Final-RFP re-gates, sunk B&P, and no-bid discipline
Terms for re-gating when the final changes, ignoring sunk , and the full bid/ stack.
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Final-RFP re-gate
A final- re-gate is a mandatory control point when the final solicitation materially changes contract type, evaluation, transition, or schedule — refresh compliance, solution, price, , staffing, and economics, and be willing to no-bid. FAR 15.203 makes the solicitation the Government's request for proposals; draft assumptions do not survive by inertia. Treat final RFP drop with the same seriousness as the first investment gate.
Watch for
Don't continue because the gate already authorized the bid, update only the while strategy stays frozen, or wait for to notice that the deal changed.
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Sunk B&P discipline
Sunk B&P discipline compares remaining proposal cost and opportunity cost with the present risk-adjusted value of bidding — past spend does not justify future spend. No-bid if the revised case fails. Authorize only a small, time-boxed fact check when one unresolved assumption could restore the business case. Executives own this control; capture teams escalate early when the case is failing so the board can stop while remain.
Watch for
Don't continue to justify past spend (stopping would waste the money already invested), or hold Pwin constant for internal consistency after the competition changed.
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Bid/no-bid stack and protest timing
The bid/no-bid stack is a layered decision: hard gates, value case, Pwin, price, and return — passing one layer does not cure another. Apparent solicitation improprieties (for example conflicting vs text that Q&A fails to resolve) demand timely counsel-led decisions — under 4 C.F.R. 21.2(a)(1), protests based on apparent solicitation improprieties generally must be filed before the time set for initial proposals; also attend to FAR 33.103 for agency-level paths. At the final gate, eligibility and compliance are necessary but not sufficient: if why-us, urgency, Pwin, and economics fail, no-bid.
Watch for
Don't choose the interpretation that favors you and protest after award (generally untimely for an apparent preaward defect), or bid because eligibility and compliance guarantee competitiveness.