Debrief for tender participants (Construction Direction and Instruction 8.1)

Explains the requirement for an agency to offer a debrief to public construction tender participants.

Debrief for tender participants (Direction 8.1)

Effective date: 1 July 2018

Principles

Value for money, probity and scalability are procurement principles that are specifically relevant to capability building, performance and continuous improvement of both the supplier market and Agency staff.

Of particular relevance to this Direction are the following construction procurement principles:

  • encouraging appropriate innovation and responsiveness in the supplier market
  • treating all tender participants fairly and equally
  • fostering continuous improvement and building appropriate skills and capability in the conduct of Public Construction Procurement
  • undertaking Public Construction Procurement in accordance with the relevant legislation, policy, guidance and any mandatory requirements in these Directions

8.1 Debrief for tender participants

(a) At the conclusion of a process to engage a supplier to perform Works or Construction Services, Agencies must inform all tender participants of the outcome.

(b) Agencies must offer a debrief to all tender participants and, if the offer of a debrief is accepted, ensure a debrief is provided promptly in accordance with the requirements set out in the Instructions.

Debrief for tender participants (Instruction 8.1)

Effective date: 1 July 2018

Objective: To define the requirements for debriefing tender participants

Where Direction 8.1 requires an Agency to conduct a debrief, the debriefs should be:

(a) provided with a reasonable time after the tender process has concluded and the successful supplier is engaged

(b) conducted by an appropriately senior public official along with, where appropriate and consistent with probity requirements, any relevant consultants supporting the process

(c) positive and provide the supplier with feedback that promotes continuous improvement

(d) conducted in a manner that is consistent with the probity principles in Probity requirements (Construction Direction 4.1), in particular Agencies must ensure that they respect and protect the confidential information, including commercially sensitive information and intellectual property of other tender participants

Tools and support

The Construction Toolkit includes key documents, guidance and information relating to the Ministerial Directions and Instructions.

For further information about the Ministerial Directions and Instruction for public construction procurement, contact the Construction Policy Team.

Updated