In This Week’s Newsletter:
- Opportunity Spotlight of the Week: DMEA ATSP5 SB
- Four To Follow: Four Interesting Pursuits
- Capture Corner: Retaining Incumbent Work: Continuous Shaping Efforts
- Pricing Insights: Outcome-Based Pricing: The Good, The Bad, and the Why
Opportunity Alert – DMEA ATSP5 SB
Contact Katie: katie.clatterbuck@hinzconsulting.com
Department of War (DoW), Defense Microelectronics Activity (DMEA), Advanced Technology Support Program (V) Small Business (ATSP5 SB).
The DoW requires contractors for engineering, limited logistics, training, and warranties. Other tasks include managing documents, supporting the DMEA engineering environment, handling technical and management duties, conducting program reviews, preparing proposals, promoting small business use, and delivering task order data. This SB Set-Aside $800M IDIQ is estimated to be released in February 2027, with a projected award in January 2028. Reach out to Hinz Consulting for Business Development, Competitive Analysis, Graphics, Price-to-Win, or Proposal support, and continue to monitor SAM.gov for any updates to the procurement timeline.
Four to Follow
- Department of the Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Design-Build-Bid for the Special Operations Forces (SOF) Mission Command Center. On February 12, 2026, the Contracting Office released a presolicitation notice confirming the scope of work, contract type, NAICS, and release date. The project will be a multi-story, permanent structure built to the Technical Specifications for Construction Management of Sensitive Compartmented Information Facilities (ICD/ICS 705) and connected to the existing Building 3-2147. The final RFP for this $100M Full and Open/Unrestricted opportunity is expected to be released on or around February 27, 2026, with an award timeframe of October 2026. Continue to monitor SAM.gov for any changes to the procurement timeline.
- Department of the Air Force, PAE Command, Control, Communications and Battle Management (C3BM), High Band Mission Application Software Support (HBMAS). The Department of the Air Force requires development, modernization, integration, fielding, cybersecurity, and sustainment to meet operational requirements and maintain compliance with the C4ISR Architecture Framework and Joint Technical Architecture guidance. This $500M Full and Open/Unrestricted opportunity is expected to be released in mid- to late February 2026 via OASIS+ Unrestricted, with an award in October 2026. Continue to monitor your eBUY portal and SAM.gov for any changes to the timeline.
- The Department of the Army, Command, Control, Communication, Computers, Cyber, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (C5ISR) Center, Defensive Cyber Solutions Branch, Cybersecurity Service Provider (CSSP). The Army requires a contractor to provide operational provisioning of 24/7 cyber defense operations and services within the Department of War Information Network environment. The anticipated final RFP for this $350M Full and Open/Unrestricted opportunity is expected to be released around April 2026, with a projected award timeframe of July 2026. Continue to monitor SAM.gov for further updates on this effort.
- National Science Foundation (NSF), Workforce Training and Innovation. NSF requires a new, transformational initiative to renew American manufacturing, revitalize America’s energy dominance, and address the growing shortage of skilled trade workers. This includes developing university programs to increase graduation rates in engineering, science, and trade disciplines, as well as modernizing career and technical education. This $100M opportunity is expected to be released around May 2026, with an estimated award in August 2026. The contract type is currently unknown. Continue to monitor SAM.gov for further information or updates to the procurement timeline.
Retaining Incumbent Work: Continuous Shaping Efforts
Contact John: john.amoriello@hinzconsulting.com
When applying the capture methodology to your pursuits, these efforts should continue post-award, just as they do during the initial award. Cultivating strong customer relationships and a deep understanding of client needs throughout the life of the contract is vital to securing up-sell business and winning the follow-on contract. Also, your program manager (PM) should be very involved in these efforts with the Capture Manager. An effective strategy to ensure your organization is positioned for follow-on incumbent work is as follows:
- Conduct regular Program Management Reviews (PMR) and include relevant capture and BD resources.
- Ensure Capture and BD resources maintain consistent communication with customer stakeholders throughout the life of the contract.
- Identify “nice to have” capabilities not currently on the program and begin shaping those ideas into requirements for inclusion in the follow-on contract.
- Allow your PM to focus on day-to-day program operations and serve as a “sensor” for the Capture and BD team; expectations should be set that the PM not perform as a Capture or BD manager. The PM is laser-focused on the customer to ensure successful service delivery.
It is critical that your customers understand your organization is a strategic partner and should receive attention from the Capture and BD teams throughout the life of the contract, not just in the last 6-8 months. By sustaining Capture and BD engagement throughout the life of the contract, your PM can focus their full attention on customer satisfaction. Additionally, this sustained engagement often leads to full contract utilization and strengthens your position to capture adjacent contracts.
Outcome-Based Pricing: The Good, The Bad, and the Why
Contact Tom: tom.hudgins@hinzconsulting.com
In federal contracting, the shift toward Outcome-Based Pricing (often called Outcome-Based Contracting or OBC) marks a departure from paying for “butts in seats” or specific tasks. Instead, the government pays for the actual impact or result achieved.
While it’s often grouped under the broader umbrella of “Performance-Based Acquisition” (FAR Subpart 37.6), Outcome-Based Pricing is more aggressive. It shifts the focus from “did you perform the work well?” to “did the work solve the problem?”
What is Outcome-Based Pricing? In traditional models such as Time & Materials (T&M), the government pays for the hours worked. In Fixed-Price, payment is made for a specific deliverable. In Outcome-Based Pricing, payment is tied to a measurable business or mission outcome.
- The Output (Traditional): “Build a website that handles 10,000 users.”
- The Outcome (Modern): “Reduce the average time it takes a citizen to process a claim by 30%.”
The Good: Why the Shift is Happening.
The primary driver is alignment. When the contractor’s profit is tied to the mission’s success, the relationship dynamic changes.
- Incentivized Innovation: Because the government doesn’t dictate how the work is done, contractors are free (and incentivized) to use cutting-edge technology or automation to achieve the result faster and more cost-effectively.
- Shared Risk: The financial burden of failure shifts to the contractor. If the outcome isn’t met, the government may not pay the full price or may not pay at all.
- Value for Money: It eliminates “shelf-ware”—software or services that are paid for but never deliver value to the agency.
- Focus on Mission: It compels agencies to clearly define what “success” means before they spend a single dime.
The Bad: The Challenges of Implementation.
While it sounds perfect on paper, executing it in a federal environment is challenging.
- Measurement Complexity: Defining a clear “outcome” is difficult. If a contractor is hired to reduce homelessness but the economy crashes during the contract, is it the contractor’s fault if the goal isn’t met? Attributing success to a single vendor in a complex environment is a data nightmare.
- High Barrier to Entry: Smaller firms may not have the capital to cover the costs of a project where payment is made only after an outcome is achieved months or years later. This can inadvertently favor “the bigs.”
- Procurement “Muscle Memory”: Most Contracting Officers (COs) are trained to evaluate labor rates and hours. Moving to a model in which they assess the value of an outcome requires a major cultural and skill-set shift across the workforce.
- The “Goldilocks” Pricing Problem: If the outcome is too easy, the government overpays; if it’s too hard, no one bids, or the contractor goes under trying to meet i
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