Bid/no-bid scorecard: score the opportunity before you commit

Most businesses decide whether to bid on instinct, in a meeting, within about five minutes. The result is a portfolio of bids with a low win rate, because enthusiasm is not a filter and the opportunities that feel exciting are frequently the ones you are least likely to win.

A scorecard replaces instinct with a repeatable assessment. It will not make the decision for you, but it makes the reasoning visible — and it gives you permission to walk away from work you should not chase.

How to use it

Score each of the ten factors from 0 to 10, multiply by the weighting, and total. Do it before you invest serious effort — ideally in the first two days of the tender period, immediately after building a compliance matrix so you actually know what the requirements are.

Score honestly. A scorecard completed to justify a decision already made is worse than no scorecard, because it manufactures false confidence.

The scorecard

#	Factor	Weight	Score 0 = no, 10 = ideal
1	Mandatory compliance	×3	Can we meet every mandatory requirement today — insurance, licence class, prequalification, briefing attendance?
2	Core capability match	×2.5	Is this the work we actually do, or an adjacent stretch?
3	Comparable past performance	×2	Can we cite 3 genuinely comparable projects with contactable referees?
4	Delivery capacity	×2	Do we have the crews, plant and management to deliver alongside current commitments?
5	Geographic fit	×1.5	Is this within our profitable service radius without new depots or accommodation?
6	Price competitiveness	×2	Can we price this profitably and still be competitive?
7	Contract risk	×1.5	Are liquidated damages, indemnities and payment terms acceptable?
8	Competitive position	×1.5	Is the field small, or is there an entrenched incumbent with no reason to be displaced?
9	Time available	×2	Do we have enough time before close to produce a genuinely good response?
10	Strategic value	×2	Does winning open a panel, a new agency relationship or a reference we want?

Weightings total ×20, so a perfect score is 200. Convert to a percentage by dividing by two.

Reading the result

Score	Decision
Any zero on factor 1	No bid. A mandatory requirement you cannot meet makes the bid non-conforming. It will not be scored.
Below 100 / 200	No bid. The effort is better spent on a stronger opportunity.
100–130	Marginal. Bid only if capacity is otherwise idle, or if strategic value is genuinely high.
130–160	Bid. A real chance. Resource it properly.
Above 160	Bid hard. Assign your best people and do not treat it as routine.

The factors people score dishonestly

Three in particular, and they are the three that cause most wasted bids.

Delivery capacity (factor 4). The optimistic assumption is that you will win it and somehow resource it. Score this against your actual committed workload, not your hoped-for one. Winning a contract you cannot deliver damages your past performance record for years, which is a worse outcome than losing.

Time available (factor 9). A tender found with five days remaining, requiring a substantial methodology and a schedule of rates, is not a five-day job. Rushed bids score poorly and consume the same overhead as good ones. This is the strongest practical argument for monitoring opportunities daily — see how to find government tenders.

Competitive position (factor 8). If an incumbent has held the contract for eight years and is performing adequately, you need a genuine reason the buyer would change. Look up the previous award notices before scoring this.

Where the score is low but you should still bid

Two legitimate exceptions. First, a panel establishment — even a marginal fit can be worth pursuing because membership may run five years and the next window is far away, as covered in how to get on a government panel. Second, a first contract with an agency you want a relationship with, where a small low-margin job buys the past-performance reference that unlocks larger work. Council contracts frequently serve this purpose — see how to find council tenders.

Be explicit when you are making that trade, though. "Strategic loss leader" is a defensible decision; "we'll figure out the margin later" is not.

Track your scores against outcomes

Log the score for every bid alongside the result. After fifteen or twenty bids the data tells you where your real threshold sits — you may find you never win below 140, in which case that becomes your cut-off. This is the point at which the scorecard stops being a template and becomes your own calibrated instrument.

Pair it with debrief feedback for the fastest improvement loop available. If debriefs repeatedly cite capacity concerns, your factor 4 scoring is too generous — see tender debrief questions.

What happens after a bid decision

If you bid: build the compliance matrix, write to the criteria using our tender writing tips and response template, price with how to price a tender, and verify with the response checklist.

If you do not bid: consider whether subcontracting to the winner is a route to the same work, and put the saved time into the next opportunity. Browse what else is open on our tender feeds — by state like Victoria or sector like electrical. Jurisdiction context is in guides such as Queensland electrical tenders.

Frequently asked questions

How many tenders should I bid to win one?

It varies by sector and maturity, but businesses bidding selectively commonly win one in three to one in five, while those bidding indiscriminately may win one in ten or worse. The scorecard exists to improve that ratio by removing the bids you were never going to win.

Should I adjust the weightings?

Yes, once you have data. If your losses consistently trace to pricing, increase the weighting on factor 6. If capacity has caused delivery problems, increase factor 4. The weightings provided are a sensible starting point, not a fixed rule.

Is it worth bidding just to get on a buyer's radar?

Rarely as a standalone reason. A poor submission makes a worse impression than no submission, and evaluators remember weak bidders. If relationship-building is the goal, a tailored capability statement and a conversation costs far less than a bid.

What if my score is high but the contract value is small?

Small contracts with high scores are often excellent, particularly early on, because they build past performance cheaply and reliably. Just confirm the bid cost is proportionate — a full tender response for a $20k job may not be worth it unless it opens further work.

Who should complete the scorecard?

Whoever would have to deliver the work, not only whoever wants to win it. Operations tends to score capacity and delivery realistically, while business development tends toward optimism. Completing it together produces the most reliable result.