Evaluation Criteria

Evaluation criteria are the factors or specific areas of consideration that are inherent in a requirement specification. NATO's procurement manual describes them as measurable and verifiable components used to assess a supplier's ability to provide the required goods, services or works, including their value, quality or cost. NATO Procurement Manual

In Canadian federal procurement, the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat calls evaluation criteria the benchmarks against which requests for proposals (RFPs) are measured. They may consist of mandatory criteria, point-rated criteria, or both. Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat: Evaluation criteria

Mandatory criteria and the pass/fail screen

Mandatory criteria set the minimum requirements a bid must meet to be considered. They are evaluated on a simple pass/fail basis, and a bid that fails a mandatory requirement receives no further consideration. Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat

Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) uses the same logic in its ProServices evaluation-criteria template. Mandatory criteria screen whether bidders have the necessary competence and capability. Mandatory requirements are expressed with terms such as "shall," "must" and "will." PSPC ProServices evaluation criteria

Point-rated criteria and how bids are scored

Point-rated criteria assess and distinguish the relative technical merit of proposals and identify value-added factors. In the PSPC template, they are used to assess differences among bids that already meet the mandatory screen. PSPC ProServices evaluation criteria

Point-rated criteria may carry a minimum passing score. Depending on the stated basis of selection, only bids that meet the mandatory requirements and any required point-rated threshold move on to price comparison or final ranking. Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat

Evaluation criteria and the basis of selection

The basis of selection is the method used to choose the successful bid after the criteria are applied. Canadian federal methods include:

• mandatory requirements with selection based on price
• lowest evaluated price using mandatory and point-rated criteria
• price-to-points approaches
• combinations of technical merit and price

The criteria and the selection method work together, so a bidder needs to read both in the solicitation. Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat

How CanadaBuys tender notices apply the criteria

CanadaBuys explains that federal tender notices normally evaluate bids on relevant technical merit and overall best value, using the selection method stated in the notice. It identifies three evaluation methods: mandatory technical criteria only, point-rated technical criteria only, or a combination of the two. The evaluation team must assess the technical bid against the criteria outlined in the tender notice. CanadaBuys: How bids are evaluated and selected

The Office of the Procurement Ombud reviews federal procurement practices, including whether evaluation criteria and selection plans align with the requirement, are not overly restrictive and are clearly communicated in the solicitation. Its reviews refer to mandatory and point-rated criteria used by organizations such as PSPC, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Shared Services Canada. Procurement Ombud review

What evaluation criteria mean for a supplier

Treat the criteria as the scoring guide for your bid. Suppliers must demonstrate compliance with every mandatory requirement and provide the evidence requested for each point-rated criterion. A single missed mandatory item removes a bid from consideration, however strong the rest of the response is.

Build a compliance check against the tender notice before you write. Then answer each point-rated criterion directly and with the evidence requested, because the evaluation team assesses the bid against the stated criteria only. Confirm the basis of selection early, since it determines whether price, technical score or a combination decides the result.