Guidelines for the evaluation of a proposal

I. Proposal Evaluation

A. Introduction

Proposals will be formally evaluated to determine the responsiveness to the administrative and technical requirements set forth in this Request. The final selection will be on the basis of the highest composite score for those proposals that meet all of the requirements.

B. Receipt

Proposals will be dated and time-stamped as they are received and verified that they are properly sealed. All proposals will remain sealed until the designated date for opening.

C. Initial Evaluation

At the designated time of opening, all proposals will have an initial evaluation for the following four items:

1. Proposal Opening

Proposals received by the specified date will be opened and checked for conformance to the requirements set forth in Volume 1, Section 2, Proposal Preparation Instructions. Proposals not in conformance with the required information will be marked nonresponsive and may be rejected.

2. RFP Requirements

Proposals that are responsive to the above will be checked for compliance to the mandatory requirements as outlined in Volume 2, Section 3, Mandatory Requirements. For proposals not meeting these requirements, the deviation will be defined approved or not approved. If approved, the proposal will be processed and the deviation noted. If not approved, the proposal will be nonresponsive and returned to vendor.

3. References

All references on the customer Reference List will be contacted and interviewed for the following:

a. Equipment satisfaction

b. Satisfaction with vendor's support

c. Ease of installation

d. Quality of training and instruction

e. Quality of vendor's documentation.

4. Cost Analysis

Proposal costing information will be checked against required format. Cost schedules will be checked for mathematical accuracy and any resulting inconsistencies will be handled according to Volume 1,

Section 2, Proposal Preparation Instructions.

D. Evaluation Methodology

Proposals will be evaluated using a weighted score system and must achieve a minimum number of points to be considered responsive to this Request. Proposals meeting or exceeding the minimum acceptable level will be deemed responsive.

A technical score sheet will be completed for each proposal and points awarded for Mandatory, Desirable, and Variable items as follows:

1. Mandatory. All requirements described in this Request as being Mandatory will be simply scored as approved or not approved. These mandatory requirements must be fully satisfied or the proposal will be rejected and returned to the vendor.

2. Desirable. All requirements described in this Request as being Desirable will be assigned a numeric value according to the benefit of that requirement. Desirable requirements can only have a positive effect on the overall score. Absence of desirable requirements will not incur a negative score.

3. Variable. All requirements described in this Request as being Variable will be initially scored as approved/not approved. Variable requirements scored as approved will have a proportionate value according to the weight and benefit assigned to each requirement.

E. Final Selection

A summary score sheet will be completed for each vendor and a composite score for each proposal will be calculated. Selection of vendors for negotiation will be based on the highest composite score achieved. Final award of contract will be based on satisfactory contract negotiation and a successful demonstration.

About the Author

Bud Porter-Roth operates Porter-Roth associates, consulting services for proposal development and to users and vendors of electronic document management technology.
:To contact see details below.


budpr@erms.com
http://www.erms.com