Acquisition Planning
Also known as: Acquisition strategy, acquisition plan, pre-solicitation planning
Your role here: Position your firm before the requirement is even written
At a Glance
- Phase
- 1 of 10 — before anything posts publicly
- Who leads it
- The program office and contracting officer, supported by the acquisition team
- What happens
- The agency defines the need, picks an acquisition strategy, and sets a schedule
- You…
- Market your capability and shape the requirement — there is no formal submission yet
- Governing authority
- FAR Subpart 7.1 — Acquisition Plans (FAR 7.102–7.105)
What It Is
Acquisition planning is the phase in which the government coordinates and integrates the efforts of everyone responsible for a buy so that the need is met in a timely manner and at a reasonable cost. Under FAR 7.102 agencies must perform acquisition planning and conduct market research for all acquisitions, and for larger or more complex requirements the contracting officer prepares a written acquisition plan under FAR 7.105 covering the statement of need, applicable conditions, cost, delivery schedule, competition, source-selection procedures, contract type, and — critically for a small business — the extent to which small businesses and the socioeconomic set-aside programs will be used. This all happens internally, often many months before a solicitation is published, and the decisions made here (whether to set the buy aside, which NAICS code applies, what contract type to use, and the acquisition timeline) shape every phase that follows. For a prospective offeror it is the quietest but most leveraged phase: the requirement is still being formed, and the agency is genuinely receptive to capability information from industry.
What Happens
- The program office documents what it needs and why, and the acquisition team is assembled.
- The contracting officer chooses an acquisition strategy — competition approach, contract type, and evaluation method.
- Market research (the next phase) is scoped and used to inform the small-business and set-aside decision.
- For larger buys, a written acquisition plan is prepared and milestones (synopsis, solicitation, award) are calendared.
- The requirement may appear on the agency's forecast of contracting opportunities before any solicitation.
Key Activities
| Activity | What It Means |
|---|---|
| Define the requirement | The program office writes the statement of need. What the agency asks for here becomes the statement of work, so early, well-placed capability information can genuinely shape it. |
| Choose the acquisition strategy | The CO decides how to compete the buy — set-aside vs full and open, contract type, and best-value vs LPTA — the choices that determine who can win. |
| Set the schedule | Milestones for the synopsis, solicitation, and award are calendared. Agency forecasts publish many of these dates before anything is solicited. |
| Plan for small business | FAR 7.104/7.105 direct planners to consider small-business participation and the socioeconomic programs — the earliest point a set-aside is contemplated. |
What It Means for an SDVOSB
Acquisition planning is where set-aside contracts are effectively decided, long before you can respond to anything. The firms that win consistently are the ones the agency already knows when the requirement is being written. Get on the radar now: keep a sharp capability statement, brief the agency's OSDBU and small-business specialist, watch the agency's procurement forecast for upcoming requirements in your NAICS codes, and answer sources-sought and RFI notices when they appear (those are the government's market-research tools during this phase). A free APEX Accelerator counselor can help you find forecasted opportunities and make the right introductions. By the time a solicitation posts, the strategy is largely set — your influence is highest here.
What to Do in This Phase
- Monitor agency procurement forecasts and SAM.gov for upcoming requirements in your NAICS codes.
- Build relationships early with the agency's OSDBU director and small-business specialist and leave a crisp capability statement.
- Answer sources-sought notices and RFIs promptly and specifically — they feed the market research that shapes the set-aside decision.
- Use a free APEX Accelerator (formerly PTAC) counselor to find forecasted work and target the right buyers.
Watch Out For
- Waiting for the solicitation to post — by then the acquisition strategy and set-aside decision are usually locked in.
- Generic capability statements that do not map to a specific agency need or NAICS code and give the buyer nothing to act on.
- Ignoring the agency forecast, which often lists the requirement, dollar range, and expected solicitation date months in advance.
Run the Numbers
Frequently Asked
When does the government decide whether to set a contract aside for SDVOSBs?
The decision is shaped during acquisition planning and market research — well before the solicitation posts — and is generally made by the contracting officer based on the results of market research under FAR Part 10 and the rule of two. If market research gives the CO a reasonable expectation that two or more capable, responsible SDVOSBs will submit offers at a fair market price, the buy can be set aside for SDVOSBs. That is why answering sources-sought notices and getting on the agency's radar during planning matters so much: your response is part of the evidence that supports a set-aside.
How can a small business influence a requirement before the solicitation?
Legitimately and openly, through the government's own market-research channels. Respond to sources-sought notices and requests for information with specific capability details, brief the agency's small-business specialist and OSDBU, attend industry days, and submit a capability statement that matches the agency's forecasted needs. You cannot (and should not try to) get an unfair advantage or non-public information, but you can make sure the agency knows your firm exists and is capable, which informs both the requirement and the set-aside decision.
Primary Sources
- FAR 7.102 — Policy (acquisition planning and market research)
- FAR 7.104 — General procedures
- FAR 7.105 — Contents of written acquisition plans
Plain-English reference, not legal advice. The phases of a federal acquisition are tailored to each buy, and the FAR is amended from time to time — always read the actual solicitation and confirm the applicable procedures with the contracting officer, and consult qualified counsel for your specific situation before relying on this.
Change log (1)
- LaunchedPublished the federal acquisition lifecycle phases reference covering the ten phases a federal contract moves through — acquisition planning (FAR Subpart 7.1), market research (FAR Part 10), requirements definition (FAR Part 11 / 37.6), the set-aside decision and the rule of two (FAR Subpart 19.5 / 19.1405 / 19.1406), the synopsis and solicitation (FAR Part 5 / Parts 12–15), proposal preparation and submission (FAR 15.208), evaluation and source selection (FAR Subpart 15.3), award and debriefing (FAR Subpart 15.5 / Part 33), contract administration (FAR Part 42), and contract closeout (FAR Subpart 4.8) — each with an at-a-glance quick-facts card, a what-happens list, a key-activities table, an SDVOSB-specific angle, a what-to-do checklist, watch-outs, FAQPage, Article, Dataset, and BreadcrumbList structured data, primary-source FAR citations, and cross-links into the glossary, how-to guides, FAQ, solicitation types, source-selection methods, roles, forms, clauses, protest forums, and the set-aside eligibility, size-standard, win-probability, price-to-win, limitations-on-subcontracting, and subcontracting-goal calculators.