Contracts/Awards

• Tim Sullivan, Partner, Thompson Coburn LLP

  A subcontractor has to protect its own interest and read the fine print. If not, a company could be exposed to a minefield of problems with the prime. Tim Sullivan is a veteran of the contracting world and writer of the blog, "10 Myths of Government Contracting." In this installment, Sullivan joined Tom Temin on the Federal Drive to tackle myth number five: Not to worry, my prime contractor will tell me what should be in our subcontract.

  Federal Drive

  November 19, 2014
• What’s it like in the GWAC world?

  NASA SEWP Program Manager Joanne Woytek and Rob Coen, acting director the NIH's GWAC program will discuss a wide range of issues including interagency contracting and strategic sourcing. November 18, 2014

  Off the Shelf

  November 18, 2014
• Jonathan Aberman, Managing Director, Amplifier Ventures

  Mergers and acquisitions are an ongoing feature of corporate America. When mergers and acquisitions occur among federal contractors, sometimes the government sits up and takes notice. A few merger and acquisition deals have taken place recently among contractors. Jonathan Aberman, founder of Amplifier Ventures, joined Tom Temin on the Federal Drive with some examples.

  Federal Drive

  November 18, 2014
• Contracting Myth No. 5: My prime contractor will tell me what clauses should be in my subcontract

  A prime contractor has its interests to protect as does a subcontractor. The interests of the two parties are going to overlap a great deal, but they are never going to be identical, says contracting expert Tim Sullivan.

  Management

  November 18, 2014
• The Big Data-Driven Business

  Author Sean Callahan joins host Mark Amtower to talk about his book: "The Big Data-Driven Business". November 17, 2014

  Amtower Off-Center

  November 17, 2014
• GAO: Some agencies hit harder than others during sequestration

  A new report from the Government Accountability Office says that some agencies, including the Departments of Energy, Transportation and Health and Human Services, experienced stalled grants and contract activity during the government shutdown of 2013.

  Budget

  November 17, 2014
• Dump DUNS? Maybe it’s starting

  The Federal Procurement Data System-Next Generation will change the way it provides public feeds of procurement data on Nov. 21. The General Services Administration, which runs FPDS-NG, said the public ATOM feeds will be updated by masking select data elements, specifically company's DUNS number.

  Management

  November 17, 2014
• Lt. Gen. Wendy Masiello, Director, DCMA

  The Defense Contract Management Agency has about 12,000 civilian and military employees who interact with more than 20,000 contractors and handle more than $220 billion for the Defense Department. Lt. Gen. Wendy Masiello, director of DCMA, is receiving an award at the GovCon Award ceremony for her role in building business partnerships between the public and private sector. She told In Depth with Francis Rose about the partnerships she helped oversee.

  All News

  November 13, 2014
• An “under the hood” look at procurement

  Tom Sisti, chief legislative counsel at SAP will discuss procurement reform and the challenges facing the procurement system. November 11, 2014

  Off the Shelf

  November 11, 2014
• Tim Sullivan, Thompson Coburn and Public Contracting Institute

  Subcontractors live in a sort of netherworld. They often don't deal directly with the government, and they're subject to capriciousness by the primes. Tim Sullivan is a veteran of the contracting world and writer of the blog, 10 Myths of Government Contracting. In today's installment, Sullivan tackles myth number four: It's better to work as a subcontractor because our company won't be exposed directly to the government the way a prime is. He spoke with Tom Temin on the Federal Drive.

  Federal Drive

  November 11, 2014
• Government Contracting Myth No. 4: It’s better to be a subcontractor because primes are too exposed

  Every contract presents risk, but a smart subcontractor realizes this and takes careful and prudent steps to mitigate that risk, says contracting expert Tim Sullivan. This column is the latest in the series, 10 Myths of Government Contracting.

  Management

  November 11, 2014
• Cooperative purchasing agreements: How can they benefit you?

  Consultant Harold Good and immixGrop co-founder and Senior Vice President Steve Charles give us their take on cooperative purchasing agreements. November 10, 2014

  Amtower Off-Center

  November 10, 2014
• Pentagon pushes data transparency to get better deals

  DoD contracting officers now are required to upload the outcomes of their large sole-source procurements into a centralized database. This is part of a Pentagon effort to make sure the government has as much information as possible when it strikes deals with vendors for the same products it's bought before.

  Defense

  November 07, 2014
• Joe Petrillo, Procurement Attorney, Petrillo & Powell PLLC

  Contracting officers have a lot of authority when it comes to deciding who wins federal contracts, but they don't have unlimited discretion. That's what the contracting officer who awarded a deal to USIS found out. In a sustaining protest, the Government Accountability Office says the contracting officer should have paid more attention to allegations of fraud against the company. In this week's Legal Loop segment, Procurement Attorney Joe Petrillo joined Tom Temin on the Federal Drive to discuss this case.

  Federal Drive

  November 06, 2014