“Fair” can often be the F word in negotiations. While the title of this episode is humorous, the term “fair” can be just as jarring as the other F word. This is because our expectations and interpretation of fairness often depend on our point of view. In addition, our view of what’s “fair” is often driven by how much CONTEXT we have on a situation. The impact of “fair” is worthy of its own episode – since a key goal of our Contracting Officer Podcast is to increase the context for both sides of GovCon.
The term “Fair” appears hundreds of times throughout the FAR. In this episode, Kevin and Paul simplify the concept by boiling these hundreds down to three primary ways that “Fair” applies in the GovCon acquisition process. This episode provides context on why “fair” matters, and how to navigate “fair” without it feeling like the F Word.
Ironically, one place that “fair” does NOT appear is in FAR Part 2 (Definitions). HINT: this is for good reason.