The inclination for
government contracts to be awarded on an LPTA basis – Lowest Price Technically
Acceptable offer – vexes federal technology providers who invest in devising
the best possible solutions to meet government needs. Don’t they see value in
the elegant solutions industry has expended years formulating, often
exclusively for anticipated requirements?
One simple response is “No.”
Amid the flower and prose
of a twenty- or hundred-page proposal, reviewed by understaffed acquisition
shops, it may be practically impossible to differentiate one proffered solution
from the other five, ten, or fifty the contract specialist has to review. SO
the favorite answer for the government appears to be “Eliminate as many as
possible as unresponsive, and select the cheapest offer that seems to meet the
minimum technical requirement.”
It’s all the same
underlying technology, right? And EVERYONE promises they have the best of
everything – best people, best management plan, best staffing, best quality
control, best…everything.
As far as I know, no one
ever got fired for buying the lowest cost offer.
Your opinion is welcome
in response…
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