Subcontracting

Ingredients

• Who are the subcontractors you plan to use?
• Do you have any plans for outsourcing?
• What selection process did/will you use to choose those particular subcontractors and the factors involved: the quality of their work, their reliability, strength of resources, and any established working relationships you may already have in place – joint, successful past performance is a strong factor you’ll want to emphasize?
• What are the roles and responsibilities each subcontractor will have on the project and the level of effort each subcontractor will contribute?
• What contractual terms will subcontractors work under?
• Provide the points of contact for each subcontractor.
• Describe how you will work with other contractors.
• Explain how you will manage work performed by other companies.
• Explain how your quality, risk management, and other plans extend to the portions of the project worked on by any subcontractors.

Approaches

Sometimes subcontracting is addressed as a routine topic that is part of the Management Plan narrative in the proposal, and sometimes it is a specific requirement of the RFP. 

In government proposals, a subcontracting plan might be required to show the percentage of work going to different types of companies. This kind of subcontracting plan is often a part of the business proposal and not part of the proposal narrative.  When this is the case, the RFP will usually contain a sample so that you understand the customer’s expectations.

Strategies

If you already know your subcontractors and/or key vendors and what to demonstrate your access to resources and readiness to start, you might provide a table that lists them by name, describes their roles/responsibilities, and shows how the customer will benefit from each.  It can also be a good idea to summarize or provide a copy of any teaming agreements, or signed commitment letters to demonstrate readiness.

If you do not already know your subcontractors and/or vendors you might describe your process, criteria, and schedule for selection.

If you do not plan to use subcontractors, then you might wish to firmly state that you will not require support from outside firms, that any staff providing services will be under your direct control, that there is no risk of delay or disruption due to subcontractors not be ready to perform, etc.