Acquisition Activities
Manage the acquisition of custom or commercially available products or services that assist with operating and sustaining the deployed systems.
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Introduction
These acquisition activities can be performed within the context of each technical operations project, or as a single project serving many other projects. These activities establish and manage a formal agreement to obtain IT products and services from suppliers external to the HS Agency. Although any type of technology element can be obtained, these activities typically consider:
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Items needed to operate and administer the deployed IT products
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New or replacement platforms or equipment
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Supplies
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Documentation
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Licensing
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Service contracts
For additional insight, refer to the technology fabrication acquisition and deployment acquisition activities.
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Activities
The basic fabrication acquisition activities also apply to the operations projects. You may refer to those activities for additional detail. Actions applicable to operations projects are described below:
- Perform Make or Buy Analysis. The Acquisition Team will consider purchased tools, equipment, or services needed to administer, operate, or maintain the installed IT products (e.g., network monitors, user account management, diagnostic tools, and operations support contractors).
- Solicit and Select a Supplier. The Acquisition Team will consider the best candidate suppliers based on state regulations and competition considerations for overall best value. The Acquisition Team should not automatically select those that supplied the IT products that were originally deployed.
- Agree to Terms. The Acquisition Team will consider the best terms and conditions necessary to provide the expected level of support for the operational systems. The appropriate type of contract should be determined based on the acquisition risks (e.g., firm fixed price, task order, cost plus).
- Manage the Relationship. The Acquisition Team will consider the best way to manage service-based agreements, such as using individuals to augment the operational support staff (e.g., computer operators and help desk).
- Accept the Product or Service. The Acquisition Team will consider the delivery and acceptance of products and services needed to administer and sustain the operational systems (e.g., prerequisite skills and knowledge for operators or administrators, and response time).
- Prepare for the Transition. The Acquisition Team will consider what must occur for use of the products or services by the operations project or the end user.
Roles and Responsibilities
The key roles and their responsibilities are as follows:
- Acquisition Team. The Contracting Officer and the Project Officer have primary responsibility for the acquisition activities.
- Supplier. These individuals, from outside the HS Agency, provide the IT products and services. They may include contractors; vendors; or other State Agencies or organizations, as necessary.
- Support Organization. These individuals provide oversight of the processes used by the supplier and manage the configuration and quality of the delivered products and services. They also ensure that key acquisition procedures are followed.
- User Representatives. Individuals that are part of the operations projects, such as the IT staff or user, are the primary recipients of the acquired products and services. User representatives convey needs to the Acquisition Team.
- IT Decision Makers. These individuals have authority to select and enter into agreements with the suppliers. They may include members of the IT Evolution Management Team, the HS IT Division, or other executives ( CIO).
- Other Key Stakeholders. These individuals support the acquisition activities by providing subject matter expertise, as needed. They may include IT staff, users, Technical Architecture Team members, and IT project team, among others.
Artifacts
The following information is used or produced by these activities. Templates, examples, and checklists for identifying and documenting these items are available through the Additional Resources section at the end of this page.
- IT Products and Data. This is the main result of these activities. Products are received from the suppliers and placed under CM.
- Contracting Strategy Document. This document is prepared as the result of a make or buy analysis and used to guide the solicitation, selection, and management of the suppliers. This document may have been prepared for a fabrication or deployment project, in which case it will be updated.
- Project or Product Requirements. These are allocated to the acquisition tasks to guide the technical and nontechnical criteria for the acquired products or services. These are allocated through the Operation Project Plan. This includes the appropriate parts of the A-TARS.
- Contract Management Plan. This document is produced and used to manage the supplier relationship. This document may have been prepared for a fabrication project, in which case it will be updated.
- Contractor and Procurement Documentation. This documentation includes the supplier agreements and obligations, including the contract, legal terms and conditions, the SOW, licenses, and other formal agreements.
- Contractor Status Reports. The supplier furnishes this information, indicating progress and issues against the supplier's plans.
- Status. Status is reviewed against the Contract Management Plan and any supplier issues are analyzed, consolidated, and forwarded to the project management activities for review.
Additional Resources
Resources applicable to this activity are cataloged below. Some items from the fabrication project acquisition resources as well as the deployment project acquisition resources may be used to support the operations acquisition activities. Lists of all available resources may be found in the Resources portion of the IT Planning and Management Guides.
| Checklist: Technical Operations A tailorable checklist to use for identifying items that may affect operations. 04-16-02 |