What does the early space program have to do with a commodity-based IT GWAC, other than they both will go down in NASA history as very successful programs that have employed large numbers of contractors to meet their goals? The new SEWP V contract is valued at $20 Billion and, in order to meet agency goals of good management and strong oversight, contractors who win a place on this GWAC must have in place the RIGHT STUFF. The RIGHT STUFF is not only a best-in-class product catalog that is wide and deep with cutting edge IT products but also a superior Management Plan.

The winning Management Plan must have the following attributes:

  1. A highly effective Company Organization with integrated SEWP Project Management Office (PMO) and active verses passive Product Vendor Management.
  2. Electronic Processes that promote and utilize automated methods and practices. 
  3. Company must stand up a Web Presence with a public facing full complement of contract-related resources for the SEWP PMO, POCs and SEWP customers.
  4. Data synchronized with the SEWP database of record available 24 hours a day seven days a week.
  5. Quality Assurance (QA) as part of the company DNA reflected in delivery orders and proper replication between SEWP and other databases.
  6. SEWP Marketing: Do you know how to Market and Sell the #1 Federal GWAC contract for IT products and products? Can you persuade Federal users, Program Executives and stake holders to utilize the contract and follow the ordering process?
  7. Commitment to Supply Chain Management and Supplier Diversity. You are known by the company you keep.

Back to the quote by Neil Armstrong – if you are planning to wait to start your proposal effort after June24th, when the final RFP is released, you may want to re-think that decision. Or you may find you have “the wrong people working on the wrong projects” with little time to produce an effective winning proposal. To do it right takes time and the RIGHT STUFF.