Acquisition Planning II

Course Description

This FAI-compliant course is the first of a three-part series in Intermediate Contracting designed to provide experienced, intermediate-level contracting personnel with skills beyond those taught in the Fundamentals of Contracting curriculum. Acquisition Planning II covers pre-solicitation activities in more depth than Acquisition Planning I. Additionally, the course addresses a number of special topics that are not discussed in Acquisition Planning I.

The course is designed around a comprehensive set of learning objectives that are achieved through lecture-discussion, practical exercises, and case study techniques.

The target audience for this course consists of personnel involved in the contract specialist (GS 1102) career path. Others involved in the planning of complex requirements could benefit from the text and classroom discussion as well. A minimum of one year of experience in the contracting field is recommended as preparation for this course.

ACE Credit Recommendation

In the lower division baccalaureate degree category, 2 semester hours in Business Administration, Federal Acquisition, Public Administration, Procurement Management, or Purchasing.

Prerequisites

To ensure success, we recommend students have completed the following courses:
Acquisition Planning I, Contract Formation I, Contract Administration I, Price Analysis, Cost Analysis and Federal Contract Negotiation.

Course Objectives

Upon successful completion of this course, the student will be able to:

• Understand the legal environment of contracting
• Determine the governments need
• Analyze the requirement
• Handle unsolicited proposals
• Plan for source selection
• Include the proper terms and conditions in a solicitation

Course Content

Lesson 1: Initiating the Acquisition

• Distinguish the roles and responsibilities of acquisition personnel in forecasting requirements.
• Determine an effective acquisition strategy.

Lesson 2: Market Research

Given a purchase request for complex requirement:

• Determine the extent of, and techniques for, acquiring additional market research needed for an acquisition.
• Assess the impact of market research on an acquisition.

Lesson 3: Requirements Documents

Given market research and draft requirements documents:

• Determine adequacy of the requirements’ documents.
• Determine whether to authorize acceptance of a variation in quantity and/or the use of reconditioned materials, former government surplus property or residual inventory.

Lesson 4: Advisory and Assistance Services

Given various sample requirements for specialized services:

• Determine if advisory and assistance services are appropriate and if there are potential conflicts of interest.

Lesson 5: Government Property

Given a purchase request and information on the availability of government property:

• Determine whether to furnish the property.

Lesson 6: Type of Contract

Given a variety of acquisitions:

• Determine the type of contract agreement, as well as associated pricing arrangements, that will best mitigate and apportion expected risk and select a method to provide for recurring requirements.

Lesson 7: Contract Financing

Given a purchase request and market research data:

• Select government financing methods (or none), including related provisions and clauses, for a noncommercial requirement.
• Complete the appropriate finance provisions and clauses for inclusion in the solicitation.

Lesson 8: Bonds

• Identify the need for bonds in contracts other than construction.
• Recognize situations, which require bonding terms and conditions due to high-risk markets.

Lesson 9: Non-Price Factors

Given acquisition histories, market data, purchase requests, requirements documents, the statement of work and/or recommended non-price factors for award:

• Analyze non-price factors used in prior or comparable acquisitions.
• Recognize how to develop evaluation factors for a new or complex requirement.

Lesson 10: Acquisition Planning

Given acquisition forecasts, histories, and market research:

• Develop an acquisition plan.

Lesson 11: Source Selection Plans

Given purchase requests, acquisition histories, market data, and decisions made in all previous steps of the procurement planning phase:

• Determine the roles and responsibilities of each source selection participant, including non-government evaluators.
• Assess procedures for safeguarding source selection information.
• Identify key elements of a source selection plan including those to be incorporated into the RFP.
• Develop a source selection plan so that sound business judgments can be made.