BuyIT.gov acquisition process overview

Just follow these simple steps to leverage BuyIT.gov to simplify your procurement process.

Step 1: Customer interface and defining requirements
The task order process starts with a customer's program manager requesting to use GITSS. This is done via an Opportunity Form sent to the IBM and BuyIT.gov program offices. This requires the execution of a streamlined "customer agreement" also known as a Franchise Agreement (FA) between BuyIT.gov and the customer. After the agreement is in place, the task order's contracting officer will work closely with the customer's program manager to help define the work requirements and prepare an "actionable" procurement package. An "actionable" procurement request is defined as one where all the required elements (e.g., a complete SOW, justifications, etc.) are received along with funding up to the government estimate.

Step 2: Provide advance notice and a project description summary to the GITSS contractors
BuyIT.gov expects to use its Web site to post the requirements so as to provide an advance notice to all of the GITSS contractors of what potential task orders are on the horizon. This will allow the GITSS contractors to better position themselves to respond or assist in developing requirements.

Step 3: Acquisition planning/contract file documentation
The task order contracting officer and customer will work together to develop an acquisition strategy and finalize a task order acquisition plan and document the task order file.

Step 4: Fair opportunity to be considered
Task orders may be awarded on a single source basis, if the situation warrants, or they may be competed among any or all the GITSS contractors. Where no clear and reasonable customer rationale exists to limit the number of GITSS contractors for a given requirement, all GITSS contractors will have the opportunity to compete. The task order contracting officer will use prudent business judgment in deciding which and how many firms to solicit on specific task order requirements.

Step 5: Prepare and issue a task order solicitation
BuyIT.gov expects to issue task order solicitations in letter format via e-mail to the GITSS contractors. Emphasis will be given to keeping proposal requirements as "lean" and simple as possible. A reasonable amount of time will be given to the contractors to respond to the solicitation. The contract rates have been determined to be fair and reasonable to the government based upon adequate price competition during the award of the basic GITSS contracts. These rates are the basis for developing the task order prices for firm fixed-price task orders and ceiling amounts for non-firm fixed-priced task orders. In most cases, however, the task order contracting officer will encourage the potential offerers to discount their proposed rates based upon actual work requirements, place of performance, or other factors that may allow the contractor to offer such discounts.

Step 6: Proposal preparation and receipt
The task order contracting officer will make maximum information available and respond to all questions that the contractors may have as they prepare their proposals. Use of "electronic" documents are encouraged for speed and cost efficiency.

Step 7: Proposal evaluation/developing the government objective
The task order contracting officer will provide a specific request to the customer and direction for the technical evaluation of the contractors' proposals. Proposals must be treated as "proprietary information" and should be marked accordingly. For competitive task orders, the contracting officer will ensure that the proposal evaluation is conducted in accordance with the established plan. The customer agency's technical evaluator(s) will determine if the technical aspects of the contractor's proposal are acceptable. The contracting officer has the overall responsibility of ensuring that customer requirements are met at reasonable prices. In short, it is critical that the government and contractor(s) have a "meeting of the minds" regarding what is expected and what is to be provided.

Step 8: Discussions, fact-finding, developing a government objective, and negotiations
Acquisition teams (the task order contracting officer and customer agency technical evaluator) may engage the participating contractors in questions, clarifications, and fact-finding as deemed necessary by the contracting officer. These activities may occur either verbally or in writing. Ultimately, the contracting officer uses all the information and inputs to make an award decision. For competitive task orders, this may entail making the "best value" determination, in which case the competitive environment will serve as the rationale for determining that the price is fair and reasonable. For single source task order awards, the contracting officer will use a combination of competitive methods (i.e., the fact that the labor rates used to build task order prices came from the basic contract, which was awarded based upon the original competition) and an analysis of the individual elements of cost proposed. Negotiations may also include non-price related factors. The contracting officer is responsible for documenting the award decision, which may include a "best value" decision memorandum or an abbreviated price negotiation memorandum.

Step 9: Task Order Award
Task orders are issued as unilateral documents upon award. Task order contracting officers must notify unsuccessful contractors of the award decision. Contract holders may not protest an award decision other than on the grounds that the award increases the scope, period, or maximum value of the contract. However, the acquisition team should, upon request, provide the participating firms a debriefing of the selection decision so that they may improve their submittals on future task orders. The task order contracting officer will ensure that all interested parties get a copy of the final task order document for their records, once executed. Task order distribution is also a good time to issue any COTR delegation letters to employee(s) of the customer agency.

For more details, please visit the BuyIT.gov (link resides outside of ibm.com).