- Decoding the Post-Tender Debrief & Navigating Feedback
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Navigating a post-tender debrief can feel akin to walking a tightrope. Tilt too far in one direction, and you risk missing out on invaluable feedback; veer the other way, and you could unintentionally ruffle feathers. But with the right approach, you can balance your quest for understanding with respect for the procurement process.
What a Debrief Is
At its core, a debriefing is a forum for understanding. It’s your chance to gain insight into your submission’s strengths and weaknesses. It helps in decoding the reasons behind a particular procurement decision. The buyer, under the EU Remedies Directive, has certain obligations to provide clarity, ensuring the transparency of the process. This interaction allows you to refine your future proposals, making them more aligned with buyer expectations.
What a Debrief Is Not
A debrief is not an opportunity to directly contest the decision or to express discontent without constructive reasoning. Yes, in certain instances, you might discover aspects of the process that you find questionable or even flawed. While you should absolutely be vigilant and thorough in your quest for clarity, it’s essential to approach potential irregularities with diplomacy and professionalism. Jumping to conclusions or making accusations can be counterproductive.
Desired Outcomes
Before walking into the debrief, ask yourself “What’s my desired outcome?” Is it merely to understand your submission’s shortcomings, or are you looking to potentially challenge the process? While it’s rare for buyers to concede errors and redirect contracts, it’s not unheard of for competitions to be canceled and restarted. Yet, pursuing legal ramifications can be resource-intensive and often doesn’t culminate in the desired result. The onus to prove shortcomings typically falls on the challenger, making it an uphill battle.
What questions should I ask?
When you approach a post-tender debrief with a buyer after an unsuccessful bid, it’s important to remember the perspectives and objectives that the buyer might have. Debriefing is more than just an explanation of why you weren’t chosen; it’s an opportunity to foster improvement, collaboration, and trust.
Here’s how you can phrase your questions, taking into account the buyer’s perspective
- Feedback on the Submission
- Could you provide detailed feedback on the strengths and weaknesses of our tender, both positive aspects and areas for improvement? We’re keen on understanding so we can enhance our future bids.
- Were there any portions of our submission that seemed ambiguous or unclear?
- Evaluation Process
- How was our submission evaluated against the set criteria, and how did we fare compared to the winning bid in those areas?
- In line with the Notification of Contract Award Decision station, can you elaborate on our score and standing?
- Commercial and Technical Proposition
- Without disclosing commercial details of other tenderers, can you share how our financial and technical proposals compared overall?
- Were there specific technical aspects where our proposal fell short compared to the winning one?
- The Competition
- Can you tell us the name of the winner?
- Had you worked with them before?
- Can you tell us how many submissions that you received
- Can you tell us where we ranked in that list?
- Can you tell us where we ranked in that list?
- We value our reputation and always strive to be a trusted supplier. How do you view our approach and engagement throughout this tender process?
- In future bids, what can we do to strengthen our standing as a reliable and ethical bidder?
- Learning from the Process
- Do you feel our submission was presented effectively, and was our documentation comprehensive and clear?
- Are there upcoming tenders where our improved approach could be a better fit?
- Feedback on Procurement Documents and Process
- Having navigated the tendering process, we have some feedback on the procurement documents and the overall exercise. Would you be open to hearing our perspective for your continuous improvement?
- Ensuring Accuracy and Confidentiality
- We appreciate the careful approach to ensure that our discussions today remain factual, accurate, and solely about our tender. Can you confirm that the insights shared today are consistent with the initial notices and do not introduce new reasons for the decision?
- Documentation of the Debriefing
- We appreciate the careful approach to ensure that our discussions today remain factual, accurate, and solely about our tender. Can you confirm that the insights shared today are consistent with the initial notices and do not introduce new reasons for the decision?
Future Engagements
It’s natural to harbour concerns that contesting a decision or even just asking for a debrief might sour future relations with the buyer. Here’s the thing buyers, for the most part, are professionals who value transparency and integrity. As long as you’re not vindictive or unconstructive, the chances are slim that you’ll be ‘blacklisted’ for future opportunities. Approach the situation with the utmost professionalism, and your commitment to quality and continuous improvement will likely be respected, not resented.
