Writing Performance-Based
Statements of Work (PBSOW)

Course Category: Specialized
Course Duration: 2 Days
Course Credit: 14 PDU
Prerequisites: None

If you are not getting what you want from your contractors, or if you are being told you need to write Performance-based Statements of Work (PBSOW) and are not sure how to do so, this course is for you.

Performance-based contracting involves structuring all aspects of an acquisition around the purpose of the work to be performed as opposed to the manner by which the work is to be performed. A performance-based statement of work allows more flexibility in developing a solution to the customer’s requirements, while placing the responsibility for delivering a solution that meets the customer’s requirements on the vendor. A key factor in the success of performance-based statement of work is the ability of the customer to write good requirements and the ability of the vendor to recognize and only accept good requirements.

PBSOW is applicable to both requirements for service providers as well as for product providers. Whether your needs are for facility maintenance or for developing a piece of hardware or software, you can use the skills learned in this course to achieve a higher degree of success within your projects while working with external providers.

Course Objective

  • To build a firm foundation for defining the job, the work, and the data you need performed
  • To provide knowledge for effectively writing a PBSOW

Develop skills to enable you to:

  • Understand how the SOW affects what you are purchasing
  • Understand the differences between PBSOW and other types of SOWs
  • Clearly define the work that you need done
  • Write a requirements that state what not how
  • Learn how to specify performance expected
  • Be able to discuss using terminology used by procurement professionals

Course Outline

  • Acquisition Overview
    • Request for Proposal (RFP) Content, Relationships, Objectives
    • Criteria for Contractor (Sub-Contractor) Selection
    • Government (Prime Contractor) and Contractor (Sub-Contractor) Roles and Viewpoints
  • Performance-Based Contracting
    • Performance Based Contract (PBC) and Level of Effort (LOE) Comparison
    • What and Why of PBC
    • Specification versus SOW Requirements
    • Terminology
  • Top-Down Approach to PBC
    • PBC SOW Development Process
    • PBC Front-End Analysis Overview
    • Step 1: Analyze the Work
      • Stakeholders
      • Viewpoints
      • Obtaining Information
      • Operational Concepts
      • External Interfaces
      • Documenting the Scope
    • Step 2: Analyze the Performance
      • Performance Analysis and Standards
      • Minimum Performance Standards
      • Examples of Performance Standards
      • Product Development Contract
      • Service Contract
    • Step 3: Analyze the Data
      • Directives Analysis
      • Workload Analysis
      • Deliverables Data Analysis
      • Essential Deliverables
      • Examples of Deliverable Data
  • Writing Effective Statements of Work
    • Rules for Writing Requirements
    • Documenting Rationale
    • Process for writing the SOW
    • Example Outline for Product Development SOW
  • Other Related Information
    • Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan
    • Examples of Product Specification Standards
    • Incentives
    • Examples of Incentives

Intended Audience

This training is critical for those responsible for capturing and documenting Statement of Work requirements. This training provides beneficial tools to procurement professionals who review SOWs produced by a variety of organizations.

  • System Engineers (SE)
  • Requirement Engineers (RE)
  • Business Analysts (BA)
  • Program and Project Managers (PM)
  • Marketing
  • Procurement/Acquisition Professionals

Contact Us to Schedule for Your Organization

Contact us to schedule this course, or have the content and materials of this course tailored to the initiatives of your organization. More about tailored courses >>

Register for a Public Course

This course is not currently offered as a public course, but if you are interested in having it publicly offered in your area, please let us know. Please view our public course schedule for a list of upcoming public courses.