10. Results-Driven Contracting

The agency uses strategies to structure, evaluate and actively manage contracts, and uses data to help leverage procurement to achieve equitable outcomes.

4 agencies meet this criterion

Subcriteria

10.1. The agency encourages grantees, provides guidance to grantees or provides technical assistance to grantees on the use of results-focused contracts that include outcomes aligned with grantee goals (in at least one program).

10.2. In the activities described in 10.1, the agency prioritizes proposals that address the needs of people who are experiencing unfavorable outcomes as evidenced by at least one example of a grant or Notice of Funding Opportunity with this guidance.

Leading Example

U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)

USAID employs a “Pay-for-Results (PFR)” approach to development, in which the agency makes payments when implementing organizations achieve specific milestones or development results. PFR brings all stakeholders together from the beginning of the development activity to set performance metrics, helping to ensure that allocated funds achieve measurable results as cost effectively as possible. USAID has developed a guide offering guidance on setting, pricing and administering performance metrics in PFR programming; a PFR primer is also available here.

USAID also has Notices of Funding Opportunity (NOFOs) that requires procurement contracts to prioritize proposals addressing the needs of people experiencing unfavorable outcomes. An example is the USAID/Ghana NOFO, Teaching and Learning Materials and Classroom Furniture (TLM+) Activity. Its evaluation criteria state that USAID/Ghana will evaluate an applicant’s technical approach and year one work plan outline based on the extent to which they are sound, evidence-based and likely to meet the objectives and purpose set forth in the NOFO, including applying a gender, youth and environmental protection lens; using a behavior-led approach; and incorporating opportunities for learning and adapting.