Step One - The Preliminaries

First, read the bid documents carefully. Make sure you understand the requirements of the Good Faith Effort for your particular bid. Once you have determined what procedures and goals are required, call the awarding agency (compliance officer) and ask them if they have any additional information that might help you or if they have a list of DBE companies you can contact. This procedure is usually required for most bids.

Step Two - Place Your DBE Ads

Most agencies require that you place an ad in both a "Trade" and "Focus" publication, at least 10 days prior to bid date. These publications can be in paper or electronic (internet) medium.  Your ad should contain, at the very minimum, your company information, contact person, the trades or services you are requesting, the title and location of the project, where bid ocuments can be obtained and the type of DBE category you are requesting.  This web site is approved as a Trade and Focus publication by all the major awarding agencies and placing your ads here is a simple process.

Step Three - Contact DBE Certifying Agencies and Compile a List of Bidders

Once you have placed your ads, you must contact several certifying agencies and request assistance with finding qualified DBE's to whom you can submit a bid solicitation.  Very often, these agencies wil refer you to their (or other) websites where you can perform searches for the trades you require.  Always write down the name of anyone you talk to and print out the web pages you visit.  You will need this documention as part of your bid submittal.  Sometimes, these agencies are listed in the bid documents but often, you will have to seek out your own resources.  CBSI has several agencies listed under our Links page which you are free to use.  Once you have identified sufficient DBE's to fulfill the requirements of the contract, compile them into a list for easy reference.

Step Four - Send Out Solicitations to DBE's

You are now ready to start contacting DBE's by fax, email or phone. The bid documents will explain how and when to do this, how many DBE companies you should contact and if you will need to make further follow up calls.  Make sure your solicitations contain the project title and location, trades you are requesting, DBE categories required, the name of a contact person from your company, where the DBE can see the bid documents, your company information, which should include company name, address, phone, fax and email.  You can also add additional information such as bonding assistance or union requirements if applicable.

Step Five - Follow Up Calls, Negotiation

Once your solicitations have been sent out, you will probably be required to make follow up phone calls to see if tthe firms you contacted will be submitting a bid.  Always note down the name of the person you talk to, including their comments.  You will need to include this information with your bid dcumentation.  If any of the firms you contact submit a responsible bid, it is advisable to negotiate with the firm in good faith particularly if the bid is competitive. Failure to seriously consider a responsible low bid from a DBE, could cause your bid to be disqualified. This is important to note, as many contractors have had their bids disqualified because they failed to respond or negotiate in good faith with DBE's who submitted responsible bids.

Step Six - Documentation

It's now time to submit your Good Faith Effort documentation with your bid.  Your documentation should include, at a minimum: (a) print outs of the web sites you visited when searching for DBE's (b) a list of certifying agencies you spoke with, inlcuding names and comments (c) a list of the DBE's you solicited including comments made during the follow up calls (if made) and the name of the person you spoke to (d) fill out any forms included with the bid package.

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