Job Quality Playbook

Procurement Metrics

How to Measure

Capture information on both the process itself and the procurement/project - how the work was performed and what the work accomplished. Build opportunities for engagement and stakeholder accountability into each step of your procurement. Process-related data collection primarily produces output metrics but can serve as an early indicator of the impact the work is likely to have.

For example, if the output metrics show that a small number of diverse organizations responded to an RFP, and one of your goals is to diversify the number and type of organizations receiving funding, low participation in bidders conferences or pre-award technical assistance can serve as an early indicator that your procurement may make a limited shift in the number and dollars directed to diverse organizations. This early indicator might encourage targeted outreach to trusted community members, office hours or other techniques to reach a diverse set of bidders before the RFP submission date passes.

Procurement Stages
Sample Measures

Community Needs and Market Research

• # of trusted communicators trained

• $ allocated to capacity building of trusted communicators

• Compensation of individuals for participation in human-centered design

• Community perception based on survey/interview/focus groups

RFP/NGA Strategy Design/Drafting

• Trends in frequency of feedback use and themes

RFP/NGA Strategy Design/Drafting

• # channels used/followers

• # and type of inquiries received and changes over time

• # of submissions by demographics of the organization and changes over time

• % penetration of particular segments

Proposal Evaluation

• Evaluation committee makeup, by demographics

• # or % awards to minority-led or focused respondents

Negotiation

• Degree to which trust-based grantmaking practices and full cost funding are implemented

Active Contract Management

• Metrics specific to the objectives of the grant (e.g., placements or training disaggregated by demographics)

Tips for Measurement

  • Get as specific as possible about what you are trying to achieve or understand through your procurement process by using a logic model.

  • Engage those who will be impacted by the procurement in the process (e.g., providing additional briefings or training to your internal team, hosting Q&A sessions with potential respondents, or providing a deeper level of technical assistance)

  • Focus on a meaningful but manageable number of metrics. Take into consideration the data you have, staff capacity and the burden on the potential awardee.

  • Consider subtracting not just adding requirements from your procurement process (e.g., change the frequency of reporting to provide more space to collect a deeper level of information, expand the technical assistance provided to make it easier for respondents to get answers to questions)

  • Leverage a mix of incentives and requirements to achieve the desired results. (e.g., awarding points for demonstrating different job quality components or removing certain compliance requirements for organizations that pay a living wage)