RFP Debrief: How to Request One and What to Ask
Lost an RFP? How to Request a Debrief and Use It to Win Next Time
An RFP debrief is a conversation or written summary in which the buying agency explains how it evaluated your proposal: where you scored well, where you lost points, and why another vendor won. Request one in writing as soon as you receive the award notice, ask about scores and weaknesses instead of arguing the decision, and turn every answer into a specific change for your next bid. A lost RFP without a debrief is a lesson you paid for and never collected.
Key takeaways
Request a debrief after every loss, and in writing, the day you get the award notice.
Check the RFP for debrief deadlines, since some agencies give you only three days.
Ask about scores and weaknesses, not about why the agency chose someone else.
Sort every finding into what to fix now, what to build over time, and what to simply note.
Run an internal debrief too, win or lose, within a week of the award.
What Is an RFP Debrief?
An RFP debrief is a feedback session after a contract award. The agency walks you through how evaluators scored your proposal against the published criteria, and in some cases shares the winner's overall score or the reasons behind the award.
There are two kinds, and strong proposal teams do both:
External debrief: A meeting, call, or written summary from the agency explaining how your proposal was evaluated.
Internal debrief: A short review with your own team about what worked, what slowed you down, and what to change in your process.
Debriefs close the loop on your go/no-go process. When you compare what the agency tells you to the score you gave the opportunity before you bid, you learn whether you lost on the proposal or on the opportunity itself.
Why Should You Request a Debrief Every Time You Lose?
Most proposals lose, even good ones. Teams won 39% of the RFPs they submitted on average in 2026, and 45% on average from 2019 to 2026, according to Loopio's 2026 RFP Response Trends & Benchmarks Report. The same report found that a single response takes about 33 hours. Losing is part of the work. Losing without learning is the expensive part.
A debrief pays you back in four ways:
Shows where you actually lost points. Evaluators often mark down things you never noticed, like an unclear timeline or a missing requirement.
Sharpens your go/no-go decisions. If you keep losing on the same criterion, you can bid smarter or skip opportunities that weight it heavily.
Builds the relationship. A professional debrief tells the agency you're serious about earning its business next time.
Protects your options. In some jurisdictions, attending a debrief is required before you can file a protest.
How Do You Request an RFP Debrief?
Request a debrief in writing, right away, using the instructions in the RFP. Here's the process:
Check the solicitation first. Many RFPs spell out whether debriefs are offered, how to request one, and the deadline.
Request it fast. Some deadlines are as short as three days from the award notice. Don't wait until the sting wears off.
Send it to the named contact. Use the procurement officer or point of contact listed in the RFP, in writing.
Ask for a format and time. A call or meeting usually gives you more than a written summary, but take whatever the agency offers.
Prepare your questions. Send a few in advance if the agency allows it, so the evaluators can come ready.
Bring the right people. Include the person who managed the proposal and someone who would have delivered the work.
Here's a short request you can adapt:
Subject: Debrief request for [RFP number and title]
Thank you for the opportunity to submit a proposal for [RFP title]. We respect the agency's decision and would appreciate a debrief to understand how our proposal was evaluated, so we can improve future submissions. We're available for a call or meeting at your convenience, and we're also happy to receive written feedback. Please let us know the best next step.
What Are the Rules for Debriefs in Government RFPs?
Debrief rules depend on who is buying, so the RFP itself is always your first source. Two examples show how specific the rules can be:
Federal contracts: Under FAR 15.506, an offeror in a negotiated procurement must request a postaward debriefing within 3 days of being notified of the award. The agency should hold it within 5 days of the request, to the extent practicable. The debriefing must cover the significant weaknesses or deficiencies in your proposal, the overall evaluated price and technical rating for you and the winner, the overall ranking if one was developed, and a summary of the rationale for award. It can't include point-by-point comparisons with other proposals.
Washington State agencies: Washington's Bidder Contracting Guide gives bidders three business days to request a debrief conference after the apparent successful bidder is announced. The debrief covers your own bid only, and a bidder who wants to protest must attend a debrief first.
State, local, and education (SLED) agencies vary widely. Some offer formal debriefs, some offer written feedback, and some offer neither. When a debrief isn't available, public records requests are often the next best route.
What Questions Should You Ask in an RFP Debrief?
Ask open questions about your own proposal, then listen. A debrief is a learning conversation, not a chance to argue the award. These 10 questions cover what matters most:
Scoring
1. How did our proposal score on each evaluation criterion? Criterion-level scores show exactly where the gap was.
2. Where did we lose the most points? This is usually the single most useful answer you'll get.
Strengths
3. What were the strongest parts of our response? Knowing what worked keeps you from cutting it next time.
4. Was anything especially clear or convincing to evaluators? Strong examples become reusable content for future bids.
Weaknesses
5. Were there weaknesses or deficiencies in our proposal? Ask for specifics, such as the section or requirement involved.
6. Was anything unclear, missing, or hard to find? Evaluators can't score what they can't find, even if it's in there.
Value and Fit
7. How did our pricing factor into the evaluation? Even general feedback tells you whether price or value drove the outcome.
8. Did our approach match what the agency actually needed? The answer reveals priorities that weren't obvious in the scope of work.
Next Time
9. What would make our next proposal more competitive? Evaluators often share advice they couldn't put in the scoring sheet.
10. Are there upcoming opportunities we should know about? Keep it light, but don't leave without asking.
Want a step-by-step way to run both kinds of debriefs? The Debrief Process training shows you how to lead productive internal and client debriefs and capture lessons you can use right away.
How Do You Turn Debrief Feedback Into Your Next Win?
Feedback only helps if it changes something. After the debrief, sort every finding into one of three groups:
Fix before the next bid: Problems you can solve with your own content and process, like an unclear section, a missing requirement, or a weak executive summary. Assign each one to a person with a due date.
Build over time: Gaps that take months, like past performance, certifications, staffing depth, or a relationship with the agency. Add them to your growth plan.
Note and watch: Agency-specific preferences, like how heavily it weights references or local presence. Log them for the next time that agency releases an RFP.
Then close the loop. Update your templates and content library, add the findings to a win/loss log, and compare the result to your go/no-go score. The RFP Success® Playbook has the templates and checklists to make those updates stick.
What Does an RFP Debrief Look Like in Practice?
Here's a hypothetical example. A 15-person IT services firm bids on a county help desk contract and comes in second. The team requests a debrief the day it receives the award notice, and the county schedules a 30-minute call. Here's what they learn:
Strength: The technical approach scored highest of all bidders.
Weakness: The transition plan lost the most points. Evaluators couldn't tell what would happen in the first 30 days.
Weakness: The staffing plan wasn't tied to the service levels in the scope.
Value: Price was competitive, but not the deciding factor.
Fit: The county cared most about a smooth handoff from the incumbent, which the scope only hinted at.
The team sorts the findings. Fix before the next bid: build a transition plan template with dated milestones, and connect every staffing number to a service level. Build over time: meet the county IT director before the next solicitation. Note and watch: this county weights transition risk heavily.
Six months later, the firm bids on a similar contract for a neighboring county. Its transition plan, the section that cost it last time, is now one of its strongest. One 30-minute call turned a loss into a better proposal.
How Do You Run an Internal Debrief?
An internal debrief is a short team review held within a week of the award, whether you won or lost. Keep it to 45 minutes and cover four questions:
What worked? Keep it, and save the strongest content for reuse.
What slowed us down? Late reviews, missing inputs, and unclear roles show up here.
What would we change? Pick two or three changes, not ten.
Did our go/no-go score predict the outcome? If you scored a loss as a strong go, revisit how you score. The RFP go/no-go decision checklist is a good place to start.
Debrief your wins too. A win can hide problems you'll want to fix before the next bid, and it tells you what to repeat.
What Mistakes Do Teams Make With RFP Debriefs?
Even teams that request debriefs can waste them. Watch for these five mistakes:
Missing the deadline. Some agencies allow only a few days. Request the debrief the day you get the award notice.
Arguing the decision. A debrief won't change the award. Defensiveness ends the conversation and hurts the relationship.
Asking only about the winner. Many debriefs cover your proposal only. Focus your questions there.
Sending only the salesperson. Bring the person who managed the response, so the feedback reaches the people who write it.
Filing the notes and moving on. If the feedback doesn't change a template, a process, or a go/no-go threshold, the debrief didn't do its job.
What If the Agency Won't Give You a Debrief?
If an agency doesn't offer a debrief, you still have several ways to learn from the outcome:
Ask for written feedback. Some agencies that don't hold debrief meetings will still share evaluator comments, scoring notes, or other feedback in writing.
Request public records. In many states, you can request scoring sheets, the evaluation summary, or the winning proposal through a public records request.
Get an external, objective review. Bring in an experienced third party like The RFP Success Company to review your proposal against the solicitation and evaluation criteria. A fresh set of eyes can identify gaps in strategy, positioning, proof, clarity, or compliance that may be difficult for your internal team to see because they are so close to the response.
Run your internal debrief anyway. Compare your proposal to the evaluation criteria, review where your response was strongest and weakest, and document what your team should carry forward into the next opportunity.
Build the relationship for next time. Agencies often limit contact once an RFP is released, so relationship-building needs to happen well before the next opportunity. The Relationship Building training covers how.
Make Every Lost RFP Count
Request a debrief on your next loss the same day you get the award notice, and run an internal debrief within a week. The goal isn't to relive the loss. It's to make sure you never lose the same way twice.
Ready to build the habit?
Take the Debrief Process training to run better internal and client debriefs.
Use the Go/No-Go Assessment training to apply what you learn to your next bid decision.
Grab The RFP Success® Playbook for the templates that turn feedback into stronger responses.
FAQ: RFP Debriefs
What is an RFP debrief?
An RFP debrief is a meeting, call, or written summary after a contract award in which the agency explains how your proposal was evaluated, including strengths, weaknesses, and scores. Some debriefs also share the winner's overall score or the rationale for the award.
When should you request an RFP debrief?
Request it in writing as soon as you receive the award notice. Deadlines can be short. Federal negotiated procurements require a request within 3 days of notification, and Washington State agencies allow three business days.
Can you request a debrief if you won the RFP?
Yes. Some agencies will share feedback with the winning vendor, and it's worth asking. Either way, run an internal debrief after every win to capture what worked.
What information will an agency share in a debrief?
It depends on the agency's rules. Most debriefs cover how your own proposal scored and where it was weak. Federal debriefings also include the winner's overall price and technical rating and a summary of the award rationale, but not point-by-point comparisons with other proposals.
Can a debrief change the award decision?
No. A debrief explains the decision but doesn't reopen it. Protests are a separate formal process with their own rules and deadlines, and some jurisdictions require you to attend a debrief before filing one.
Will asking for a debrief hurt my relationship with the agency?
No, as long as you keep it professional. Thank the agency, ask about your own proposal, and avoid arguing the outcome. A respectful debrief shows you're serious about earning the next contract.
What should you do with debrief feedback?
Sort it into three groups: fix before the next bid, build over time, and note for that agency. Assign each fix to a person with a due date, update your templates, and compare the results to your go/no-go score.
About the Author
Lisa Rehurek is the founder of The RFP Success® Company, with 30+ years of experience responding to, developing, and evaluating RFPs. She has written 11 books, including five on RFP strategy, and hosts The RFP Success® Show, the longest-running podcast dedicated to government proposals. Her company is a two-time Inc. 5000 honoree (2023, 2024), and its clients have won more than $500M in contracts. Read Lisa's full bio.
Last updated: October 2026
