Which of the following practices is a potential indicator of a bid splitting scheme?

• A. Two or more purchases from the same supplier in amounts just above competitive bidding limits
• B. Low employee turnover in an organization's procurement department
• C. Sequential purchases under the competitive bidding limits that are followed by change orders
• D. Frequent use of sole-source procurement contracts

Answer: (A)

Bid splitting happens when a buyer divides a single need into multiple smaller purchases to stay just within or around the thresholds that trigger formal bidding, aiming to bypass the more rigorous process. When you see two or more purchases from the same supplier with amounts that are just above the competitive bidding limit, it signals a pattern of fragmenting a larger requirement into separate transactions. Each purchase looks routine on its own, but together they could reflect an attempt to avoid a full competitive bid and maintain a preferred supplier relationship. This direct pattern of fragmentation around the bidding threshold is the clearest red flag for bid splitting. Other options don’t point to fragmentation as directly: low turnover isn’t about how purchases are procured; sequential small purchases followed by change orders could indicate manipulation but is less specific to splitting; frequent sole-source contracts show a lack of competition rather than a strategy of dividing a big contract into pieces.