Debriefings are a crucial part of the complicated world of bidding on Government contracts. They can provide wonderful insight to contractors on where they can improve, where their proposals were strong, and in cases, may provide information that could indicate to a contractor that a bid protest may be warranted. Therefore, it is vitally important for contractors to understand what Debriefings are, what they can and can’t provide you, and why they matter. Previously, we here at SmallGovCon discussed 5 things you should know about Debriefings, but in this post we will do a more detailed dive into Debriefings based on the current regulations and contracting landscape.
What is a Debriefing?
In its most basic form, a Debrief is simply a way for a contractor to learn from the agency why they did or not receive an award, or why they were eliminated from competition. This could be provided in written form, or via video/conference…
Are Debriefings required for every procurement?
Reading through this, you may be thinking to yourself that a Debrief would be pretty great to receive or allow for every procurement. It helps contractors learn how they did, and gives the Agency the ability to address or clarify contractor concerns outside of a bid protest. So, Debriefs should represent a net positive for all parties that is then placed on all procurements, right? Unfortunately, that is not the case. Agencies are only required to have debriefs on competitive procurements (FAR Part 15), and for awards of task or delivery orders with values exceeding $6 Million (FAR Part 16.505). So be careful when reading through a procurement, because if it is not a FAR Part 15 procurement, or a task order over $6 Million, the Agency will likely not be required to provide a debriefing, even if they say one is possible… Read the full article here.
