Individual Project 3 - Research Paper Example

This technical lapse has in many instances been attributed to use of outdated tender award techniques that fail to take into account the principle of equal opportunity for all. As such, it became necessary for the government to outline clear guidelines to address injustices committed to bidders, and also ensure clear methodologies of sealed bidding, competitive acquisitions and strategic planning are followed at all times. The Government Accountability Office has hence become essential in reviewing tender award complaints and consequently curbing Organizational Conflicts of Interest (Koprince, 2007).

In this case, the GAO Air Tanker contract decision will be critically reviewed. Owing to the many contract standoffs that were constantly rocking the US economy, it was deemed right to develop clear-cut procedures to govern contract advertisement and awards. These legislations, commonly referred to as the FAR Part 15 model are aimed at governing the source selection process, information exchange and proposal evaluation processes. One fundamental factor in FAR Part 15 model stipulates that all competitors must submit complete proposals which will consequently enable the selection panel to asses all the bidders on the basis of all the requirements, thus ensuring that the best, more experienced bidder has higher chances of winning the contract.

In many instances, it is observable that a contractor may be best suited in one area of requirement of the contract, but may at the same time be poorly placed to handle other technical areas of the same contract. Therefore, the overall best bidder should be selected. The guidelines also advocate for contract negotiations with multiple bidders. This allows the evaluation panel to asses a wider range of information, which will be essential in decision making process. Following the award of a contract to a firm, competitors are mandated to challenge the decision if they feel the contract was not awarded