RELATIONSHIP OF THE SOW TO THE SOLICITATION AND CONTRACT

Two types of solicitations are used in government contracting (other than simplified acquisition procedures). If the procurement is negotiated, an RFP is used. If the procurement is by sealed bidding, an invitation for bids (IFB) is used. Both use the same format, but the contents—primarily the solicitation provisions and contract clauses—are different. This is true of both the solicitation and the resulting contract.

During the solicitation process, contractors use the SOW to develop and price their proposals; the government then uses the SOW in evaluating the proposals. The SOW also serves as the basis for information in other sections of the solicitation document. After award, the SOW becomes the only basis for contractual performance. Thus, the SOW is a key document from initiation of the procurement process through completion and final close-out of the contract. Understanding the format and content of the solicitation and contract is therefore crucial to developing an effective SOW.

Format and Content of the Solicitation and Contract

Solicitations and contracts are written using the uniform contract format established by the FAR. This format organizes the solicitation and contract into four parts, as shown in Figure 1-1, and makes it possible to use the same document as both a solicitation and a contract.

Parts I–III of the RFP make up the contractual document. In Part I, Section A is a standard form; Section B itemizes the required supplies or services; Section C contains the SOW; and Sections D through H contain specific clauses related to the topic of each section. As part of the contractual document, the SOW describes only those actions that take place after contract award. Do not include any information related to the solicitation process in the SOW. Part II contains the standard contract clauses related to the type of contract and what is being procured. Part III contains a list of those documents or exhibits that are attached to the RFP. It is not unusual for a lengthy SOW to be referenced in Section C and included in Section J as an attachment.

Part IV of the RFP is the solicitation portion. It contains information related solely to the solicitation process. Section K describes the information that the contractor must provide to establish its eligibility for award of a government contract. Section L contains solicitation provisions related to the terms and conditions of the solicitation and the proposal preparation instructions (instructions related to the form and content of the contractor’s proposal). Section M contains the evaluation factors and information about how the proposals will be evaluated.

FIGURE 1-1:
Contents of the Request for Proposals/Contract

The entire document (Parts I–IV) is used during the solicitation process by the prospective contractor to develop its proposal and pricing, and by the government to evaluate the contractor’s proposal. When the contract is awarded, the solicitation portion (Part IV) is deleted. Section K is incorporated into the contract by reference and retained in the official contract file. Sections L and M can be discarded because they do not apply to contract performance. (In practice, however, a copy of Sections L and M is usually retained for reference purposes.)

As indicated by the arrows in Figure 1-1, the developer of the SOW is primarily interested in the development of Section C, the SOW, and Sections L (proposal preparation instructions) and M (evaluation factors). The contracting officer is responsible for developing the remaining coverage in the solicitation and contract; ultimately, the contracting officer becomes responsible for the entire solicitation and contract.

Relationship of the SOW to RFP Sections L and M

Responsibility for developing the SOW usually includes responsibility for developing the proposal preparation instructions in Section L and the evaluation factors in Section M. The SOW and RFP Sections L and M are directly related in several key ways, as illustrated in Figure 1-2. These relationships should be kept in mind when developing the SOW.

FIGURE 1-2:
Relationship of the SOW and RFP Sections L and M

Section M of the RFP contains information about how proposals will be evaluated, including the evaluation factors and their relative importance. The evaluation factors and their relative importance are developed by analyzing the SOW to identify those aspects of the requirement that are most important to the accomplishment of the work. These generally fall within the areas of technical, management, corporate experience, and cost, but the specific description and their relative importance depend on the contents of the SOW. The evaluation factors are set forth in Section M in descending order of importance, along with an indication of the relative importance of each factor. Publication of this information ensures that contractors understand how the proposals will be evaluated and that they will tailor their proposals to address those areas that you consider most important.

Section L contains the solicitation provisions appropriate to the requirement and the proposal preparation instructions. The proposal preparation instructions provide guidance on how you want contractors’ proposals organized and how to identify information that you want the contractor to provide. The proposal preparation instructions are used to amplify the evaluation factors in Section M and the work requirements in the SOW. The proposal preparation instructions provide an outline for the proposal format based on the evaluation factors listed in Section M. They identify the specific information required in support of each evaluation factor and specify other constraints, such as page limitations.