The Government is relying more on multi-award contract vehicles, and it’s clear why. Instead of a having to go through a lengthy, 12- to 18-month procurement process for each scope of work required, the Government can award a contract in two to four months, reducing the risk of protest.
But maximizing your success on a large vehicle, such as an Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ), can be tricky. Getting on an IDIQ vehicle is like getting on a bus with no available seats. You only make money if you compete for and win a seat (i.e., a task order).
And, like musical chairs, your likelihood of grabbing a seat only decreases as time goes on. In other words, your chances of winning a task order diminish exponentially the longer you don’t compete and don’t win. The reason is simple: those who act quickly will acquire the most relevant past performance on this specific IDIQ. It may seem counterintuitive, but it’s not in your interest to be too picky when considering whether to bid on a task order.
Here are a few tips about IDIQs:
- You shouldn’t be as picky about qualifying task orders as you would regular contracts because of how difficult it becomes to recover once your competitors win a few task orders and you don’t.
- You can still win a task order even if you didn’t move the work to the vehicle – despite a popular belief to the contrary.
- You can — and should — give yourself an advantage ahead of time by performing capture before a Task Order Request for Proposals (RFP) drops. There are very specific ways to get ahead on an IDIQ and “crack its code,” but you can’t expect to win simply by reacting to RFPs.
OST Global Solutions is a professional business development consulting firm. We have experience supporting large, strategic bids like Protech 2 and CIO-SP4. We can provide capture and proposal teams to develop a complete, winning proposal. Or we can provide consultants on a case-by-case basis to fill gaps on your business development team. Our services related to the proposals consist of capture management, proposal management, orals coaching, proposal writing, graphics support, editing, desktop publishing, and cost volume development.
Reach out to us to discuss your bid and proposal needs so we can discuss how to develop a winning proposal.
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