Mutual Gains Negotiations
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Scope Clarification Meetings

Mutual Gains Negotiations places great emphasis upon both parties meeting and agreeing to the project complexity, scope, and mutual expectations of deliverables and plan presentation. PennDOT is currently creating a process that outlines the procedures to be followed to ensure that scope clarification meetings become a routine part of all contract negotiations.

The first step in contract preparations is to clearly understand the level of complexity of the project and each task and the expectations with regard to plan preparation, schedule and deliverables. It is understood that although a standard scope of services may be outlined through the WBS codes, some aspect of the scope may be negotiable. Both Project Managers must understand the scope and be prepared to clarify it as necessary in negotiations. A scoping meeting with all necessary technical experts will be held and all partied will mutually agree to the scope. A field visit with key PennDOT and consultant staff prior to beginning negotiations will prove beneficial for complex projects.

Only after the scope is agreed to, the price will be prepared using the new Staff Hour Estimating Guide. For 80 percent of the projects, the hours for each task should fall within the accepted range as per the Guide and the overall time for contract execution should decrease by 50 percent.