“By using the Federal Acquisition Service, the government could procure contracts up to 50% faster,” said Tom Sharpe. Sharpe was appointed Commissioner for the General Services Administration’s Federal Acquisition Service five months ago. He was a panelist at an AFFIRM luncheon moderated by GovLoop’s Chris Dorobek. Sharpe told Chris that last year the government obligatedRead… Read more »
Last week, the Department of Veterans Affairs terminated its $36 million cloud computing contract with Hewlett-Packard Enterprise Services. The five-year agreement, which was set in November of 2012, would have migrated 600,000 VA employees to Microsoft cloud email and calendar services. A spokesperson for the agency stated, “VA has decided to terminate the cloud emailRead… Read more »
The July 2013 edition of Contract Management magazine, published by the National Contract Management Association (NCMA), included an encouraging article on how communications between government and industry not only can improve outcomes and business relationships, but also show positive results to improve requirements and the opportunities for better outcomes overall. The article, “MythBusting – CommunicationsRead… Read more »
Contract duplication increases bid and proposal, administration and management costs for government and industry. Last summer the Coalition issued a summary report highlighting the results of a survey conducted among our member firms regarding contract duplication costs. The report was subsequently provided to the Department of Defense (DoD), the General Services Administration (GSA) and theRead… Read more »
The world of federal contracting is almost unbearably complicated, but there are ways to make the road a little smoother. Jim Ropelewski is the Senior Procurement Officer for the Department of Education and the Deputy CFO for Management and Operations. He told Chris Dorobek on the DorobekINSIDER program that the biggest challenges facing federal contractorsRead… Read more »
By Tom Kuhn, PhD, Fellow Do not assume anything when you are writing a task order against an Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract. Why? Ever write a task order and miss something or miss ensuring the proper contract language rigor is included? For example, what happens when a task order is written against anRead… Read more »
The Defense Information Research Agency wants to award 10 positions on a potential $450 million cloud computing products and services contract even as only five companies have gone through the new governmentwide cloud certification process, Federal Times reports. Nicole Blake Johnson writes companies that hold the FedRAMP authority to operate are Amazon Web Services, AutonomicRead… Read more »
Every year more than 45 million people visit a Social Security office. And as anyone who has visited the office knows, it can be plagued by long lines and tedious paperwork. David Broomell, a longtime Social Security programmer and project manager, decided to make a change. He created a program called VIP (Visitor Intake Process).Read… Read more »
GovLoop and Integrity Management Consulting are proud to present a 12-part series called “Conscientious Contracting: A Thoughtful Approach to Acquisition and Program Management,” that aims to address common challenges and achieve new efficiencies in government procurement. In a recent survey for our new acquisition guide, we asked the contracting community: “Have you experienced your organizationRead… Read more »
Earlier this week the President unveiled his new management agenda, part of the process involves a renewed emphasis on creating metrics to evaluate an agency’s programs and goals. That focus falls under the GPRA Modernization Act. The new legislation provides the government with the foundation for strengthening agency efforts to use strategic planning and performanceRead… Read more »