The increased emphasis on contractor past performance has given rise to a number of implementation issues which need to be addressed. The urgency for addressing these issues is heightened by the fact that many buyers are placing predominant weight on past performance among the key evaluation factors in source evaluation and selection - often making past performance 50% or more of the total importance among all evaluation criteria.

In this environment, a number of inconsistent and ambiguous behavior patterns have emerged which will undermine the trust in the system if not resolved.

Major Issues:

1. Treatment of Past Performance in the Solicitation Phase. As a minimum, government-wide guidelines and best practice
    examples should be available which address the following:

     • How the relative importance or weight assigned to past performance is expressed in draft RFP’s, bidders briefings,
       solicitations, and informal communications.

     • How the government defines the process by which a past performance record will be developed as an input to source
       evaluation - including how negative records or reference checks will be handled.

     • How past performance will be specifically analyzed - that is the key subfactors such as service quality, time and cost
       control, customer satisfaction, etc.

2. The Role of Past Performance in Source Evaluation and Selection.

     • How will the sample of relevant past performance be assembled addressing both documented evaluations and reference
       checks based on contractor-provided experience summaries.

     • What form of interaction will be conducted with offerors relating to past performance.

     • What process will be used to permit offerors to respond to negative evaluations that are introduced into the source
       evaluation process.

     • What process will be used to insure that offerors are made aware and afforded an opportunity to rebut any collateral
       negative information such as ongoing investigations of time charges, GAO or IG reviews, major contract disputes, etc.

3. Establishing Coherent Past Performance Repositories

     • How may contractors identify and access the individual agency past performance repositories.

     • What process discipline will be in place to assure currency of the record.

4. Contractor Access and Reclama Rights

     • What mechanisms will exist to assure that access is controlled and limited to federal employees with a need to know and
       only contractors seeking access to their own performance records.

     • What process will be used to permit the contractor receiving a negative rating to offer a reclama and where the rating is
       not reversed, assure review by a higher level of organization.

5. Purging Past Performance Data

     • What standard will be used for purging aging data and will there be flexibility in admitting overages which may still be
       relevant.