Evaluation criteria
Setting up scoring rules for structured, comparable bid analysis.
Evaluation criteria are an optional feature that adds structure to your analysis. You don't need them for a basic compliance check, but they make a big difference for complex procurements where you're comparing multiple vendors.
Evaluation criteria
What they do
Criteria tell the AI exactly what to extract from each proposal. Instead of a general "check for compliance", you get specific data points that you can compare across vendors.
Two types
Pass/Fail criteria - a binary check.
- "Does the vendor have ISO 9001 certification?" - Pass or Fail
- "Is the proposed timeline within the required 12 months?" - Pass or Fail
- "Did they include three reference projects?" - Pass or Fail
Scored criteria - rated on a scale of 0-100.
- "Relevant project experience" - maybe 85/100 (strong track record)
- "Quality of proposed methodology" - maybe 60/100 (adequate but not detailed)
- "Team qualifications" - maybe 90/100 (exceeds requirements)
Setting them up
Click Evaluation Criteria in the sidebar workflow. You have two options:
Auto-extract from RFP - click the Extract from RFP button to have the AI read your RFP and suggest criteria. It picks up on evaluation sections, scoring tables, and mandatory requirements. Review what it suggests, edit as needed, and save.
Manual setup - click Add manually to add criteria one by one. For each, specify the name, type (pass/fail or scored), and optionally a description of what to look for.
Set up criteria before running analysis. The AI uses them during analysis to extract specific values. If you add criteria after analysis, you'll need to re-run it (which costs additional credits).
Editing criteria
You can add, edit, or remove criteria at any time from the Evaluation Criteria view. But changes only affect future analyses - existing results stay as they were. To get updated values, re-run the analysis.
Tips for good criteria
- Be specific. "Technical capability" is vague. "Number of certified engineers on proposed team" is measurable.
- Match your RFP. If your evaluation methodology defines specific criteria with weights, replicate those here.
- Don't go overboard. 10-20 well-defined criteria gives you plenty of comparison data without making the analysis unnecessarily slow.
When criteria are configured, the sidebar shows a green checkmark next to "Evaluation Criteria".
Criteria with lots
When you combine evaluation criteria with lots, the analysis becomes very structured — for each vendor, for each lot they bid on, for each criterion, you get a specific value. The comparison shows this as a multi-dimensional matrix. See Lots for details on setting up multi-lot procurements.