluating vendors' submitted proposals is the lack of controls that prevent unfair connections and favored treatment of vendors. Further, the cultural environment in the KSA and in developing countries in general, exacerbates this problem by encouraging relationships that can lead to favored treatment of vendors. This makes the RFP process vulnerable to a selection of vendors who are not best-qualified, thereby creating inefficiencies and increasing the likelihood of substandard products.; The purpose of this research is to reduce the vulnerability of the RFP process to unfair connections and favored treatment toward vendors. This goal is accomplished by creating a web-based process model that includes a structured evaluation method and addresses ethnographical issues. Therefore, the hypothesis of this dissertation is the following: Replacing the current KSA procurement process model with a structured, web-based process model can reduce unfair connections and favored treatment toward vendors. Further, the structured, web-based process model is broadly applicable to developing countries other than the KSA.; This dissertation performs the following three steps: Step one: a detailed study of the current RFP process in the Ministry of Interior (MoI). Step two: a detailed ethnographical feasibility study of the workflow process in the MoI. As input to step two, personal interviews of stakeholders were conducted to collect necessary process requirements information. Step three: Design and verification of a new process model and a functioning prototype termed the Interactive Multimedia Information System (IMIS) to implement a proof of concept for the e-RFP process model. The IMIS prototype utilizes the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) for structured decision-making in vendor selection. The application of the AHP requires an in-depth comparison of the initial capability proposals submitted by vendors in response to the online, web-based RFP process designed in this research (denoted as e-RFP). The contribution of this research is the design and verification of an effective process model that reduces vulnerabilities inherent in the current practices. The consideration of ethnographical factors is central to this research both in regards to communicating requirements to vendors and in structuring the evaluation of vendor submissions. The e-RFP process encourages vendors to consider ethnographical factors and address those defects, inefficiencies, and inconveniences that currently exist in an agency and are unnecessary disadvantages of the interaction of culture and bureaucracy.