The question I am asked most often about my job is, “Umm, so what is it that you actually do?” I can’t blame anyone for asking. Before I took the job, I had only a vague understanding of the types of projects that I would be working on, or what the word “project” really means in the context of a government consulting firm.
Fourth of July fireworks from my DC rooftop. Non-sequitur, but pretty.
Almost a month in, I am just starting to understand the work and the system. I now have an idea of why science consulting for the government is not well known or understood by those in science and beyond – much like science, the government has its own language and its own rules. If you thought scientists use a lot of acronyms*, just you wait till you read a document written for/by the government. Oy vey.
The basic structure** of the work we do goes a little something like this. A government agency, such as the FDA, DOD, or DHS, asks for private company bids to solve a specific problem, or provide potential solutions to a broad challenge. These requests can cover anything from a threat analysis of a specific biological agent to a study of how social media can be used to spread information important to consumers (just finished writing a proposal for that project, so keep your fingers crossed for me). A number of companies write proposals and hope to win the contract to perform the work for the government. Work on a contract typically culminates in a written report and presentation for government representatives. The process of winning government contracts is not easy and it’s not fast, but the pay-off could be huge, especially for a small company such as the one I work for. Contracts can take as little as a few months (or even weeks) to years to complete, with compensation ranging from a few thousand dollars to millions.
Capitol Hill on the left, Washington Monument on the right, in front of the fireworks.
Government requests for services (some of which are posted on FedBizOpps) come in many different shapes and sizes, all of which involve copious amounts of acronyms.
RFI – request for information. This is a preliminary request, asking companies to submit their experience and qualifications for the solution of a specific problem; an RFI is occasionally referred to as a white paper. Average length 5 – 15 pages.
RFQ – request for quotation. The government agency asks for price quotes on how much a company would need to complete a specific project. A response to an RFQ would likely contain a detailed budget, time line, and list of personnel.
RFP – request for proposals. This is the big one, a fully detailed proposal on how you would solve the problem at hand. This includes a technical approach, a budget, and personnel breakdown. Average length 15 – 15^2 pages.
The companies whose proposed solutions fit the agency’s concept of the problem and budget, are encouraged to proceed to the next phase of selection. Those who do not fit the bill, are not left writing full-blown RFPs with no hope of winning the contract.
Now that I have been at my job for almost a month, I still struggle to distill into a few words what it is that I do, especially when I have to describe it in a bar casual setting. So far, I have come up with the following: Science. Consulting. Government. Let me know if you have a better idea!
*Can you please resolve my samples with SDS-PAGE, transfer to PVDF, cut out the band and submit to MS/MS, and maybe run RT-PCR on the RNA from the ChIP? K, thanks.
- This is the general organization of how a science consulting company makes money. This is why the post is short on detail (like most of the government briefs I read). I hope to be able to write more specifics about my work shortly.
Nice post, Anna. I often get asked what I do, too, and I don’t usually know what to answer. I think to honour your post I shall reply in future “banisher of acronyms”.
So, wait… your company assists other companies to assemble RFIs, RFQs and RFPs, is that it? Or did I miss something amid the (admittedly rather nice) fireworks photos?
We are the ones who write the RFIs, RFQs, and RFPs. We are then the ones to perform the service indicated in the contract, should we win it.
….“Average length 15 – 15^2 pages”
I love the sentence! yet sometime ago you were complaining some refer to their kids as F1 ;)
good luck,
mehdi
PS: how’s the restaurants in DC?
Mmm. Good Ethiopian food in Adams-Morgan (personal experience last fall). Mmm.
I think that was me, about RPG. Or maybe I just thought it. (F1, that is.)
Pages are funny – I’ve often asked people how long an article is and have received the reply “x pages”…. In our guidelines on length and format, we go by words. But then, authors actually contact us to ask us our definition of a word, would you believe? So you can’t win. (By win, I mean, be maximally useful and efficient.)
PS I believe they are now referred to as pawns, instead. Or is it prawns?
I refer to my F1s as the pawns, yes, for historical reasons.
Ah ha, I see you fell for my fiendish plot to get Anna’s post onto the “most commented” list, Richard!
Eh?