The following tips will help you write an award recommendation that is informative and in accordance with procurement policies. These tips are based on a competitive Request for Proposal but can be applied to all recommendation documents.
- Conduct a comprehensive evaluation of each offer received. Create an evaluation document (narrative format is required) that clearly details the strengths and weaknesses of each vendor’s proposal based on the evaluation criteria listed in the RFP. Evaluations that score and award vendors numerically is not a best practice in North Carolina.
- Ensure that your evaluation team includes the different types of expertise required to understand the nuances of the requirements, evaluation criteria and the agency’s needs. Select a team member who will not be participating in the evaluation of the offers to take the minutes of the evaluation meeting.
- Use the current award recommendation template, located on the NCDIT Statewide IT Procurement website.
- Provide all the details that the template requests and write more than a few sentences in the Introduction Section. Include the following:
• Name of each offeror
• The purpose of the procurement
• Solicitation posting date
• Proposal due date
• How many offers were received
• How many were determined to be responsive
• The date of the evaluation meeting.
List additional issues that are specific to Statewide IT Procurement’s approval, posting, questions, receipt and evaluation of the response to the RFP.
- Include the evaluation criteria exactly as it is presented in the RFP. The evaluation method should be stated the same as it is in the RFP. Proposals that were identified as being non-responsive should also be included in the list of proposals received.
- Document clearly the strength and weakness of each evaluation criteria for every proposal that is considered responsive. Each strength and weakness should address why it is important to the program to substantiate the evaluators’ determination.
- Under the Cost Section in the template, document the state or agency’s budget for the procurement as noted in the Intake Form initially submitted. This section should include the pricing summary for each proposal and a description of the comparison of each proposal against the other proposals submitted.
- Under the Summary section, list the vendors that did not make the short list. Also include a brief explanation for why they did not make the list.
- Once the finalists are determined, complete a comparison chart that lists the strength and weaknesses of each offer. Then write a paragraph or two that states why the recommended winning offer was chosen over the other finalists. Be detailed, especially regarding the strengths and why those strengths are important.
For a more in-depth understanding of how to write a winning award recommendation document, watch the training video given by Deputy Chief IT Procurement Officer Andrea Pacyna.
Note that there are three different award recommendation templates, not just one for RFP’s. The three award recommendation templates are: RFP and RFP Lites, IFBs and RFQs. Make sure the correct template is applied to your specific procurement. See the link to the latest version of the template for the award recommendation for an RFP.
Remember, the Statewide IT Procurement Office is available to assist you with all the steps in your procurements.