FEDERAL SECTOR REPORT

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The Acquisition Strategy should make maximum use of interagency agreements, collaboration, and public-private partnerships to leverage investments, improve results, and reduce costs to taxpayers.

Acquisitions using the share-in-savings authority in section 210 of the E-Government Act of 2002 must be funded from the funds that would have been appropriated for operations and maintenance of the legacy system the new system is replacing. (See Circular A-11, Section 300.6)

Each contract should support the IT investment goals stated in the Exhibit 300, and contract performance metrics should be tied to the CPIC measures of results. 

The Acquisition Strategy should clearly define how each contract will support the agency's Enterprise Architecture and e-Government strategy.

Each contract must assure that there will be full compliance with federal and agency requirements for information security and privacy.

The Acquisition Strategy should define how qualified program/project managers will monitor and control contract execution, taking prompt corrective action whenever significant problems arise.

The Acquisition Strategy must address project risks, identifying how the contract(s) will be structured to avoid or mitigate cost, performance, technical, and other risks.

The scope of work of each contract must be clearly defined segments of the government's overall IT capital investment plan.

Each contract must be aligned with the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS), schedule, and milestones of the Funding Plan presented in the OMB Exhibit 300.

Acquisitions supporting Development, Modernization, and Enhancement (DME) investments should align the contractor's EVMS reporting with the Exhibit 300's Funding Plan, which includes milestones, schedules, and performance targets.

Acquisitions supporting Steady State investments should build in metrics required for Operational Analysis, as outlined by the OMB Capital Programming Guide.

Acquisitions should support paperwork elimination and electronic government whenever practical and cost effective.

• Each contract phase or option period must provide a useful segment of deliverables and/or services.
  
• Prepare for acquisitions early--they almost always take more time than you would wish. Lay out a step-by-step schedule for developing the acquisition package, competing the requirement, and negotiating the award.
  
• Involve your Integrated Project Team (IPT).
  
• Conduct market research and solicit industry comments before an investment's scope of work is cast in stone.
  
• Search http://www.fedbizopps.gov/, the government's Request for Proposal and awards site, to identify similar acquisitions; and check with government representatives to find out how well the contract structure is working (and what they would do differently).
  
• Determine the best means for assuring competition--such as a major upfront competition and/or use of multiple Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) awards to assure ongoing competition for tasks.
  
• Provide flexibility that encourages prospective contractors to propose alternative results that achieve performance goals and results by methods that are better, faster, cheaper, or less risky.
  
• Follow the principles of Performance Based Service Acquisition, as defined in Federal Acquisition Regulation 37.600.
  
• Use firm-fixed price performance-based contracts wherever feasible.
  
• Use Commercial Off-the-Shelf (COTS), government-owned, or Open Source software where ever practical and cost effective.
  
• Require Section 508 compliance in contract provisions.
  
• Mitigate risks if a Time and Material (T&M) must be used--such as clearly defined tasks and performance goals, regular performance reviews, segmented periods of performance, and good documentation that is usable by an alternative contractor.
  
• Consider cost-savings agreements (awarding the contractor a share of bringing in the project under budgeted cost).
  
• Provide negative incentives (penalties) for contractors who perform poorly.