Government Contracting Basics
RFP Process
(Long Form) Basic Steps to Bid for Government Contract Opportunities
First, a Few Words About RFPs
There are many variations on the federal Request for Proposal (RFP) process. Most of those variations do not impact the basic steps for small businesses to locate, vet, and respond to identified opportunities.
Remember, if it seems overwhelming, just keep going!
Remember Rule #1!
Public sector awards come in many forms. Fixed Price, Time and Materials, MATOC, SATOC, IDIQ, etc.. For every ‘rule’ about how an acquisition should happen, there are countless exceptions made by agency, contracting staff, and overall market practice. Many award types - such as Cost Plus - should not be considered for new public sector vendors due to the difficulty in pricing and managing contract data.
This is not an inclusive list! These examples describe the majority of award types, though there are certainly many others that are either nuance of these base types…
