Define the role and success criteria first
A general contractor, designer, specialist subcontractor, local representative and commercial partner should not share one generic questionnaire. Required permissions, technical capability, financial resilience, geographic reach and risk allocation depend on the intended role. Set the criteria before bids arrive so reputation or low price does not displace material evidence.
Cross-check documents against official sources
Verify the legal entity, authority to sign and any licence, permit or registration relevant to the proposed work. Test not only whether a document exists, but its holder, current status, scope and alignment with the assignment. Tax, legal, financial, sanctions or conflict matters require appropriate evidence and, where needed, qualified specialists.
Move from reference lists to delivery capacity
For similar projects, verify the candidate’s actual role, contract scope, completion status, client feedback and delivery team. Do not treat another company’s, joint venture’s or employee’s past experience as the candidate’s corporate record. Test current workload, key people, equipment, subcontract chain, quality and HSE systems, procurement and mobilisation through interviews and, where justified, site visits.
Make the selection conditional and traceable
The output should show strengths, critical gaps, unverified statements, reference feedback, commercial exposures and actions required before award—not only a total score. A suitable / conditionally suitable / unsuitable recommendation should be role-specific, with conditions transferred into contract and mobilisation controls.