I N T H E S TAT E O F WA S H I N GT O N

CONTRACTING & PROCUREMENT

GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS – WHY?

HOW DOES IT HAPPEN?

• We manage over 1,200 statewide contracts for everything from light bulbs and pencils, to vehicles and ferry boats, and a variety of professional services.

 • Annual worth of these contracts is $1.2 billion dollars, used by 950 state

agencies, colleges, universities, school districts, cities, counties & non-profits.

• Law requires us to competitively bid all state contracts, to achieve “best value” not just based on price, but quality and other factors are considered, such as warranty, delivery, customer service and life cycle cost.

• Competition is important in order to allow all businesses an equal opportunity to compete for a state contract worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.

• Interested vendors can access and participate in these bids by registering in the single statewide online vendor registration system known as “WEBS”… All opportunities to participate are posted in WEBS & emailed to registered vendors.

• We reach out to small, minority, women and veteran owned businesses, and we look for green, sustainable, environmentally friendly products.

FINDING “BEST VALUE”How much

more are you willing to pay

for name brand…

How much more are you willing

to pay for better taste or

quality

WHAT’S MOST IMPORTANT TO YOU – SAVINGS OR QUALITY?

Price or life cycle?

ENVIRONMENTAL OR BALANCING THE BUDGET?

ONCE YOU DECIDE – A CONTRACT OUTLINES YOUR AGREEMENT

• Acceptance

• Consideration

• Offer

• Obligation

• Legal purpose

• Competent parties

• Definiteness

What are the elements of a

legally binding

contract?

WHAT ARE THE KEY ELEMENTS?

Parties, Purpose, Term, Consideration

• Cover/Preamble• Section 1 - Scope• Section 2 - Term• Section 3 - Extension• Appendix C – Pricing

Offer & Acceptance, Obligation, Ts & Cs

• Contract Clauses• Appendix B – Specs• Appendix C – Pricing• Signature Page• Appendix A – Master

Terms & Conditions

I WANT MY COOKIES!

• What if my Vanilla Wafers don’t arrive before our kids’ afternoon break time? Or they are all broken?

• What if my contract says Vanilla Wafers but I received Great Value brand?

• What if the cookies are here but they go stale in less than a week? Delivery & Warranty

Delivery & Specs

Delivery & Inspection

DON’T MAKE ASSUMPTIONS OR VERBAL AGREEMENTS WITH THE DELIVERY

PERSON

• “Four Corners Rule” states that if the language is not found within the written words of the contract, then it does not have to be considered.

• Bottom line: It excludes any assumptions or even any oral agreement you’ve made.

I THINK I’M PAYING TOO MUCH!

• I swear the Vanilla Wafers were only supposed to cost $470.01 for the year, that’s all I budgeted for!

• Why are my invoices already saying $543.00?! Pricing Sheet

COOKIE SUPPLIER WON’T COMPLY BUT I STILL NEED COOKIES!

What are my legal options?

• Cure process outlined

• Clauses to cite in demand notice

• What if they still don’t comply?

• Types of termination allowed under contract

To suspend or not suspend…

• Does my contract allow for suspension?

• Am I prepared with a back-up plan?

• Am I prepared to terminate and move on?

• What are the impacts?!

CHANGING OR EXTENDING MY COOKIE CONTRACT

• Changes of any kind must be in writing via “Amendment”• Substantial changes should be mutually agreed and signed• Administrative changes can be unilateral, via letter to

supplier• Price increases can only occur once per year and must be

justified

Minimum Wage

Increase

Price of Steel, Fuel or other Factors

CAREERS IN CONTRACTING

Entry Level Contracting Position “CS1” Job Posting – Required:A Bachelor's degree involving major study in business administration, public administration, business law, commerce, economics, mathematics, statistics, or closely allied field.  ANDOne year of experience in negotiating, administering, or terminating contracts, contract property management, contract cost or price analysis, or contract compliance administration.  Additional qualifying experience may be substituted, year for year, for the required education (4 years + 1 year) .  A Master's degree in one of the above academic disciplines may be substituted for the required experience.  A law degree from an accredited college or university approved by the Washington State Bar Association may be substituted for the required experience and education.

Must be proficient in the use of Microsoft Word and Excel.

 Preferred/Desired Qualifications: Three months writing and negotiating skills related to contracting Three months working with Washington state laws and regulations or government contracting Three months using the state’s contracting databases including WEBS and PCMS Three months customer service experience, including vendor/customer relationship

management

HOW DO I GET STARTED?

Become a Contracts Assistant! Learn on the Ground…

BUT…

Required Qualifications:

Bachelor’s degree with major study in business administration, or closely allied field

OR

Associate’s degree with major study in business administration, or closely allied filed,

AND

One year experience assisting in the development, administration, or termination of contracts

OR

Three years’ experience assisting in the development, administration, or termination of contracts 

WHERE CAN I GET THIS EXPERIENCE?

At any job you can show an interest in being involved in customer service, and customer or

vendor contractual matters

Once you are in college, NIGP Student Membership will help you with resources, training and connections you need for a future in contracting.

Join thousands of government procurement and contracting professionals across the country.

A free student membership is available for the following:Undergraduate or graduate student majoring in business, public administration, materials management, or a related focus of study,

We understand that you don’t have dollars to put toward member fees in professional organizations, so we want to make it easy for you to begin to explore what our profession is all about and take advantage of those member benefits that may help you now while you are still in school.

Contract Management Certificate Program

CAREERS.WA.GOV