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Bid or No-Bid Calculator

Before you spend forty hours on a tender response, score the opportunity. Rate six criteria plus two knockouts and get a clear bid, borderline or no-bid verdict, then email the scorecard to your team. A paragraph cannot tell you whether to bid on your specific tender, this does.

First, the two knockouts

A No on either of these is a no-bid, whatever else is true.

Do you meet every mandatory selection criterion?

Turnover, insurance, references, certifications: every mandatory requirement, not most of them.

Do you have the capacity and time to deliver and to write a strong response?

The people to deliver the contract, and the time before the deadline to write a strong response, not just a complete one.

Then score the six criteria

Rate each one strong, partial or weak.

Strategic fit

Fits your sales plan, does not over-commit delivery, a buyer you want long term.

Capability fit

Comparable case studies from the last 3 years, named team available for the contract period.

Competitive position

A credible reason to win (incumbent advantage, technical edge, price, location), and you know the likely field.

Commercials

At a realistic price the margin justifies the bid cost, you can fund the cashflow to first invoice, terms are acceptable.

Process

Time to write a strong response, a named bid lead with capacity, attachments ready (insurances, accounts, tax clearance).

Risk

No clauses you cannot live with, no conflicts of interest, workable geography, language and clearance requirements.

How the score is built

The model mirrors the printable bid decision checklist. Each of the six criteria is scored 0 to 2 with equal weight, so the maximum is 12. Two questions are knockouts: if you do not meet every mandatory selection criterion, or you do not have the capacity and time to deliver and to write a strong response, the verdict is a no-bid whatever the total. The weights are shown on the result so the model is inspectable and you can adjust for your own risk appetite.

Total (out of 12) Verdict
9 or moreBid
6 to 8Borderline
5 or below, or a failed knockoutNo-bid

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a bid/no-bid decision?
A bid/no-bid decision is the go or no-go call a supplier makes before committing time to a tender response. A structured scorecard forces you to weigh strategic fit, capability, competition, commercials, process and risk, and to check the two knockouts (eligibility and capacity), so you only pursue tenders you can realistically win and deliver.
How does the scorecard work?
You rate six criteria (strategic fit, capability fit, competitive position, commercials, process, risk) as strong, partial or weak, each worth 0 to 2 points with equal weight, for a total out of 12. Two knockout questions, eligibility and capacity, force a no-bid regardless of the score. Nine or more is a bid, six to eight is borderline, five or below is a no-bid.
How is this different from the bid readiness checker?
The bid readiness checker scores whether your firm is ready to bid at all (eTenders registration, tax clearance, insurance). This scorecard is the per-tender go/no-go: given a specific opportunity, should you spend the hours on it. Use readiness once, use the bid/no-bid scorecard for every tender you consider.

Related

Bid Readiness Tender Matcher Bid Templates