Summary 

WFD established its current Management Development Programme (MDP) in 2019 working with our selected provider from an open tender. The organisation is now re-tendering the contract to ensure WFD has the right partner and MDP that best suits our current and future needs and provides good value for money for the next 4 years. We are therefore looking to receive proposals for MDPs that meet the requirement detailed in this document and support the ongoing development of our management skills across our international workforce. 

Overview 

Westminster Foundation for Democracy (“WFD”) is the UK public body dedicated to supporting democracy around the world. Operating internationally, WFD works with parliaments, political parties, and civil society groups as well as on elections to help make political systems fairer, more inclusive and more accountable. 

We are a problem-solving, practitioner-led organisation that offers:

• High quality and impactful regional and country programmes that directly support the full spectrum of institutions in political systems to develop inclusive political processes, more accountable political systems, protection of rights and freedoms, and more pluralistic societies.  
• Specialist analysis, research, and advice to inform UK policy makers on a range of democratic governance issues through our Centre of Expertise.   
• International elections observation on behalf of the UK.  

WFD’s organisational structure consists of a headquarters, based in London, employing circa 60 full time staff in programme delivery, technical advisory and business support roles. We operate an agile working model in the UK, which supports remote-based, office-based and hybrid working. Our head office teams provide organisational leadership and operational support to circa 125 locally engaged programme delivery staff, located in our (circa 30) international programme field offices. Within our global structure, approximately 55 staff have line management responsibilities. 

More details of WFD’s strategy, programme activity and international footprint is available on our website.

The aim of this Invitation to Tender

WFD is issuing this Invitation to Tender (“ITT”) to procure goods/services in accordance with the conditions detailed in this document. 

The fundamental purpose of our Management Development Programme is to establish a strong, consistent and best practice standard of management skills and implementation by all our Line Manager across the organisation, resulting in a high level of staff engagement, retention and satisfaction. 

Over the past 4 years, WFD has invested substantial resources into developing our managers and codifying what we expect of them. Objective 4.1 of our current ‘outstanding organisation strategy’ (which sets out our strategic direction for our people, operations and systems agendas) aims to ensure WFD has ‘Great Managers’- 

“We will equip our managers with the skills and tools for teams to thrive, support wellbeing, and deliver high performance, whilst embracing difference and recognising individual contributions.”

The MDP is a crucial product in supporting the delivery of the above objective, and we are committed to the continued development of our managers.  We believe ‘great managers’ are fundamental to a positive employment experience and critical for staff to be retained and thrive at WFD. We believe that a consistently high standard of experience of line management by our teams will further improve WFD’s reputation as an employer and allow us to manage a significant portion of our people and culture-based risk. 

Since we developed and introduced our MDP in 2019, there have been some major changes in our ways of work, with the primary example of this being the COVID-19 pandemic. Like all organisations, this drove WFD to adopt a remote working model, which since the end of the pandemic, WFD has cultivated into our current agile work model. This has meant an increased level of remote working for teams, which requires a more flexible management model for the organisation. The other major lesson learned from the pandemic, and subsequent remote based working, was the need for the organisation and our managers to prioritise staff wellbeing; WFD recognises the key role managers play in ensuring their staff feel supported and able to navigate personal challenges and work-related pressures and stresses. In a post-COVID working environment, it is crucial that our management practices continue to evolve and be responsive to the pressures of an increasingly distributed workforce. A large part of this is related to the psychological contract that line managers and our staff members have, and we believe that clear expectation setting on both sides will enable us to provide consistency here. 

WFD is a very culturally diverse organisation with staff based in over 30 countries globally. Within these Country Teams, there are different cultural understanding and interpretation about what ‘good management’ looks like; including how managers demonstrate authority and responsibility, and the level of comfort and familiarity they have with certain management tools (i.e. performance appraisals). As WFD strives for high management standards, we also need to recognise the cultural norms and context that may play into the approaches adopted and applied by our managers.   

The results from our 2024 annual employee engagement survey show that we need to do more to encourage managers to help staff reach their full potential (i.e. development and growth). Additionally, managers need to be stronger on motivating and ensuring staff to feel satisfied by and engaged in their work. There was also feedback that managers need to be doing more listening and less telling, so their staff feel more supported and cared for. Given the ongoing cost of living pressures and the challenges for employers to keep salaries at levels that can act as a motivator for employees, it’s important that managers understand what non-compensatory factors make a difference when it comes to recognition, reward and engagement, and can apply this to ensure staff feel valued. 

A significant challenge for WFD managers is responding to the needs of individuals within the frameworks and context in which we operate. These include: 

1. As a UK Arms-Length Body of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, WFD is obligated to comply with certain operational frameworks (i.e. structural and pay and reward).
2. WFD is also a relatively small organisation, which despite certain benefits, can create challenges around opportunities for progression.
3. Our funding model can mean that there are also challenges around pay and reward, as well as WFD needing to be creative and efficient when it comes to supporting staff learning and development.

The above context means that WFD managers often need to find a balance between supporting and motivating staff and managing expectations. We, therefore, need to ensure managers have the skills and tools to communicate effectively with their staff and manage these potentially difficult conversations. Managing staff within the WFD context will be a key element of the MDP. 

WFD has an established competency and skills framework (ANNEX 2), which consists of our six core competency areas of:

• We respect and support colleagues
• We demonstrate business awareness
• We embrace innovation and change
• We deliver quality and impact
• We demonstrate leadership 
• We build partnerships and networks

Under each core competency area there is a set of behaviours which are described at three levels; (1) support level, (2) management level and (3) strategic level; and, a set of skills and knowledge areas which help guide staff on the learning and development required to ensure they are able to demonstrate competence in the required areas. All our line managers are operating at the management level or strategic level (with the vast majority at the management level), and you will note that throughout the framework, there is reference to line management skills under a number of competencies and that the described behaviours are those that we would want (and expect) to see in our managers. The MDP should equip our managers with the skills and knowledge to be able to demonstrate the required behaviours under each of the relevant core competency areas and to apply a management style that aligns with our culture and organisation values (see ANNEX 3). 

Across all of our operations, WFD currently employs over 55 staff who have line management responsibilities as a core part of their role. Most of our managers are responsible for teams ranging from 5 staff, to just one direct report (please see ANNEX 1 organisational chart attached for more detials on our staffing structure). 

We are seeking to procure an L&D partner to design and deliver a module based management development training programme to our managers. Due to our international workforce, the programme will need to be delivered virtually by a live facilititator. Online materials and learning platforms may also be used to support the delivery of the programme. We would also welcome proposals that offer a 2 tier approach of (1) a more comphrensive programme for new/less experienced managers, and (2) a refresher programme for more experienced managers, introducing the minimum standards expected when managing people at WFD. 

Programme design and coordination will be finalised throughout October – December 2024, with the first cohort kicking off in January 2024. The programme will then run on a rolling basis until December 2028. 

Bid submission 

All bids should be in a format that complies with the requirements of this ITT. 

Bids should be submitted by email to: Jon Spence, People and Culture Director, at procurement@wfd.org. We recommend that bids are submitted in PDF format where possible, except for spreadsheets where required.  

Bids should refer clearly to the ITT reference number: OPSD/MDP/2024.  

Should you require any further information or clarification on this ITT, please contact Jon Spence, People and Culture Director, at procurement@wfd.org.  

By submitting a bid, you agree to comply with WFD’s standard terms and conditions for tendering and key policies and WFD’s Code of Conduct.  

Tender information

Introduction

This document is an ITT and it forms part of the procurement exercise to support the selection of a supplier, to enter a contract. The aim of this document is to identify functional and commercial requirements and provide instructions for submitting responses.  This document will also provide vital information as it relates to evaluation criteria and forms the basis for contractual arrangements. 

This ITT is not an offer to contract; it is a definition of specific requirements and an invitation to submit a response addressing such requirements. WFD may modify these requirements in whole or in part and/or seek additional bidders to submit information/bids. WFD will not be liable to you for any losses or damages suffered by you because of the specific requirements or any amendment to such requirements.

Detailed scope and specification of this ITT

Proposals will be required to demonstrate how they aim to meet the following specification:

Reporting

Following each cohort, the supplier will be required to share evaluation reports, and on an annual basis WFD will arrange a broader evaluation discussion to assess the impact and effectiveness of the programme.

Working arrangements

Due to our international workforce, the programme will need to be delivered virtually by a live facilititator. Online materials and learning platforms may also be used to support the delivery of the programme. We would also welcome proposals that offer a 2 tier approach of (1) a more comphrensive programme for new/less experienced managers, and (2) a refresher programme for more experienced managers, introducing the minimum standards expected when managing people at WFD. 

Payments

WFD’s payment terms under this contract will be 30 days from receiving a valid invoice following satisfactory receipt of the services. 

This will be a 4-year framework agreement with a single supplier, terminating December 2028. The estimated contract value (over 4 years) is £40,000 - £60,000, with payment on satisfactory delivery of each course. This estimate excludes programme design costs, but these should be clearly set out in the proposal.

Timescale 

Below is the proposed timescale for the tendering process. Please note the dates are indicative and subject to change.

Bid requirements

In general, the bid should include the following:

1. Organisational profile
2. Proposed solution and how it meets the specification 
3. Financial proposal 
4. References 
5. Confirmation of compliance with General Terms and Conditions of Tendering

Organisational profile: 

• Company profile, including brief history and financial overview
• Case studies/credentials demonstrating relevant experience and skills profile 
• Names and brief biographies of key staff 

WFD is particularly keen to receive bids from organisations which are – or are working towards becoming – living wage employers and that have a broadly representative and balanced Board from gender and ethnicity perspectives. 

Proposed solution: 

• Clear explanation as to the proposed approach to meeting the specification set out in this ITT. 
• Detailed project plan, including timelines, assumptions and dependencies, resourcing and risks. 

Financial proposal: 

• Full breakdown costings for the proposed solution in GBP.
• Separate accounting of VAT and/or any other applicable tax, duty, or charge. 
• Detailing of any discount applied in view of WFD’s not-for-profit status. 

References:

• The bid should include details of two references relating to similar goods/services provided in the last three years. Please note – referees will only be contacted once Preferred Bidder status is assigned.

Confirmation of acceptance of general terms and conditions of tendering: 

• All bidders will be deemed to have accepted the WFD Terms and Conditions of Tendering and confirmed their compliance. 
• All bidders should also note the following: 
• all bids should be submitted in English; 
• all bids should be submitted in electronic form only;
• this ITT and the response may be incorporated in whole or in part into the final contract;
• only information provided in response to questions set out in this documentation will be taken into consideration for the purposes of evaluating the ITT;
• bids which are poorly organised or poorly written, such that evaluation and comparison with other submissions is notably difficult, may exclude the bidder from further consideration; and
• any bids which do not fully comply with the requirements of this ITT may be disregarded at the absolute discretion of WFD. 

Evaluation criteria 

WFD intends to shortlist providers based on their response to the ITT and will use the following scoring criteria.  

WFD will score each criterion using the following table: 

Tender queries 

Any questions related to this tender should be addressed to Jon Spence, People and Culture Director at procurement@wfd.org. 

Equal information

Should any supplier raise a question that is of general interest, WFD reserves the right to circulate both question and answer to other respondents, either via WFD’s website or by email. In this event, anonymity will be maintained.

Annual reports

Please provide a link or copy of your company’s latest audited annual accounts with the bid.

Other information

If the potential supplier believes that there is additional information that has not been requested in the ITT but is relevant to your bid, please include that information as a separate attachment and explain its relevance to this ITT.

Below are answers to common questions from suppliers.