Performance Based Acquisition
This course is for the acquisition workforce who structure, award, and manage outcome-based service contracts.
Contract for the outcome you want — easy to say, hard to do well. Performance-based acquisition is the preferred method for buying services, and for good reason: done well, it gives the contractor room to innovate while holding them to measurable results. Done poorly, it collapses into a level-of-effort contract wearing performance-based clothing — outcomes no one can measure, surveillance that doesn't surveil, and incentives that reward nothing.
This course teaches you how to structure a performance-based acquisition correctly — and, just as important, why each piece works the way it does, so you can adapt when a real acquisition doesn't match the template.
Built on the government's seven-step performance-based services process, the course runs the full arc: deciding when performance-based acquisition is the right call, structuring outcomes a contractor can actually price and deliver, setting performance standards and acceptable quality levels that measure performance effectively, and building a Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan with teeth. You'll learn how to spot performance issues in advance, and what to do when performance slips. We cover the performance-based acquisition documents: Statement of Objectives (SOO), Performance Work Statement (PWS), and Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP) — and how they connect to one another and to the outcomes you're buying.
This course offers more than a by-the-book view of performance-based acquisition. It goes deeper — into the why behind the how — so students leave with the kind of understanding that lets them think critically, apply sharper judgment, and confidently lead a performance-based acquisition from beginning to end. We cover best practices and lessons learned, with an emphasis on real business cases everyone can learn from.
This course is taught by Melinda Milheim, JD, who served as a Contract Specialist and Contracting Officer's Representative for the U.S. Navy and the Department of Health and Human Services / Indian Health Service, where she worked on more than $7.7 billion in mostly services contracts — spanning RDT&E, engineering, medical, and major weapon-system programs. She draws on that experience, along with her law degree and MBA studies, to teach acquisition in an engaging and innovative way, breaking down complicated principles into easy-to-understand pieces — so participants leave with sharper judgment, not just a process to follow. An award-winning DAU/WarU (DAWIA and FAI) instructor, she has taught more than 1,000 federal acquisition workforce students across 20-plus agencies.
Best for: The acquisition team responsible for performance-based service contracts — contracting officers, contract specialists, contracting officer's representatives, quality assurance personnel, and the program and requiring-activity staff who plan, award, and administer the work. Valuable across defense, civilian agencies, and tribal organizations alike.
Format: Available as a three-day or five-day course, delivered in person or virtually and tailored to your organization's priorities. The three-day version covers the core performance-based process end to end; the five-day version adds depth on surveillance, incentives, and administration, with extended case studies drawn from real acquisitions. Eligible attendees earn 8 CLPs per day.
A note on CLPs: This course earns continuous learning points (CLPs) that both defense (DAWIA) and civilian (FAC-C, FAC-COR, and FAC-P/PM) acquisition professionals can apply toward the continuous learning required to maintain certification. Because agencies set their own rules on what qualifies for CLP credit, check with your Acquisition Career Manager (ACM) or component training office to confirm how it applies to your plan. Attendees outside the federal certification system are welcome and benefit from the same practical training.
Looking for a shorter training? See our one-day version: Performance-Based Acquisition: One-Day Essentials.
Pricing is set per engagement. Contact Phoenix Canyon to request a quote.
This course is for the acquisition workforce who structure, award, and manage outcome-based service contracts.
Contract for the outcome you want — easy to say, hard to do well. Performance-based acquisition is the preferred method for buying services, and for good reason: done well, it gives the contractor room to innovate while holding them to measurable results. Done poorly, it collapses into a level-of-effort contract wearing performance-based clothing — outcomes no one can measure, surveillance that doesn't surveil, and incentives that reward nothing.
This course teaches you how to structure a performance-based acquisition correctly — and, just as important, why each piece works the way it does, so you can adapt when a real acquisition doesn't match the template.
Built on the government's seven-step performance-based services process, the course runs the full arc: deciding when performance-based acquisition is the right call, structuring outcomes a contractor can actually price and deliver, setting performance standards and acceptable quality levels that measure performance effectively, and building a Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan with teeth. You'll learn how to spot performance issues in advance, and what to do when performance slips. We cover the performance-based acquisition documents: Statement of Objectives (SOO), Performance Work Statement (PWS), and Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP) — and how they connect to one another and to the outcomes you're buying.
This course offers more than a by-the-book view of performance-based acquisition. It goes deeper — into the why behind the how — so students leave with the kind of understanding that lets them think critically, apply sharper judgment, and confidently lead a performance-based acquisition from beginning to end. We cover best practices and lessons learned, with an emphasis on real business cases everyone can learn from.
This course is taught by Melinda Milheim, JD, who served as a Contract Specialist and Contracting Officer's Representative for the U.S. Navy and the Department of Health and Human Services / Indian Health Service, where she worked on more than $7.7 billion in mostly services contracts — spanning RDT&E, engineering, medical, and major weapon-system programs. She draws on that experience, along with her law degree and MBA studies, to teach acquisition in an engaging and innovative way, breaking down complicated principles into easy-to-understand pieces — so participants leave with sharper judgment, not just a process to follow. An award-winning DAU/WarU (DAWIA and FAI) instructor, she has taught more than 1,000 federal acquisition workforce students across 20-plus agencies.
Best for: The acquisition team responsible for performance-based service contracts — contracting officers, contract specialists, contracting officer's representatives, quality assurance personnel, and the program and requiring-activity staff who plan, award, and administer the work. Valuable across defense, civilian agencies, and tribal organizations alike.
Format: Available as a three-day or five-day course, delivered in person or virtually and tailored to your organization's priorities. The three-day version covers the core performance-based process end to end; the five-day version adds depth on surveillance, incentives, and administration, with extended case studies drawn from real acquisitions. Eligible attendees earn 8 CLPs per day.
A note on CLPs: This course earns continuous learning points (CLPs) that both defense (DAWIA) and civilian (FAC-C, FAC-COR, and FAC-P/PM) acquisition professionals can apply toward the continuous learning required to maintain certification. Because agencies set their own rules on what qualifies for CLP credit, check with your Acquisition Career Manager (ACM) or component training office to confirm how it applies to your plan. Attendees outside the federal certification system are welcome and benefit from the same practical training.
Looking for a shorter training? See our one-day version: Performance-Based Acquisition: One-Day Essentials.
Pricing is set per engagement. Contact Phoenix Canyon to request a quote.