CRO
Request for Proposal

Select the Right CRO
With a Structured, Inspection-Ready RfP template


A ready-to-use CRO Request for Proposal template for sponsor teams that need clear proposal expectations, transparent cost input, cross-functional alignment, and a strong and objective selection process before awarding outsourced clinical trial activities.
For Clinical Operations Teams Who Need More Than a Generic RfP

Selecting a CRO is not only a procurement step. It defines how much clarity you will have on scope, timelines, responsibilities, cost assumptions, subcontractors, systems, data flows, quality expectations, and sponsor oversight before the contract is signed.

This template gives sponsor teams a structured way to request comparable CRO proposals across Clinical Operations, Clinical Trial Management, Clinical Monitoring, Data Management, Biostatistics, Medical Monitoring, Drug Safety, Regulatory Affairs, CMC, IMP Management, Laboratories, Data Acquisition Tools, AI Use, Archiving, and Quality Governance. 
The CRO Request for Proposal includes dedicated sections for these functional and operational areas. 

Do You Recognise This?

Your team is preparing a CRO selection, but the proposal expectations are still scattered across emails, draft synopses, internal assumptions, and functional input.

You need CROs to provide comparable proposals, but each vendor tends to respond in a different structure.
You want realistic budgets, but cost assumptions, pass-through costs, subcontractor costs, FTEs, hourly rates, and service assumptions are often hard to compare.

You need cross-functional input from Clinical Operations, Data Management, Biostatistics, Drug Safety, Regulatory Affairs, CMC, Preclinical Development, and Quality Assurance, but alignment takes time, and gaps are easy to miss. The template includes approval or input rows for these functions. 

  • User Group
    Clinical Project Manager, Head of Clinical Operations,
    Clinical Outsourcing Manager
  • Format
    • CRO RfP: Microsoft Word
    • Task Allocation List: Microsoft Excel
  • Content
    • CRO Request for Proposal (pre-filled)
    • Task Allocation List (pre-filled)
  • Benefits
    • Clear scope definition before contacting CROs
    • More comparable CRO proposals
    • Stronger documentation of decision-making
The CRO Request for Proposal Template
The CRO Request for Proposal is a structured, editable Word template for sponsor teams preparing a CRO RfP in a clinical trial outsourcing context. It is designed to help sponsors define expectations before requesting proposals, collect comparable information from CROs, and support a more disciplined selection process. 
The template covers clinical trial details, timelines, recruitment assumptions, medical writing, project management, risk management, investigator selection, contracting, payments, CTMS, TMF, SOP access, GDPR, monitoring, regulatory affairs, medical monitoring, pharmacovigilance, IDMC, data management, biostatistics, IMP management, lab analysis, response assessments, updates, applicable sponsor SOPs, quality governance, information security, AI governance, archiving, and data package expectations. 

With this CRO Request for Proposal, you will
  • Document which CRO services and responsibilities are included in your selection process.
  • Have a simple start with pre-defined CRO proposal sections, scope expectations, and operational requirements.
  • Prioritize the information you need from each CRO, including scope, timelines, cost assumptions, subcontractors, systems, quality, information security, AI governance, and archiving.
  • Align your internal evaluation team on the proposal information required before bid defence, contract negotiation, and vendor award.
  • Create a structured basis for comparing CRO proposals and documenting your decision-making before selecting a service provider.
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