1.0 Introduction
This guide is designed to assist general contractors with the successful adoption of the COMPASS Prequalification across your organization. The goal is to ensure strong subcontractor engagement, full participation, and optimal compliance, while maintaining high standards for risk management.
2.0 COMPASS Overview
The COMPASS Prequalification process ensures that all subcontractors possess the required expertise and capacity to meet their contractual obligations. This guide outlines the onboarding process for both general contractors and subcontractors, offering step-by-step instructions from the initial invitation to the final prequalification assignment.
2.1 General Contractor Benefits
Risk Reduction: Assures subcontractors have strong financial stability, safety records, and the necessary expertise, minimizing project risks.
Improved Efficiency: Outsource data collection so risk group can focus on risk mitigation.
Cost Savings: Minimize losses in time and cost overruns.
Compliance and Reporting: Manage licensing, certification, insurance, and regulatory requirements effectively.
Subcontractor Network: Expand the pool of qualified subcontractors, reducing concentration and aggregation risk
3.0 General Contractor Onboarding Process
The onboarding process equips general contractors with the appropriate access, analytical tools for data-driven recommendations, standardized communications for subcontractor onboarding, training on consistent verbiage for districts and groups, and ongoing support throughout the process.
3.1 Client Account Setup
3.1.1 Client Handoff
Each general contractor will be appointed a client success representative unique to your regions of operation to guide you through the onboarding process and provide ongoing support.
3.1.2 Subcontractor List Procurement
Provide Spreadsheet of all subcontractors you are either looking to prequalify, or have prequalified on an annualized basis. If prequalifying for the first time, provide a list of subcontractors you’ve contracted with within the past 3 years. Include:
Company Name
Prequalification Main Contact Details* (Name, Phone, Email)
Tax ID or FEIN Number
Prequalification Expiration Date
*The primary contact should manage prequalifications rather than the bid contact. Ensuring the correct point of contact helps reduce escalations from subcontractors during the prequalification process preventing unnecessary delays.
This list allows COMPASS to verify if your subcontractors have registered or submitted their 1Form. This helps us develop a tailored onboarding plan and set clear goals and milestones for the next 12 months as we transition your subcontractors from your previous prequalification system as their prequalifications expire. Included is an exercise is a contact cleanup, ensuring the general contractor has the most current details for registered subcontractors.
3.1.3 Account User Setup
Prior to the initial meeting with your client success representative, your account will be set where most of the demonstration will take place.
In the initial meeting, provide an overview of your staff and their access to prequalification features. User roles are defined as follows:
Admin User: Full access to prequalification, bidding, and employee management.
Bid User: Access to prequalifications, bidding, and subcontractor profiles
Prequalification User: Invite, review, and approve subcontractors*
Prequalification User (Non-Finance): No access to financial data, even if authorization has been granted.
*Estimators and project teams should not access financial data to avoid potential conflicts of interest, such as reverse-engineering subcontractor margins.
3.1.4 Custom Workflow Setup
Consult with your client success representative to set up custom workflows tailored to your internal processes. COMPASS custom workflows enable you to separate the roles of reviewers and approvers, allowing for a thorough assessment of information, recommendations, and final sign-offs on prequalifications.
For example, if a prequalification or contract award exceeds $40M, the approval process can be escalated to the CFO.
Contact your client success representative to explore how we can help map out your workflow. We'll provide industry insights and examples of your peers to support the design and implementation of your custom workflow.
3.1.5 Project Approval Workflow Setup
For general contractors needing prequalification at both the company level and for individual projects, you can customize multiple project approval workflows. This enables you to request updated information and apply project-specific criteria based on the type and scope of each project.
3.1.6 Integration Setup
Integration partners include, but are not limited to, Procore, ConstructConnect, Isqft, OKTA (SSO) and CMIC. Contact your client success representative to explore custom integrations with ERPs, financial modules, bid tools, and more to ensure your data is where you and your staff need it.
3.2 Analytics Setup
3.2.1 GC Recommendation Model
Work with the Analytics group to define rules, formulas, haircuts, and deal-breakers to build your single and aggregate contract limit model to assign prequalifications with confidence. We'll provide industry best practices and examples of your peers to support the development of your prequalification contract limit framework.
3.2.1 Define Ready for Review
Customized Completion Review: Indicate which fields are 'nice to have' and which are 'required' to streamline the review process and ensure all necessary information and documentation are complete before review. Automated communications can be triggered for missing required fields. It is the general contractor’s responsibility to address any missing information that the subcontractor has intentionally left blank or incomplete.
Customized High-Risk Flags Review: Define performance metrics to aid in the review process to ensure prequalification contract limits and risk mitigation plan reflects high risk concerns
3.2.2 Dashboards and Analytical Reports
Default and customized dashboards (may incur additional fees) to be provided for reporting, compliance, and data extraction. Any customized dashboard needs will be discussed with your client success representative.
3.3 Communications and Marketing
Standard communications is crucial to a successful subcontractor onboarding.
3.3.1 Email Communications
COMPASS will provide standardized communications, consistent with all your peers across the industry. Any edits to these communications require approval from Client Success. Verbiage related to prequalification enforcement and subcontractor fees are non-negotiable. Communications will be sent via the GC at launch and prior to each subsequent invitation to prequalify.
3.3.2 Website Update
COMPASS will provide a template for the general contractor's corporate website. This webpage can be tailored for specific projects to gather bid registration details, such as DBE certifications, bid contacts for compliance, and reporting. Additionally, COMPASS can offer project-specific or general contractor-specific links that will automatically associate subcontractors with the relevant project or prequalification workflow when they log in or register.
3.3.3 Invitation to Bid Copy Updated
All bid invitations should include language regarding the use of COMPASS and the requirement of prequalification prior to contract award or future bid invitations. A project-specific or general contractor-specific link can be provided for subcontractors to forward to their prequalification contact to begin the prequalification process.
3.3.4 Internal Communications
Standardized communications should be distributed internally to all staff who may receive inquiries from subcontractors, including the contact information for COMPASS client service and the general contractor risk team.
3.4 Staff Training
Training sessions are divided into two main groups:
Risk Team: This includes all individuals involved in inviting subcontractors, communicating with them, reviewing their submissions, and approving their prequalification. The training covers:
Demonstration and training on the COMPASS platform
Use of standardized communications
Compliance with prequalification procedures outlined in section 4.0
Demonstration of subcontractor experience and common FAQs
Project Team: This includes project managers, estimators, senior district leads, and anyone who manages relationships with subcontractors and handles inquiries. The training covers:
Overview of COMPASS, including benefits, and requirements for contract awards or bid invitations
Enforcement of prequalification and timelines
Use of standardized communications and verbiage to redirect inquiries to COMPASS
If a phased or project-specific onboarding approach is deemed best, project team training can be limited to a single district. Training sessions for both groups must be completed before sending out communications and initiating prequalification invitations.
3.5 Rollout and Ongoing Support
3.5.1 Large Project Starts
Discuss prominent projects that use prequalification with your client success representative. COMPASS offers the following support:
Bid Registration Page: Capture interest in your project using a unique tracking link to monitor interested subcontractors within your workflow.
Webinars: Invite subcontractors to join a live and recorded webinar co-hosted by yourself and COMPASS, presenting project details and prequalification procedures.
COMPASS Communications: Leverage the tens of thousands of Subcontractors in the project's region to authorize you to be reviewed by your risk group
Promotion: Leverage the COMPASS subcontractor and association network to promote the project across diverse groups and trade associations.
Supplementary Information: Share additional details with the subcontractor onboarding team to improve response and success rates.
3.5.2 Regular Check-ins
After rollout, client success will schedule regular meetings to review product feature development, explore additional product offerings, discuss upcoming projects, and gather suggestions to improve subcontractor onboarding.
3.5.3 Management Reporting
Dashboards found under the Analytics tab in the navigation bar provide access to a live GC Scorecard for performance tracking. Offline reports will also be regularly shared with the risk team and management to monitor progress against targets. Ongoing feedback will be discussed in recurring Client Success meetings to drive continuous improvement to maximize outcomes.
4.0 COMPASS Recommended Procedures
4.1 Determine Subcontractors for Prequalification
Project-Specific: The bid team provides the list of subcontractors.
Existing Renewals: During the initial 12 months, invite subcontractors with expiring prequalifications from your existing Prequalification software to COMPASS. By assigning prequalifications in COMPASS, the Auto-renewal feature will be activated upon their next prequalification expiration.
Auto-Renewals: Subcontractors with assigned prequalifications within COMPASS are automatically placed back into the workflow 30 days before their prequalification expiration date.
Integrations: Discuss integration options through ERP or bidding tools with your client success representative.
4.2 Send Communications to Subcontractors
Send approved emails containing project details, due dates, and a unique project-specific URL to the selected subcontractors.
4.3 Invite Subcontractors to COMPASS
Login to COMPASS to search and invite subcontractors to prequalify, which will be added to your workflow. If they’re already registered, contact details will be pre-filled to the prequalification user of their account. Be sure to attach the project name and due date if available as the urgency will be communicated to the subcontractor.
For subcontractors not yet registered, use the bulk invite option to initiate the prequalification process.
4.4 Review Escalated Subcontractors to Communicate
If the COMPASS subcontractor onboarding team is unable to make contact or the subcontractor refuses to proceed, we will mark the account as escalated. Use the escalation flyout to collect details and reach out to the subcontractor to encourage their completion
If the subcontractor registers or submits 1Form after your communications, they will be de-escalated automatically and handled by the COMPASS client service team moving forward.
If prequalification is no longer needed, remove the subcontractor from your workflow.
4.5 Review Completed Subcontractors
After COMPASS verifies the 1Form and supporting documentation, review subcontractors using completion metrics, the document center (for supporting documents), and model recommendations. Contact subcontractors if essential information is missing and continue to monitor their progress until all requirements are met.
4.6 Push to Reviewer/Approval Workflow (If Applicable)
The notice will be sent to the next reviewer in the process for their comments and approval until the workflow is complete. Notes and Attachments that have been linked to the prequalification will be visible to all reviewers and approvals.
4.7 Assign Prequalification and Risk Mitigation Plan
Assign a prequalification, including a risk mitigation plan if necessary. COMPASS determines the recommended prequalification expiration date, which aligns with the expiration of the 1Form, defined as:
If Financials are included, 18 months after latest financial fiscal year end date
If Financials are not included, 12 months after latest submission date
Since prequalification dates are synchronized across multiple General Contractors, the industry's shift toward collecting standardized data annually will enhance the likelihood that your renewal will utilize the most up-to-date information.
4.8 Push to Project Approval Workflow (If Applicable)
Project approval workflow can be triggered at this time if applicable
5.0 Conclusion
Following the COMPASS Prequalification process is vital for general contractors to ensure subcontractor compliance, reduce risk, and boost efficiency. By implementing the outlined steps, general contractors can streamline onboarding, strengthen subcontractor engagement, and maintain a robust prequalified pool of subcontractors. Throughout the process, the COMPASS team will support you, ensuring a smooth transition for both you and your subcontractors while utilizing a standardized prequalification tool and shared database of subcontractors.