RFPs.
How we respond to formal RFPs — when to engage, who to pull in, and the answers we reuse, grounded in real enterprise responses.
When to engage an RFP
Formal RFPs show up on the enterprise / global end of the pipeline (e.g. Parexel-class processes). They're worth real effort only when the deal clears the ICP bar and the RFP isn't a foregone conclusion for an incumbent. Qualify the same way you would any deal first — an RFP doesn't exempt a prospect from discovery.
- Engage when: real budget, global/distributed footprint, a champion who wants us in, and a winnable process.
- Decline / templated reply when: wired for an incumbent, under the size bar, or a pure peer-recognition spec (refer out — see Competitive).
The answers we reuse
| RFP theme | Our standard answer |
|---|---|
| Global fulfillment | 9 warehouses across continents; customs & duties handled; gift-card fallback for unreachable regions. This is the differentiator — lead with it. |
| HRIS integration | Workday, Rippling, HiBob, Paycom, ADP, BambooHR, Dayforce; automations triggered off employee data. |
| Security & compliance | SSO (add-on), role-based admin, data handling per our security posture. Pull in the security docs / SOC 2 materials rather than free-handing answers. |
| Commercials | Platform subscription + pass-through with no markup on gifts; commit ladder; no setup fee. See Pricing — keep specifics internal. |
| Support & onboarding | Dedicated CSM; ~4–6 onboarding calls over two months; in-house design. See Sales vs CS. |
Who owns the response
- AE owns the response, the timeline, and the relationship with the RFP contact.
- Founder for commercial structure and any non-standard terms.
- Security / ops for the compliance and integration sections — reuse approved answers, don't improvise.
- Multi-thread beyond the procurement contact to the actual champion — RFPs single-threaded through procurement go cold.
Reuse the last strong response (the Parexel-class answers) as the template, then tailor to the specific RFP — don't start from a blank page.
Source: PerkUp Attio Sales list (33 deals, verified 2026-06-08) and 1,200+ deal notes (2025–2026); PerkUp recorded calls (tl;dv, May–Jun 2026). prior enterprise RFP responses. Keep commercial specifics internal.