Scoring Settings
Tune the bid scoring model on the Bid Configuration page: weights, thresholds, effort, hard gates, priorities and flagged terms.
Scoring Settings
The Bid Configuration page is where you tune how Cothon scores opportunities. Every company weighs capability, competition, effort and risk differently. This page lets the score reflect your judgment.
Settings are saved to your own account. They apply to decisions you calculate or recalculate after saving.
How to change your settings
Reset to Defaults restores the default values below. Click Save Settings afterward to keep them.
Scoring Weights
Four sliders set how much each dimension counts toward the bid score.
| Dimension | Default |
|---|---|
| Capability Match | 35 |
| Competitive Position | 25 |
| Effort vs Opportunity | 20 |
| Risk Assessment | 20 |
The weights always add up to 100. When you move one slider, the others adjust. Each weight stays between 10 and 70, so no dimension can be ignored or take over.
Tip
If your pipeline is full and you can be picky, raise risk and effort. If you are in growth mode, raise capability match so more borderline bids come through.
Decision Thresholds
Three numbers turn the score into a recommendation.
| Threshold | Default | Allowed range |
|---|---|---|
| Strong Bid (≥) | 75 | 60 to 95 |
| Consider Bid (≥) | 60 | 40 up to one below Strong Bid |
| Conditional Bid (≥) | 45 | 20 up to one below Consider Bid |
Anything below the Conditional Bid threshold is No Bid. The page keeps the thresholds in order, so the bands never overlap.
Effort Estimation
The effort dimension compares what a proposal costs you with what the contract is worth.
| Setting | Default | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Hourly Rate | $150 | Your loaded cost per hour of proposal work |
| Hours per Requirement | 0.5 | Time to respond to one requirement |
| Base Overhead Hours | 8 | Fixed time for any bid: executive summary, formatting, review |
Estimated hours start from the number of requirements times hours per requirement, plus overhead. Cothon then adjusts for how complex the requirements are and how many gaps you have to explain. Estimated cost is hours times your hourly rate. The page shows this formula with your numbers.
Hard Gates
Hard gates are pass/fail checks that sit above the score.
- Require All Critical Requirements Met (on by default): if a mandatory requirement cannot be met, the decision becomes an automatic No Bid.
- Maximum Critical Gaps Allowed: only active when the toggle above is off. The decision becomes No Bid only when unmet mandatory requirements exceed this number.
- Minimum Timeline Buffer (days) (default 3): opportunities that leave less preparation time than this score lower on timeline in the effort dimension.
Warning
Turning off the critical-requirements gate does not make mandatory criteria optional. It only stops Cothon from forcing No Bid. Use it when you know your company profile is incomplete.
Bid Strategy & Priorities
This section sets the targets behind strategic fit: industries, agencies, contract values, regions, growth areas and revenue targets. It has its own Save Priorities button.
Flagged Terms
Flagged terms are words you want highlighted whenever they appear in an analyzed RFP, such as "liquidated damages" or "unlimited liability". They feed the risk dimension and the bid analysis views.
To add one, type the term, choose a category (Risk, Legal, Financial, Technical, Opportunity or Other) and click Add Term. To remove one, click the trash icon next to it. To change a term, delete it and add it again.
Quick links
At the bottom of the page, View Dashboard opens the Performance Dashboard and Edit Capabilities opens your company profile. These are the two places to check when scores look wrong.
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