Have you ever heard the saying “failing to plan is planning to fail?” No words have ever been truer when it comes to acquisition management. There are several phases to the acquisition management process, starting with the planning phase. Acquisition planning is a portion of how we serve our Department of Defense (DoD) customers through Acquisition Management Support. Our acquisition experts provide lifecycle support to major missile, aviation, and testing platforms. We use our knowledge to enable customers to effectively plan and execute all phases of system acquisition.
Effective acquisition planning is critical for setting our customers up for long-term success. The planning phase helps to establish the baseline for execution from a funding standpoint. Let’s break down four reasons why proper planning is critical to keeping a DoD program within the baseline criteria of cost, schedule, and performance.
- Dedicated market research in planning sets contracts up for success: When DoD customers approach us with product needs, one of the first steps we conduct in acquisition planning is market research. Market research ensures that the DoD will receive the product that they need in the most cost-effective and efficient way possible. It also unveils product capabilities currently available in the industry and how they could be acquired for the DoD’s needs.
- Data requirements need to be addressed for a successful acquisition: Data requirements for a successful acquisition can be complex and tricky to plan for without expert-level assistance in the process. We assist in the coordination and development of the Data Requirements to include CDRLs. A CDRL “identifies the specific data requirements (products) that must be delivered by a contractor to the government” as defined by AcqNotes. In other words, a CDRL provides the data products that will be delivered to the Government with a timeline and the format if applicable. This step in the planning process streamlines the acquisition during the execution phase.
- Documentation requirements must be addressed for a successful acquisition: Program and product managers may not understand the full scope of documentation needs for an acquisition, which can cause problems in the process down the line. That’s why we break down documentation requirements, what they mean, and how they’ll impact and apply to the program’s timeline and cost moving forward. We compile document requirements into Document Summary Lists (DSLs). The DSL identifies all referenced documents contained in the Statement of Work and relates back to the Contract Data Requirement List (CDRLS).
- Regulation relevancy must be determined early on: New rules and regulations come out constantly within the DoD, and it’s important to ensure that the contracts comply with these standards. Thorough acquisition planning from industry experts includes researching and understanding these regulations inside and out so that there are no future roadblocks. Sometimes these regulations require further training for the program and product managers. In these cases, our team can provide vital training to meet these regulations. Understanding these needs in the acquisition planning phase will aid funding and timeline estimates for later acquisition phases.
In closing, acquisition planning is critical because it creates a plan to provide acquisition needs in a timely manner, within reasonable cost to the Government, and in accordance with Federal regulations as well as agency policies and procedures.
Have questions about how we support the full acquisition process from planning to evaluation? Learn more about how we support acquisition management here!
