The market research firm, Deltek, recently released its compilation of the largest 20 contracts expected to be released for competitive bidding over the next year. These 20 contracts have an estimated combined valued of approximately $206B.  The list is interesting in that the split between Defense and Civilian agencies that are originating these 20, large Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contracts is 50/50. In the past, defense contracts have typically dominated this list. In addition, the overall value of the top 20 contracts has risen by approximately $45B.

Of these 20 contracts, the largest is the General Services Administration’s (GSA) Alliant II Unrestricted contract, expected to be released in March 2015 with an estimated value of $50B. A complete list of the top 20 contracts can be found on the Federal Times website.

For companies tracking these procurements and hoping to win the valuable prime contract slots that will be available, the following capture best practices must be kept in mind:

1. You must build the right team, with a combination of companies that can bring valuable past performance, incumbent knowledge, innovation, superior staffing, and meet the diverse nature of some of the scopes of work.
2. You must offer prices that are competitive, market-driven and offer a wide range of options for future task orders.
3. You must respond with compliant, high-quality proposals that address the needs of the customer base.  These 20 contracts are going to be VERY competitive with large numbers of companies seeking a place at the table.  Proposal compliance will be an absolute necessity.