Past Performance

Definition

Past Performance is the body of information about a contractor's record on prior contracts, typically drawn from CPARS, agency-provided past performance questionnaires (PPQs), and contract references. In source-selection evaluations, past performance is considered alongside technical and price factors and often carries significant weight. Relevance (similar scope, complexity, and size) and recency (typically within 3–5 years) are the two gating dimensions. Favorable past performance can tip a close trade-off decision; unfavorable past performance can disqualify a firm.

Why It Matters

Past performance is a self-reinforcing asset. Winning your first contracts in a new market builds the CPARS record that helps you win the next. Conversely, a single poor CPARS can lock you out of a market for years. Sophisticated firms treat past performance as a proactive program: tracking relevance, diversifying clients, mining CPARS narratives for reusable proposal language, and preparing PPQ responders on each prior client team.

Example

A firm pursuing its first cloud-migration RFP has 'Exceptional' CPARS on three relevant prior awards. The evaluator rates its past performance 'Substantial Confidence' — the highest category — and the firm wins a trade-off against a larger competitor with stronger technical approach but weaker past performance.

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