The SUPER IT Task Orders

In FY18, 20 Super Information Technology (IT) Tasks Orders with combined ceiling values of more than $4.4 billion and spending to date of more than $4 billion will exceed their ultimate expiration date and become eligible for competition (see Exhibit 1). We defined a Super IT Task Order as an individual task order awarded under the umbrella of an Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) or Government-Wide Acquisition Contract (GWAC). We required that the IDIQ or GWAC contain a selected pool of contractors who compete on request for task order proposals. We ensured all task orders had a distinct primary contract vehicle number and task order contract number.

To find the Top 20 Super IT Task Orders, we looked for task orders with an ultimate expiration date of no later than September 30, 2018. We limited the list to task orders that had already spent 75% of their ceiling to help avoid extensions. We limited the list to tasks whose primary requirement and NAICS codes were for IT services. We eliminated bids associated with the procurement or renewal of specific hardware or software licenses.

Exhibit 1: Top 20 Super IT Task Orders for Fiscal-Year 2018 (click here to download pdf version)

Winning Super IT Task Orders often requires a higher level of effort since offerors are bidding against competitors who have already pre-qualified for the IDIQ or GWAC. Therefore, winners must be able to distinguish themselves from competitors by demonstrating multiple strengths against all evaluated criteria with few, if any, weaknesses.

Although the competition is often fierce, offerors will be competing against a small pool of competitors. On average there were 4.4 bidders for the task orders in Exhibit 1, while the highest number of bidders was 12 for task order 17, Application Development and Support Services for the Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service. Some IDIQs or GWACs support a larger number of task orders. Six (or 30%) of the task orders came from ALLIANT, five (or 25%) came from ESD, and two (or 10%) came from TIPSS-4.

Many of the contracts listed in Exhibit 1 are at or near the end of their life cycles, so contracting officers may be using new contract vehicles to release task order requests for proposals (RFP). For example, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is using the Strategic Partners Acquisition Readiness (SPARC) Contract as the successor to ESD. CMS originally awarded ESD in September 2007 to 16 companies, while SPARC now provides a pool of more than 140 contractors.

The bids listed in Exhibit 1 come from data collected in the Federal Procurement Data System (FPDS), which describes actions taken after the government awards task orders. To get a copy of the original task order RFP, you will have to retrieve it from the IDIQ or GWAC database, obtain a copy from an IDIQ or GWAC contract holder, or request a copy from the contracting officer. Using the original task order RFP, the FPDS data, and strategic plans and documents available to the public on government websites, you can begin to formulate a capture strategy and customer call plan to win the task order. Please look for our blogs for the next 2 weeks, as we review the Top 20 Professional Services Super Task Orders and the Top 20 Small Business Super Task Orders.

by Brenda Crist, MPA, CPP APMP Fellow

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Lohfeld Consulting Group has proven results specializing in helping companies create winning captures and proposals. As the premier capture and proposal services consulting firm focused exclusively on government markets, we provide expert assistance to government contractors in Go-to-Market Strategy, Capture Planning and Strategy, Proposal Management and Writing, Capture and Proposal Process and Infrastructure, and Training. In the last 3 years, we’ve supported over 550 proposals winning more than $135B for our clients—including the Top 10 government contractors. Lohfeld Consulting Group is your “go-to” capture and proposal source! Start winning by contacting us at www.lohfeldconsulting.com and join us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter