work statement can lead to an inability to determine how much a contractor should be paid or penalized if performance issues arise. Source selection criteria (SSC): Source selection criteria "1) Represent the key areas of importance and emphasis to be considered in the source selection decision; and (2) Support meaningful comparison and discrimination between and among competing proposals." (FAR 15.304, Evaluation factors and significant subfactors). Independent Government cost estimate Market research: Market research is a critical part of knowledge-based acquisitions. Information-driven and informed decision-making requires complete information to execute successful acquisitions. FAR Part 10, Market Research, gives guidance on the process of market research and its role in Federal acquisitions. Effective market research assists the Government in understanding industry terminology, and the basic concepts of the desired service or equipment item, identifying potential contractors who can provide the item. and ddetermining the correct scope of the requirement to best fit the vendor base. Lack of adequate market research often results in contracts that fail to achieve the customer's expectations. Acquisition Risks: Risk in contracting falls into three categories – schedule risk, performance risk and cost risk. Risks to the acquisition, including negative past experiences, must be identified and mitigation measures and risk allocation between the Government and a potential vendor determined. Government provided equipment, resources, support or information: Often, the Government must provide for equipment, logistics support, information, and many other items vital to performance of a contract. If there is proprietary information in the potential Government furnished information (GFI), then measures must be taken to avoid violation of applicable regulations. Stripped Down Components 1. Work statement: Deliverable list with performance and objective specifications if not a service contract (no brand names except as an example) Measurable outcome deliverables in a service contract Construction or architecture & engineering (A&E) (FAR Part 36) Schedule / milestones (included in work statement) 2. CLINS matched tightly with work statement structure/outline 3. Source selection criteria Risk Contracting is all about risk allocation and minimizing risk to include cost, schedule and performance. The more vague the contract work statement, the more risk that the Government assumes. Risk from Program Manager, Contracting and Investor's Perspective: Risk. A measure of the inability to achieve program objectives within defined cost and schedule constraints. Risk is associated with all aspects of the program, for example, threat, technology, design processes, Work breakdown structure (WBS) elements, etc. It has two components,