The solicitation does not follow A to M at all. What now?

That is normal under simplified acquisition, where a combined synopsis and solicitation is often a few pages. The same four questions still apply: what am I pricing, what do I have to do, what do I have to submit, and how will they choose. Find those four answers wherever they are.

How many clauses do I actually need to understand?

For most small suppliers, ten to twenty, and they repeat. The ones about sourcing, labour standards, cybersecurity, quality and data rights are the ones that change what the work costs. The rest are standard terms you comply with by behaving normally.

Should I ask a question if I think the specification is written around a competitor?

Yes, in writing, during the question period, phrased as a request to broaden rather than an accusation. It occasionally works. If it does not and you believe the terms are unduly restrictive, a challenge to the terms generally has to be filed before the proposal deadline, which module 14 covers.

Can I take exception to a term I do not like?

You can, and on many procurements it will make your offer non-responsive. If a term is genuinely unworkable, raise it in the question period and decide whether to bid, rather than bidding with a condition attached.

What is the most expensive thing people miss?

Section J. The drawings, the data requirements lists and the wage determination together often carry more cost than the statement of work describes, and a price that ignored them is a price you will honour for years.

Course, module 8 of 16

Reading a solicitation

A solicitation is long, repetitive and written in a fixed order. Once you know the order you can read one properly in an hour instead of a day, and you will read the parts that decide the outcome first.

a score with no reasons is a horoscope

By the end of this module you will be able to

Find anything in a solicitation in under a minute, using the lettered structure
Read one in the order that tells you whether to bid, rather than front to back
Tell the difference between what the work is and how you will be judged on it
Spot the clauses that carry real cost, and keep your own list of the ones that matter to you
Handle questions, amendments and deadlines without losing an otherwise winning bid

The uniform contract format

Most negotiated solicitations follow a lettered structure. Not every solicitation uses it, and simplified acquisitions often do not, but knowing it means you can find anything quickly in the ones that do.

The structure is also a map of the contract you will eventually hold, because the same sections carry over into the award. The statement of work you read in section C is the statement of work you will be measured against, and the invoicing instructions in section G are the ones you will be arguing about in month four.

Keep reading

The rest of this module opens with your name and email

All sixteen modules open on this device for about six months. No card and no password.

Still to come in this module

Sections A to M
The first hour, in order
Incorporation by reference
The attachments are usually the contract
How they will choose
Responsive, responsible, and the difference
Questions, amendments and deadlines
The words in this module, defined
Questions at this stage