Contracts/Awards
-
Rep. James Lankford (R-Okla.) said the acquisition workforce is most important to improving how the government buys goods and services. He said with 55 percent of the current workforce eligible to retire by 2018, agencies and Congress have to work together to figure out how best to train and equip these employees to be successful.
June 13, 2012 -
The two influential senators say the mistakes the Defense Department and others made in the 1990s during the last serious budget reductions can't be repeated this time around. Sen. Joseph Lieberman (I-Conn.) said budget cuts shouldn't be balanced on the backs of the acquisition workforce. Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) added reductions in acquisition staff mean the government will pay more for goods and services.
June 13, 2012 -
Tighter budgets and the threat of sequestration have not discouraged the Defense Department from increasing the size of its acquisition workforce, officials said. DoD is adding 20,000 employees to buy more efficiently.
June 12, 2012 -
At the heart of solid federal acquisition lies a well-trained workforce. National Defense University's iCollege professors Andy Gravatt and Russ Mattern share how the school stays up-to-date on acquisition practices across government and the recent changes they've made to the curriculum.
June 12, 2012 -
This is the Federal Drive show blog. Here you can listen to the interviews, find more information about the guests on the show each day and links to additional resources.
June 12, 2012 -
Retired Maj. Gen. Arnold Punaro, a member of the Defense Business Board, said the decimation of contracting officers, program managers and others have put the military at a disadvantage in spending hundreds of billions of dollars. He said the answer to their problem is simple but hard to implement: a comprehensive plan to improve the acquisition workforce.
June 12, 2012 -
GSA, Commerce and others are using supply chain management techniques to buy smarter and more efficiently. Federal Acquisition Service Commissioner Steve Kempf said a recent survey of their contractors will help influence the next generation of schedules.
June 12, 2012 -
If terms like "cooperative purchasing" and/or "contract bundling" turn you on, welcome to the wonderful world of buying, federal style, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says. Check out day two of Federal News Radio's multimedia special report, "Inside The World Biggest Buyer."
June 12, 2012 -
Two former administrators of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy, Al Burman and Steve Kelman, discuss how acquisition reforms and improvements often fall prey to partisanship. One of OFPP's goals is not only to create acquisition policy, but systems that last beyond one administration. "You want to try to have continuity, as much as you can and keep better management of the procurement system out of partisan politics as much as you can," Kelman said. "If it's just an initiative — if it's forgotten in six months — it's never going to accomplish anything."
June 11, 2012 -
The Government Accountability Office is one of the government's most robust watchdogs, especially when it comes to acquisition. Bill Anderson, GAO's controller and administrative services officer, discussed the ways GAO helps agencies get the most out of the acquisition process.
June 11, 2012 -
Steven Grundman, a Lund Fellow at the Atlantic Council in Washington, D.C., and former deputy undersecretary of Defense for Industrial Affairs, provides his perspective on how the Better Buying Power initiative has shaped DoD procurement.
June 11, 2012 -
Larry Allen of Allen Federal joins host Mark Amtower to talk about changes in government procurement. June 11, 2012(Encore presentation June 25, 2012)
June 11, 2012 -
Procurement chief Joe Jordan and SBA Administrator Karen Mills highlighted three long-time challenges in a new memo to senior agency officials. Agencies have until July 9 to detail steps they will take to address three areas.
June 11, 2012 -
The National Institutes of Health has more than a decade of experience under its belt administering a governmentwide acquisition contract (GWAC).
June 11, 2012 -
Some small businesses are calling into question the benefits of the Obama administration's strategic sourcing initiative. They say the agencies are mandating the use of the office supplies BPA and putting more than 500 Schedule 75 holders at risk of losing their business. GSA, which runs Federal Strategic Sourcing Initiative (FSSI), said there still are plenty of sales to go around as the BPA accounts for less than half of the $1.4 billion office supplies market.
June 11, 2012