Acquisition

• Contracting Commandment #2: Thou shalt study thy customer

  Knowing the people involved on the other side of a contract negotiation can be an extremely valuable weapon, says contracting expert Tim Sullivan in a new commentary.

  Management

  January 13, 2015
• Mark Amtower: 30 years in the federal market

  Guest host Tom Temin interviews Mark Amtower about his 30 year career as a consultant in the government contracting market. January 12, 2015

  Amtower Off-Center

  January 12, 2015
• Acquisition reform

  Today's FEDtalk will feature a roundtable discussion of one of this year's hottest topics - acquisition reform. January 9, 2015

  FEDtalk

  January 09, 2015
• GSA’s agile RFI beginning of ‘systemic change’ in IT acquisition

  The General Services Administration's 18F and the Office of Integrated Technology Services issued a request for information as part of its strategy to create a blanket purchase agreement where agencies can buy agile development services for IT projects. Experts say the RFI shows how the government is beginning to adopt industry best practices.

  Management

  January 09, 2015
• An insight into GSA’s FAS

  What are the strategic priorities for the GSA's Federal Acquisition Service? What is category management and how does it benefit federal acquisition? How is FAS fully leveraging the government's buying power and saving taxpayer dollars? Join host Michael Keegan as he explores these questions and much more with Thomas Sharpe, Commissioner, GSA's Federal Acquisition Service (FAS).

  Management

  January 09, 2015
• NASA SEWP to drop fee again, launch new customer initiatives

  Joanne Woytek, NASA SEWP program manager, said the space agency now plans to implement the next generation of the technology GWAC by May 1 after reexamining vendor bids. In the meantime, starting in March, SEWP will give agencies more information about what they buy, who they buy from and how they buy than ever before.

  Technology

  January 09, 2015
• Joanne Woytek, Program Manager, SEWP 5, NASA

  NASA is still five months away from kicking off its next generation governmentwide acquisition contract known as SEWP 5. But that isn't stopping the space agency from rolling out a series of new initiatives to give customer agencies more data -- and context about their spending -- than ever before. Joanne Woytek, program manager of NASA SEWP, tells Federal News Radio Executive Editor Jason Miller about the status of SEWP V and where NASA is heading next.

  All News

  January 08, 2015
• Roger Waldron, President, Coalition for Government Procurement

  Bid protest numbers indicate things are getting worse. But the numbers also indicate things are getting better. Roger Waldron is the President of the Coalition for Government Procurement. He looked at the numbers, and on In Depth with Francis Rose, he explained why they can be getting better and worse at the same time.

  All News

  January 08, 2015
• Ted Davies. CEO, Altamira Technologies

  The first commandment of government contracting is "do your homework", according to contracting expert Tim Sullivan. He says, in part one of a 10-part series, the complex details of every procurement cycle demand preparation and understanding from federal contracting officers if they want to build successful programs. Ted Davies is CEO of Altamira Technologies. On In Depth with Francis Rose, he explained a host of federal business trends that can help your agency's contracting officers prepare for the next big project.

  All News

  January 08, 2015
• Trish Gilbert, Executive Vice President, National Air Traffic Controllers Association

  Members of Congress from both parties have signaled they're ready to consider privatizing air traffic control, or at least changing how it's funded. One reason is the FAA's struggle to modernize the systems that support safe flight. Many in Washington are wondering whether the system would function more efficiently as a commercial entity. Trish Gilbert, executive vice-president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA), joined Tom Temin on the Federal Drive to explain NATCA members' concerns over the proposed switch.

  Federal Drive

  January 08, 2015
• Joe Petrillo, Procurement Attorney, Petrillo & Powell PLLC

  Stop us if you've heard this before. If you tell contractors bidding on a big procurement you're going to use Plan X for evaluating prices, you better use Plan X. Otherwise you could lose a protest. That's what happened to the Navy in a $2.5 billion program. Procurement attorney Joe Petrillo joined the Federal Drive with Tom Temin to explain more of what happened and the lessons learned in this week's Legal Loop.

  Federal Drive

  January 08, 2015
• Rep. Cummings demands answers from background investigation contractor on data breach

  Congressman Elijah Cummings wants KeyPoint Government Solutions to provide him with a briefing and answers to 13 questions about the December cyber vulnerability that put more than 48,000 federal employees at a greater risk of identity theft.

  Congress

  January 07, 2015
• Can government keep up with the private sector in digital technology?

  Digital technology has changed the way the private sector is doing business. Jeff Neal, senior vice president for ICF International, asks, "Is it too late for the government to catch up?"

  Technology

  January 07, 2015
• Jamison Cush, Chief Editor, TechTarget’s Technology Guide

  It may be called the Consumer Electronics Show, but the annual Las Vegas event has a lot to offer the government. From smart watches to faster phones to the Internet of things, there's plenty for enterprise CIOs to keep an eye on. Jamison Cush is the Executive Editor at Tech Target. He took a break from perusing the CES showroom floor to join Tom Temin on the Federal Drive and explain what's caught his eye.

  Federal Drive

  January 07, 2015