The world of government contracting can be quite confusing, especially if you are just getting started. One of the first steps you need to take is to learn about the different types of government contract jobs that are available. In this blog, we are going to look at seven different options that you will find when you start looking for contracting opportunities.
- Fixed-Price Contracts
With a fixed-price contract, government procurement agents have set a price for goods and services. This means that the agency has a solid idea of how much the contract is worth and presumably sets a reasonable fee for the goods or services. In general, the value of the contract is not negotiable, but there are variations of these contracts, such as fixed-price contracts with economic price adjustments or fixed-price contracts with prospective price redetermination.
- Cost-Reimbursement Contracts
With these contracts, the government might not have as clear of an idea of how much a project will cost to complete. This doesn’t mean that the government is willing to pay a sky-high price for the goods or services, it simply means they aren’t 100% sure of the costs for this government contracting job. They still expect bidders to provide reasonable cost estimates, but there’s just no fixed price.
- Incentive Contracts
With an incentive contract, the government typically needs a job completed by a very firm deadline and they are willing to provide an incentive if the job is completed on time or earlier than expected. These contracts also are used to ensure that a contractor completes a job at a specific cost. While cost-incentive contracts are the most common type of incentive contracts, there are also performance-incentive contracts and delivery-incentive contracts and sometimes there might be a mix of these three incentives.
- Time & Materials Contracts
Just as the name suggests, these contracts set an hourly rate for labor as well as for the cost of materials needed to complete a job. For contractors, these can be the least desirable type of government contract jobs because you have to track your hours carefully as well as calculating material costs, and you have to front the costs yourself and then submit paperwork to the government for reimbursement.
- Indefinite Delivery & Quantity Contracts
Sometimes a government agency doesn’t know how much of a good or service they need or for how long or perhaps when they will need an item, which is why we have the indefinite-delivery contracts. The contractor agrees to supply the goods as needed by the agency for the duration of the contract. Typically, you will have a general idea regarding the scope of supplies or services as well as a general timeline, but it won’t be as exact as it would with a fixed-price contract.
- Set-Aside Contracts
The government spends billions of dollars in government contacts every year, and a portion of these are “set aside” for small businesses. There are set asides for woman-owned small businesses, service-disabled veteran-owned businesses, businesses located in Historically Underutilized Business Zones (HUBZones) and businesses that take part in the 8(a) Business Development Program. These government contract jobs might be fixed-price, cost-reimbursement or any other type of contract, they simply are awarded to small businesses. Often, these contracts are smaller in value than contracts awarded to a prime contractor, but small businesses can bid on any size contract they wish provided they can meet the requirements of that contract.
Additionally, there are competitive set-aside contracts and sole-source set-aside contracts. Sole-source contracts bypass the bidding process, but these are rare, and you are much more likely to be competing against other small businesses in a competitive format. To learn more about options for small businesses and 8a contracts, go to SBA.gov.
- GSA Schedules
The General Services Administration (GSA) is responsible for acquiring goods and services for federal government agencies. If you can acquire GSA contracts, which are known as GSA schedules, government agencies can purchase goods or services from you directly without having to deal with the bidding process.
This might sound ideal, but it can take a year or more to get on a GSA schedule and just because you are on a GSA schedule, this doesn’t guarantee that your goods or services will be needed or purchased. Still, for some businesses, this can be a good option. To learn more about GSA schedules and to determine if your business would be a good fit, go to https://www.gsa.gov/buying-selling/purchasing-programs/gsa-schedule and click on the Sell Through Schedule box.
The information provided in this blog is simply basic information about the types of federal contractor jobs you might see available from various federal government agencies. State government agencies also use similar types of contracts, and we do recommend that you sign up with your state procurement office as well as with the federal government as lucrative government contracting jobs are available from states as well as the federal government, and sometimes it can be easier to win a state contract than a federal contract.
The best course of action for any government contractor is to spend some time learning more about the different types of government contracts as well as how to bid on these types of contracts. There are a few private companies out there that provide helpful tutorials and workshops and companies that you can hire to create your bid proposals. When you are just getting started with government contract jobs, hiring some expert help can be a smart way to learn the ropes.
Let Us Help With SAM Registration!
Of course, before you can bid on any government contract jobs, you must complete your System for Award Management (SAM) Registration. At Federal Contractor Registry, we complete SAM registrations (and SAM renewals) for hundreds of companies every year and can help you get through this arduous process.
You can complete SAM registration on your own at no charge, but many business owners find the processing confusing and too time-consuming, so they hire a service like ours instead. It’s just like hiring an accountant to do your taxes and saves you time and the headache of trying to understand each section of the SAM application.
Our SAM registration specialists can complete your application quickly and accurately so that you can bid on government contract jobs as soon as possible. To get started, just click on the green New Registration tab on our homepage, fill out our quick contact form and a registration specialist will be in touch as soon as possible.