# statementofwork.org

> The commercial standard for Statements of Work in services procurement.

statementofwork.org provides a structured framework for writing, reviewing, and managing Statements of Work (SoWs). The standard covers 11 sections, 51 elements, and four engagement types: Time and Materials, Fixed Price, Outcome-Based, and Managed Services.

## What is a Statement of Work?

A Statement of Work is a document that defines the scope, deliverables, pricing, governance, and terms of a services engagement between a buyer and a supplier. It sits alongside a Master Services Agreement (MSA) and governs individual projects or workstreams.

## The Standard

The SoW Standard is split into two layers:

- Legal Standard (free): The structural and legal framework. Includes Cover Pages for all four engagement types, a full 11-section SoW template, a Lite SoW for simpler engagements, guidance notes, and AI legal review prompts.
- Commercial Standard (membership required): Scope of Work frameworks, pricing models, rate card templates, milestone schedules, outcome bands, SLA credit schedules, and AI scope and pricing review prompts.

## 11 Sections of a Statement of Work

1. Introduction and Parties
2. Scope of Work
3. Deliverables
4. Pricing and Payment
5. Timeline and Milestones
6. Governance
7. Resources and Dependencies
8. Acceptance Criteria
9. Change Control
10. Risk and Assumptions
11. Term, Termination, and Transition

## Engagement Types

- Time and Materials (T&M): Work billed by time spent at agreed rates.
- Fixed Price: Work delivered for a pre-agreed total price against defined deliverables.
- Outcome-Based: Payment linked to measurable business outcomes.
- Managed Services: Ongoing service delivery governed by SLAs and service credits.

## Membership

Annual membership grants access to the Commercial Standard. All tiers receive identical content:

- Small: $500/yr (under $100M annual services spend)
- Medium: $1,500/yr ($100M-$500M)
- Large/Enterprise: $5,000/yr (over $500M)

## Certification

- Verified: Free, 60-minute self-paced walkthrough. No exam.
- CSOWP Writing ($99): For business and hiring managers writing SoWs.
- CSOWP Reviewing ($199): For contract and procurement professionals reviewing SoWs.
- CSOWP Managing ($499): For programme leads managing SoW compliance across portfolios.

## Consulting Services

- Re-papering ($2,500): Replacing existing legal standards with the SoW standard.
- AI Enablement ($5,000): Configuring AI tools to review, score, and generate SoWs.
- Service Redesign ($7,500): Redesigning how an organisation procures services using the standard.
- QA Service ($10,000): Ongoing quality assurance of SoW output across teams.

## Origin

Founded 2018 by Jamie Gannaway from the Defining Work initiative. Workshop at the Royal Society of Arts in January 2019 with Warwick University IER, Innovate UK, ONS, and the UN International Labour Office.

Founding partner: World Commerce and Contracting (WCC), with 70,000+ members. WCC research shows 40% of project disputes stem from unclear scope and 8.6% of contract value is eroded by poor contracting.

## Licence

Licensed under CC BY-ND 4.0. The standard may be used and shared with attribution. Standard Terms may not be modified. Cover Pages are editable.

## Links

- Website: https://www.statementofwork.org
- The Standard: https://www.statementofwork.org/standard-detail.html
- Membership: https://www.statementofwork.org/pricing.html
- Certification: https://www.statementofwork.org/certify.html
- Consulting: https://www.statementofwork.org/adoption.html
- Research: https://www.statementofwork.org/research.html
- About: https://www.statementofwork.org/about.html