Task order

Task order includes work statements with expected performance that it should deliver. It is defined as separate contract, may indicate contract modification however it is smaller, quicker and easier than whole contract agreement - task orders would be part of contact agreement. Task order can be claimed, reported and evaluated. It should include:

• objective terms,
• specific deliverables,
• measurable outcomes,
• quality metrics,
• clear definitions,
• schedule.

Task order contract

Task order contract (TOCs) is one of the type of contract authorized by Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR). Duration of such contract is usually five years, but might be also ten or in some cases less than five. Task orders are set in specific timelines. Examples of such hypothetic scenarios of scheduling are included in below table:

• Sponsor 1 had one year of break after task 1, as there was difficulty to gain specialised employees,
• Sponsor 2 had half of year break between task 2 and task 6, it was necessary to wait for some governmental approvals,
• Sponsor 3 had just task 3 but much smaller revenue was observed, therefore work was stopped to investigate reasons,
• Sponsor 4 had back to back task orders, then gap until task 7, it was impossible to schedule it differently cause task 6 needed to be finished firstly.
• Each gaps in task orders cause lower or none revenue such as in quarter 3 and 4 of second year and in general should be avoided.

Year	1. year	1. year	1. year	1. year	2. year	2. year	2. year	2. year	3. year
Tasks & details / Quarter	O1	Q2	Q3	Q4	Q1	Q2	Q3	Q4	Q1
Sponsor 1	Task order 1	Task order 1	Task order 1	Task order 1	-	-	-	-	Task order 8
Sponsor 2	Task order 2	Task order 2	-	-	Task order 6	Task order 6	Task order 6	-	-
Sponsor 3	-	Task order 3	Task order 3	-	-	-	-	-	-
Sponsor 4	-	Task order 4	Task order 4	Task order 4	Task order 5	Task order 5	-	-	Task order 7
Number of projects	2	4	3	2	3	2	1	0	2
Revenue	mid	high	mid	mid	mid	mid	low	none	mid

Examples of Task order

• Task order for construction project: This task order involves the work items, requirements, timeline, and budget for a construction project. It should include details about the scope of the project, materials to be used, payment terms, and specific instructions for the contractor.
• Task order for IT services: This task order involves the work items, requirements, timeline, and budget for IT services. It should include details about the scope of the services, technologies to be used, payment terms, and specific instructions for the service provider.
• Task order for software development: This task order involves the work items, requirements, timeline, and budget for software development. It should include details about the scope of the project, technologies to be used, payment terms, and specific instructions for the software developer.
• Task order for marketing services: This task order involves the work items, requirements, timeline, and budget for marketing services. It should include details about the scope of the services, payment terms, and specific instructions for the marketing service provider.

Advantages of Task order

Task order is a contract amendment, which is more concise and relatively quicker to obtain than a whole contract agreement. It is used to address specific tasks or projects with expected performance to be delivered. The following are some of the advantages of task order:

• Task orders allow for quicker and flexible procurement processes. It is easier to negotiate and adjust than a whole contract agreement, since it is smaller in scale. The objective of the task order is already specified in the original contract agreement, which makes it easier to draft and execute.
• It provides an opportunity to make changes according to the current needs and requirements. Task orders can be modified easily, as they are usually much smaller in scope than a full contract.
• Task orders can be used to efficiently manage the budget. It allows for the accurate tracking of costs associated with the task order.
• It can also be used to monitor performance and ensure quality. Task orders can be used to monitor the performance of the contractor and ensure that the tasks are completed according to the agreed-upon quality standards.

Limitations of Task order

This list outlines the limitations of a task order:

• The task order must be within the scope of the original contract agreement, and must not conflict with existing contractual obligations.
• The task order should not exceed the budgetary limits of the contract agreement.
• The task order should not exceed the timeline of the contract agreement.
• Any changes and modifications to the task order must be documented and agreed upon by both parties.
• The task order should not include any new or additional requirements that are not specified in the original contract.
• The task order should not be used to bypass the requirements of the original contract agreement.
• The task order should not require any additional legal or regulatory actions.
• The task order should not require any additional approvals from either party.

Other approaches related to Task order

Here is the list of other approaches related to Task Order.

• Time and Material (T&M) - T&M orders are used when the scope of the work is not completely defined and/or the amount of work is not known. They are also used when the work is urgent and needs to be completed quickly.
• Cost Reimbursement - Cost reimbursement orders are used when the cost of the work can be estimated but the actual cost is unknown. The contractor will be reimbursed for the actual cost of the work.
• Firm Fixed Price (FFP) - FFP orders are used when the scope of the work is well defined and the cost of the work can be estimated. The contractor is paid a fixed price regardless of the actual cost.
• Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) - IDIQ orders are used when the scope of the work is not known and the amount of work is also not known. They are also used when the work needs to be completed quickly.

In summary, other approaches related to Task Order include Time and Material, Cost Reimbursement, Firm Fixed Price and Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity.

Footnotes

Task order — recommended articles

Firm fixed price contract — Provisional sum — Supplemental agreement — Construction management contract — Bid documents — Lump-sum contract — Commencement date — Cost reimbursement — Unit price contract

References

• Ammar H. B., Eaton E., Ruvolo P., Taylor M. E., (2014), Online Multi-Task Learning for Policy Gradient Methods, in "Proceedings of the 31 st International Conference on Machine Learning 2014. JMLR: W&CP volume 32", Beijing, China
• Deck C., Schlesinger H., (2010), Exploring Higher Order Risk Effects in "The Review of Economic Studies, Volume 77, Issue 4, October 2010, Pages 1403-1420"
• Deck C., Schlesinger H., (2014), Consistency of Higher Order Risk Preferences in "Econometrica. Journal of economic society Volume82, Issue5"
• Ruvolo P., Eaton E., (2013), Active Task Selection for Lifelong Machine Learning in "Proceedings of the Twenty-Seventh AAAI Conference on Artificial Intelligence"
• Salesky M. E., (2016), The Project Managers Guide to IDIQ Task Order Service Contracts: How to Win and Perform on Task Order Contracts, Springer
• U.S. Congress, (1994), House Reports, Government Printing Office

Author: Weronika Burzawa