Mandatory Requirements

Transcription

1 RFP Evaluations Considering Various Methodologies Angela Mastandrea, CPPO, CIM Mandatory Requirements Mandatory (definition) means permitting no option; not to be disregarded or modified There are two possible approaches to compliance: absolute or strict compliance; or substantial compliance; 1

2 Mandatory Requirements When a mandatory requirement explicitly calls for disqualification in the absence of compliance, it will be interpreted to impose a strict compliance standard. As a guide to the Proponent, but without qualifying any rights and privileges reserved to the City, the Proponent guidelines (set out below) is indicative of the manner in which discretion reserved by the City is to be exercised with respect to noncompliant Bids. Mandatory Requirements Courts will use a substantial compliance standard to make a determination Minor irregularity can be waived if the proposal is substantially compliant An irregularity that goes beyond the scope of the Proponents Guidelines (set out below) shall be considered by the Procurement Manager. 2

3 Mandatory Requirements Determination of the proposal irregularity will be case specific Depends on the compliance standards set out in the procurement documents Contra proferentem rule: drafting ambiguities should be interpreted against the party that drafted the document Mandatory Requirements PROS Method for an agency to determine compliance to a standard CONS Mandatory requirements are not really mandatory when a non-compliant proposal is received Often times the mandatory requirements are required by law Little to no remedy available to consider a proposal when a mandatory requirement is not satisfied Requirements in the RFP are not clear or are misinterpreted by the Proponent 3

4 Mandatory Requirements Lessons learned: RFP language needs to be clear with respect to your agency s requirements Example: license/designation requirements When a license or designation is required, identify the issuing or certifying agency or agencies WHO needs to hold the license? Proponent only? Or can anyone on the Proponents team hold the license? At what point in time is the license required? At time of submission? At commencement of the contract? Confirm that the Client Department understands the repercussions of a proponent not meeting a mandatory requirement. Evaluation Methodologies One Envelope Evaluation Methodology Fixed Price Evaluation Lowest Priced Proposal Meeting Technical Benchmark Price Per Point Combination of Technical and Price Scores 4

5 One Envelope Evaluation Methodology Technical and financial information are submitted together (one envelope) and forwarded to the evaluation team at the same time Evaluation matrix includes price as an weighted criteria POLL QUESTION Does your agency use an evaluation methodology other than the one envelope system? Yes/NO 5

6 One Envelope Evaluation Methodology Evaluation Criteria - example Evaluation Criteria A: Experience Proposals shall include: Description of experience in projects of this nature including tourism strategies. Identification of the principal consultant team and any sub-consultants that will be involved with a description of roles and responsibilities, qualifications and relevant experience. Proposals shall demonstrate: Expertise and experience with successful execution of tourism projects of similar nature, scope and timeline Qualified technical resources to address all aspects of the work. B: Methodology and Understanding of the assignment Proposals shall include: Proposed study methodology, process and description of activities. Anticipated format and timing of engaging tourism industry in strategy development. Proposals shall demonstrate: Understanding of key requirements and deliverables as evidenced in proposed approach and work plan which is specific to this assignment and addresses all issues. Demonstrated tourism industry engagement approach. C: Work Samples and Client References Proposals shall include:3 work samples of the following nature: business plan, marketing plan or tourism strategy completed for tourism/tourism related organizations, economic development agency or chamber of commerce. 3 relevant references (including contact name and contact information) from tourism/tourism related organizations, economic development agency or chamber of commerce. Proposals shall demonstrate: Quality and relevance of work samples provided and client satisfaction as evidenced through client references. Maximum Score D. Price Provide evaluation methodology on how the Price score will be calculated Total Points 135 Evaluation Methodologies Sample Methodologies for Calculating Price Score 1 - proposal price lowest proposal price lowest proposal price lowest proposal price proposal price In both cases: the lowest proposal price achieves full marks for the price category the results are multiplied by the Maximum Score for the Price Evaluation Criteria 6

7 Evaluation Methodologies Sample Methodologies for Calculating Price Score 1 (proposal price lowest proposal price) lowest proposal price lowest proposal price proposal price Proponent Price ($) Price Score (out of 30 points) Price Score (out of 30 points) A $100, x B $98,000 1 x C $117, x D $110, x x x x x Evaluation Methodologies Sample Methodologies for Calculating Price Score Portion of the score is allocated to whether the price is less than budget Example: 30 points for price; 15 of which are awarded if the price is less than the project budget. The remainder can be calculated using one of the previous equations. 7

8 Evaluation Methodologies Sample Methodologies for Calculating Price Score Scores can be allocated based on price ranges or buckets Example: 30 points for price and the project budget is $250,000 Price ($) Range Score Less than $169, $170,000 $189, $190,000 $209, $210,000 $229, $230,000 - $250,000 6 Over $250,000 0 Evaluation Methodologies Sample Methodologies for Calculating Price Score Things to consider for scoring price Calculation of the price score can be customized to the particular RFP Price score can be a combination of 2 or more components Evaluation of price can state that a score of 0 will be given if the price is over budget You are not obligated to reveal the budget, but you need to document that the budget figure has been confirmed prior to opening the proposals 8

9 Evaluation Methodologies One Envelope Evaluation Lessons learned Evaluation Team is influenced by pricing; assuming that lower priced proposals cannot be feasible If the weighting of the pricing component is too heavily weighted, there is a risk that a Proponent who is technically weak can still be the highest scoring Proponent Fixed Price Evaluation Agency sets the award amount for the contract in the RFP document Proponents submit a technical proposal Agency evaluates technical proposal against evaluation criteria and weightings The Proponent with the highest scoring proposal is recommended for award Examples: consultant studies with a finite/limited budget public art call or RFP with any creative content 9

10 POLL QUESTION Has your agency every used an evaluation methodology similar to the Fixed Price Method? Yes/no Technical submission and financial submission are in separate, sealed packages Benchmarks are typically established and stated in the RFP document Proponents must achieve a score greater than or equal to any benchmarks stated 10

11 Benchmarks can be applied to Evaluation Criteria Some, all or none Example: Proponent must achieve a minimum of 35 points out of a possible 50 points for Experience Total Overall Score Example: Proponent must achieve a minimum of 80 points out of a possible 105 points Sample Evaluation Criteria with Benchmarks Evaluation Criteria A: Experience Proposals shall include: Description of experience in projects of this nature including tourism strategies. Identification of the principal consultant team and any sub-consultants that will be involved with a description of roles and responsibilities, qualifications and relevant experience. Proposals shall demonstrate: Expertise and experience with successful execution of tourism projects of similar nature, scope and timeline Qualified technical resources to address all aspects of the work. B: Methodology and Understanding of the assignment Proposals shall include: Proposed study methodology, process and description of activities. Anticipated format and timing of engaging tourism industry in strategy development. Proposals shall demonstrate: Understanding of key requirements and deliverables as evidenced in proposed approach and work plan which is specific to this assignment and addresses all issues. Demonstrated tourism industry engagement approach. C: Work Samples and Client References Proposals shall include:3 work samples of the following nature: business plan, marketing plan or tourism strategy completed for tourism/tourism related organizations, economic development agency or chamber of commerce. 3 relevant references (including contact name and contact information) from tourism/tourism related organizations, economic development agency or chamber of commerce. Proposals shall demonstrate: Quality and relevance of work samples provided and client satisfaction as evidenced through client references. Category Benchmark Maximum Score Overall Benchmark 80 Total Points

12 Benchmarks Lessons learned When applying benchmarks to an evaluation criteria, ensure that your RFP is clear that the evaluation of the proposal will STOP should a benchmark not be met This will avoid those instances where the proposal will still meet or exceed the overall benchmark score Benchmarks for evaluation criteria are not necessary for all RFPs best used when it is important to ensure that the Proponent has the core competencies to undertake the contract Example: Design, Build, Operate of a Centralized Composting Facility Lowest Price Proposal Meeting Technical Benchmark Agency evaluates the technical proposals received against the evaluation criteria and weightings set out in the RFP For those technical proposals that successfully meet the benchmark score stipulated in the RFP; the Agency will open the price proposal. The award shall be made to the Proponent who has successfully met the technical benchmark score and has the lowest priced proposal. 12

13 Lowest Price Proposal Meeting Technical Benchmark PROS Client Department is not influenced by price Evaluation scores are based on technical merit CONS A higher technical score no longer has a factor in the award of a RFP Example: Technical Benchmark is set at 80 points out of 105. Proposal A has a score of 93 at a price of $100,000. Proposal B has a score of 81 at a price of $98,000. The award goes to Proposal B. Benchmark scores are set very high to safeguard against the example above. The risk is that the agency may have very few proposals that pass the benchmark. Price Per Point Agency evaluates the technical proposals received against the evaluation criteria and weightings set out in the RFP For those technical proposals that successfully meet the benchmark score stipulated in the RFP; the Agency will open the price proposal. Agency calculates the Price Per Point for each proposal meeting the technical benchmark score and the award shall be made to the Proponent with the lowest Price Per Point 13

14 Price Per Point Evaluation Example Proponent Overall Score (out of 105) Price ($) Price Per Point A 93 $100,000 $1, / point B 81 $98,000 $1, / point C 90 $117,000 $1, / point D 87 $110,000 $1, / point Price Per Point PROS Client Department is not influenced by price Evaluation scores are based on technical merit Both the technical score and price are a factor in the determination of best value A higher technical score can offset any price premiums associated with that proposal CONS When benchmark scores are set very high, the award generally goes to the proposal with the lowest price. 14

15 Combination of Technical and Price Scores Agency evaluates the technical proposals received against the evaluation criteria and weightings set out in the RFP For those technical proposals that successfully meet the benchmark score stipulated in the RFP; the Agency will open the price proposal and score the price based on a predetermined calculation set out in the RFP The price weighting must be a minimum of 25 percent of the technical weighting. A total evaluation score will be determined by adding the technical score and the price score. The Proponent with the highest scoring proposal is recommended for award Combination of Technical and Price Scores 1 (proposal price lowest proposal price) lowest proposal price lowest proposal price proposal price Proponen t Overall Score (out of 105) Price ($) Price Score (out of 30 points) Total Score (out of 135 points) Price Score (out of 30 points) Total Score (out of 135 points) A 93 $100, x x B 81 $98,000 1 x x C 90 $117, x x D 87 $110, x x

16 Combination of Technical and Price Scores PROS Client Department is not influenced by price Evaluation scores are based on technical merit Both the technical score and price are a factor in the determination of best value A Proposal that is technically weak, but has a low price will not be considered as it will not have met the evaluation benchmarks CONS When benchmark scores are set very high, the award generally goes to the proposal with the lowest price. POLL QUESTION Which of the three two envelope systems do you like best? Lowest Price Proposal Meeting Technical Benchmark Price Per Point Combination of Technical and Price Scores 16

17 Evaluation Criteria Lessons learned: Criteria weighting should be expressed in terms of points vs. percentages Example: if the overall benchmark score is 80% and the proposal achieves a score of 79.57%, does the proposal pass? Total overall score does not have to be out of 100 Obtain breakdown of each evaluation criteria before proposals are distributed Beware of undisclosed criteria Use consensus score vs. averages Document the justification to support the evaluation scores assigned Keep the unopened price proposals do not send them back to the Proponents Summary Can be creative and make the evaluation fit the RFP Ensure that your Procurement By-law allows for the evaluation methodology Time taken to carefully craft the evaluation methodology is time well spent 17

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