Past performance

01How federal buyers evaluate it

Under FAR 15.304(c)(3), past performance "shall be evaluated in all source selections for negotiated competitive acquisitions expected to exceed the simplified acquisition threshold", but it "need not be evaluated if the contracting officer documents the reason past performance is not an appropriate evaluation factor for the acquisition." FAR 15.305 says the evaluation considers the currency and relevance of the information, its source, the context of the data and general trends in the contractor's performance. Evaluators draw on the references you provide and on government records, chiefly the Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System (CPARS), where agencies rate contractors' work under FAR Subpart 42.15.

02What makes a reference count

• Recent: the solicitation defines the window, often three to five years.
• Relevant: similar scope, size and complexity. Explain the similarity rather than assuming the evaluator will see it.
• Quality: outcomes, measured where possible, and the customer's own words if you have them.
• Reachable: references who know the work and expect the call.

Write each reference to the work in this solicitation. A smaller contract that closely matches the scope often scores better than a larger one that does not.

03When you have none

FAR 15.305 states that an offeror without a record of relevant past performance, or whose record is not available, may not be evaluated favorably or unfavorably on past performance; in practice that is a neutral rating. A neutral rating is not a penalty, but it is not a strength either. In a price/technical tradeoff, an agency may decide that a high past performance rating is worth more than a neutral one (American Floor Consultants, Inc., B-294530.7), provided it actually weighs the difference and documents the rationale for that tradeoff (FAR 15.308). So newer firms usually strengthen their position in other ways: the relevant experience of key personnel, work done as a subcontractor, commercial and state or local contracts, and teaming with a firm whose record fills the gap (see teaming agreement). Check whether the solicitation lets a teaming partner's or a predecessor company's record be credited before relying on it.

04Keep the record current

Track each contract's scope, value, dates, outcomes and customer contacts as you go, not when a proposal is due. Review your CPARS evaluations when they are posted. FAR 42.1503(d) gives contractors "up to 14 calendar days from the date of notification of availability of the past performance evaluation to submit comments, rebutting statements, or additional information", and the contractor's response is "retained as part of the evaluation."