Government Contract Debriefings: What to Expect and How to Use Them
A debriefing is your opportunity to learn why you won or lost a government contract competition. Whether you are considering a protest or simply want to improve your next proposal, debriefings provide information you cannot get any other way.
Always request a debriefing. The information is free, the insights are invaluable, and failing to request one forfeits a right that every serious government contractor should exercise.
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Pre-Award vs. Post-Award Debriefings
Pre-Award Debriefing
Available to offerors who are excluded from the competitive range (i.e., eliminated from the competition before final proposals and discussions). Under FAR 15.505, the agency must offer a pre-award debriefing to excluded offerors.
Timing: Request within 3 days of exclusion notice
Content: Evaluation of significant weaknesses or deficiencies in your proposal; does NOT include comparison to other offerors
Limitation: Cannot disclose number of offerors, identity of other offerors, or content of other proposals
Post-Award Debriefing
Available to all offerors who submitted proposals and were not selected for award. Post-award debriefings provide more information than pre-award debriefings because the source selection is complete and there is less concern about prejudicing the competition.
Timing: Request within 3 days of award notification; agency provides within 5 days
Content: Your evaluation ratings, the awardee's evaluation ratings, rationale for award, and your proposal weaknesses
Limitation: Cannot disclose trade secrets, confidential information, or other offerors' proposals
What the Government Must Disclose
FAR 15.506(d) specifies the minimum information that must be provided in a post-award debriefing. The contracting officer must include:
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The government's evaluation of the significant weaknesses or deficiencies in your proposal
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The overall evaluated cost or price and technical rating of your proposal and the awardee's proposal
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The overall ranking of all offerors, when a ranking was developed as part of the source selection
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A summary of the rationale for the award decision
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Reasonable responses to relevant questions about whether source selection procedures, applicable regulations, and the solicitation evaluation criteria were followed
What the government must NOT disclose
The agency cannot reveal point-by-point comparisons of your proposal with other proposals, trade secrets or privileged/confidential information from other offerors, or the names of individuals providing evaluation ratings. If you believe the agency is withholding information that should be provided under FAR 15.506(d), you can raise this issue during the debriefing or use it as a basis for a protest.
Questions to Ask During a Debriefing
Prepare your questions in advance. The more specific your questions, the more useful the answers. Here are questions that consistently yield valuable information:
What were the specific strengths and weaknesses identified in each evaluation factor of our proposal?
What was our adjectival rating for each evaluation factor, and what was the awardee's rating for each factor?
Were there any significant weaknesses or deficiencies that, if corrected, would have changed our evaluation outcome?
How did our proposed price compare to the government estimate and to the awardee's price?
Were discussions or clarifications held with any offerors, and if so, on what topics?
How many proposals were received, and how many were in the competitive range?
Were any evaluation notices (ENs), deficiency reports (DRs), or clarification requests issued to us or to the awardee?
Was there anything in our past performance record that negatively affected our evaluation?
What specific improvements would you recommend for future proposals for similar requirements?
Using Debriefing Information for Protests
Debriefings are the primary source of information for deciding whether to protest an award decision. The information disclosed during the debriefing often reveals evaluation errors, inconsistencies with the solicitation criteria, or procedural irregularities that form the basis of a sustainable protest.
Red flags that may indicate protestable issues include: evaluation ratings that do not appear consistent with the solicitation's evaluation criteria; an award to a higher-priced offeror without adequate justification when price was a significant factor; weaknesses assessed against requirements not stated in the solicitation; failure to conduct meaningful discussions when discussions were held with other offerors; and disparate treatment between offerors (e.g., the awardee had similar weaknesses that were not assessed).
Take detailed notes during the debriefing and document the specific statements made by the government. If you are considering a protest, consult with an experienced government contracts attorney immediately after the debriefing — protest deadlines are short (5-10 days depending on the forum and circumstances).
Using Debriefings to Improve Future Proposals
Even when a protest is not warranted, debriefings provide feedback that can dramatically improve your future proposals. Create a formal lessons-learned document after every debriefing and share it with your proposal team.
Common themes from debriefings that lead to proposal improvements include: vague or generic past performance descriptions (evaluators want specifics), failure to address all evaluation criteria with equal depth, staffing plans that do not match the technical approach, pricing that does not reflect the proposed level of effort, and management approaches that do not address the specific risks in the SOW.
Over time, debriefing feedback creates a body of institutional knowledge about how different agencies evaluate proposals, what specific evaluators prioritize, and where your company's proposals consistently fall short. Companies that systematically capture and apply debriefing lessons win at higher rates.
Enhanced Debriefing Procedures (Section 818 NDAA)
Section 818 of the FY2016 National Defense Authorization Act established enhanced debriefing procedures for Department of Defense procurements. These enhanced procedures provide more detailed information and greater transparency than standard FAR debriefings.
Under enhanced debriefings, the agency must provide the awardee's past performance evaluation information and the agency's assessment of the awardee's proposal. The debriefed offeror may submit additional written questions within 2 business days of the debriefing, and the agency must respond within 5 business days.
Importantly, the enhanced debriefing procedures affect protest timing. For DoD procurements subject to enhanced debriefing, the automatic stay of performance (CICA stay) is extended until the enhanced debriefing is complete. This gives unsuccessful offerors more time to evaluate whether to protest while ensuring that contract performance does not begin before the protest window closes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Am I entitled to a debriefing?
For negotiated procurements under FAR Part 15, you have the right to request a debriefing. For post-award debriefings, you must request one within 3 days of receiving the award notification, and the agency must provide it within 5 days of receiving your request. For pre-award debriefings (when you are excluded from the competitive range), you must request a debriefing within 3 days of the exclusion notice. For simplified acquisitions under FAR Part 13, debriefing rights are more limited — agencies should provide brief explanations of why an offer was not selected, but formal debriefing procedures do not apply.
Can I bring an attorney to a debriefing?
Yes, but with caveats. There is no regulation prohibiting you from bringing an attorney or consultant to a debriefing. However, doing so may change the tone of the meeting. Contracting officers may become more guarded in their comments if legal counsel is present. Consider whether an attorney adds value to the information-gathering purpose of the debriefing. If you are primarily gathering information for a potential protest, having counsel present can be valuable. If you are primarily seeking feedback to improve future proposals, a more collegial approach may yield better results.
How long do I have to file a protest after a debriefing?
Under the enhanced debriefing procedures for DoD (Section 818 NDAA), the protest filing deadline at GAO is 5 days after the debriefing is completed (not 10 days from award notification as under standard procedures). This means the enhanced debriefing process effectively extends the protest filing window by pausing the clock until the debriefing is complete. For non-DoD agencies under standard FAR procedures, the GAO protest deadline is 10 days after the basis of protest is known or should have been known, which may be the debriefing date.
Research Award Decisions on Bureauify
Before your debriefing, research the awardee's contract history, pricing patterns, and past performance on similar work. Bureauify aggregates data from FPDS, USAspending, and SAM.gov to help you prepare informed questions.