The process of procuring services, with or without the provision of equipment, tools, and systems required to deliver said services.
Usually distinguished from acquisition contracting (which is the process of buying stuff, from office furniture to frigates, whether off-the-shelf or built to order) in requiring much lower levels of capital investment.
In the project management world of cost, schedule, and performance, schedule is less relevant in services contracting with these management exceptions:
- start-ups (for newly provided services)
- transitions (for services being transferred from an incumbent or a client’s in-house group).