Do Evaluation Factors Assess Things?

[Don Mansfield]

Consider the following excerpts from the DoD Source Selection Procedures:

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Risk assesses the degree to which the offeror’s proposed technical approach for the requirements of the solicitation may cause disruption of schedule, increased costs, degradation of performance, the need for increased Government oversight, or increased likelihood of unsuccessful contract performance.

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The past performance evaluation factor assesses the degree of confidence the Government has in an offeror’s ability to supply products and services that meet users’ needs, based on a demonstrated record of performance.

Do evaluation factors assess things? Or do people assess things? Note the subject in these excerpts are the evaluation factors themselves (i.e., "risk" and "the past performance evaluation factor). Is this careless writing or do people think that evaluation factors perform the action of assessment?

[Vern Edwards]

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Is this careless writing or do people think that evaluation factors perform the action of assessment?

Careless writing, which means careless thinking.

In source selection, people (evaluators) assess things (offerors and their offers) on the basis of their attributes --- features, qualities, characteristics.

In government contracting (FAR Part 15), those attributes are called "evaluation factors" or "evaluation criteria".

In formal terms, the source selection evaluation process is a process of "multiple attribute decision making" (aka, "multiple criteria decision analysis" or just "decision analysis").

See: Keeney, Value-Focused Thinking (1992); Goodwin & Wright, Decision Analysis for Management Judgment, 5th ed. (2014); and Howard & Abbas, Foundations of Decision Analysis, Global Edition (2016).

 

[Jamaal Valentine]

1 hour ago, Vern Edwards said:

In source selection, people (evaluators) assess things (offerors and their offers) on the basis of their attributes --- features, qualities, characteristics.

The presence or absence of attributes can be assessed.

[Vern Edwards]

11 hours ago, Jamaal Valentine said:

The presence or absence of attributes can be assessed.

Yes, either on a pass or fail basis or on the basis of the degree or extent to which they are present or absent.