FAC Procurement & Negotiation Strategies 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Under FAR 15.405, what is the contracting officer required to do when a proposed price is determined to be unreasonable?
- Award the contract at the proposed price to avoid delays
- Negotiate with the offeror to reach a fair and reasonable price (Correct answer)
- Immediately disqualify the offeror from the competition
- Request approval from the agency head before proceeding
Correct answer: Negotiate with the offeror to reach a fair and reasonable price
FAR 15.405 requires the contracting officer to negotiate with the offeror when the proposed price is not fair and reasonable.
Question 2: Which negotiation technique involves revealing your position only gradually to gauge the other party's reactions and flexibility?
- Best-and-final-offer (BAFO) technique
- Nibbling technique
- Incremental disclosure technique (Correct answer)
- Bracketing technique
Correct answer: Incremental disclosure technique
Incremental disclosure involves sharing information gradually to assess the counterpart's flexibility without revealing your full position upfront.
Question 3: What is the primary purpose of establishing a Pre-Negotiation Objective (PNO) before entering contract negotiations?
- To comply with FAR documentation requirements only
- To set a defensible position range before discussions begin (Correct answer)
- To inform the offeror of the government's budget limits
- To determine which offeror will be selected for award
Correct answer: To set a defensible position range before discussions begin
A PNO establishes the government's negotiation range and positions before talks begin, ensuring disciplined and defensible outcomes.
Question 4: In competitive acquisitions, when may a contracting officer conduct discussions with offerors in the competitive range?
- Only after receiving best-and-final offers
- Before establishing the competitive range
- After establishing the competitive range and notifying offerors (Correct answer)
- Only when all offerors agree to participate in discussions
Correct answer: After establishing the competitive range and notifying offerors
FAR 15.306(d) permits discussions with offerors only after the competitive range is established and offerors are notified.
Question 5: Which procurement strategy is most appropriate when the government needs a single contractor to provide both development and production of a complex weapon system?
- Multiple-award task order contract
- Indefinite-delivery indefinite-quantity contract
- Total package procurement (Correct answer)
- Blanket purchase agreement
Correct answer: Total package procurement
Total package procurement combines development and production in a single contract, typically used for complex defense systems requiring design-to-production continuity.
Question 6: Under FAR Part 36, what procurement method is used when the government cannot fully define the scope of architect-engineer (A-E) services at the time of contracting?
- Indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contract (Correct answer)
- Fixed-price with economic price adjustment
- Cost-plus-fixed-fee contract
- Time-and-materials contract
Correct answer: Indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contract
IDIQ contracts are commonly used for A-E services when the full scope cannot be defined upfront, allowing task orders to be issued as needs are identified.
Question 7: What does the term 'technical leveling' mean in the context of FAR 15.306 negotiations?
- Adjusting technical scores to equalize all offerors' ratings
- Helping an offeror bring a proposal up to the level of other proposals (Correct answer)
- Requesting all offerors to submit revised technical volumes
- Standardizing technical requirements across all contract line items
Correct answer: Helping an offeror bring a proposal up to the level of other proposals
Technical leveling occurs when the government helps an offeror improve its proposal to match others, which is prohibited under FAR 15.306.
FAC Procurement & Negotiation Strategies 2
Under FAR 15.405, what is the contracting officer required to do when a proposed price is determined to be unreasonable?