RFP365 partners with Kansas City, raises $950K

On the heels of a six-figure raise, area tech firm RFP365 recently landed the City of Kansas City as a client for its software that eases the request for proposal process.

The company’s deal with Kansas City was born from the city’s “Innovation Partnership” program, which affords entrepreneurs the opportunity to “test drive” their technologies with the city. RFP365 is the first company to sign a contract with the city through the program.

RFP365 co-founder David Hulsen said the program offered the startup and city a beneficial opportunity.

“This is a city that was willing to take a chance on a homegrown solution,” RFP365 co-founder David Hulsen said. “The program helped us bypass the bureaucratic hoops, and get in front of the right people at the first meeting. They deserve a lot of credit.”

Founded in 2012, RFP365’s subscription-based software will simplify the city’s formal and competitive procurement bidding process to evaluate vendors of services. The company’s technology helps eliminate redundancies in the RFP process by providing streamlined tools to enable  collaboration and improve workflow. It also allows RFP issuers  — like the city — to compare, track and monitor RFPs from respondents.

RFP365 co-founder Stuart Ludlow said the company aims to alleviate the tediousness of creating and managing RFPs.

“Around 60 percent of an RFP is just boilerplate stuff,” Ludlow said. “Our platform attempts to take all that stuff that’s fairly generic and immediately do it so you can focus on the unique stuff that’s specific to that project.”

RFP365, based in Kansas City, Kan., already has experienced solid traction in its first few years. The company raised $950,000 from regional angel investors in February, which allowed the co-founders to add marketing, sales and tech staff. Based in Kansas City, Kan., RFP365 now has seven employees and more than 100 customers in North America, Europe, Africa and Australia.

“Now it’s time to put our foot down on the gas,” Ludlow said. “I feel like we’re just starting out, but we’re starting out with a good base.”