March 2018 – Page 7 – Government Aggregator

Best in Class (BIC) contract vehicles and why you need them | Lohfeld

Published on March 13, 2018 in Blog by The Aggregator

The Federal Government is encouraging agencies to use Best in Class (BIC) government wide acquisition contracts (GWACs) to better leverage their buying power. In a January 5, 2017 report, Improving Government Operations, Helping Agencies Be More Effective and Efficient, the General Services Administration (GSA) stated, “OMB named several government-wide contracts, including a GSA contract, as best-in-class federal contracting vehicles for procuring laptops and desktops. This initiative has already produced negotiated savings of up 27% on IT Schedule 70 contracts.”

Source: Best in Class (BIC) contract vehicles and why you need them | Lohfeld

David Berteau: How DoD can shorten procurement, acquisition time

Published on March 12, 2018 in Blog by The Aggregator

Congress, in the last defense authorization bill, gave the Defense Department the task of better understanding something called PALT. That stands for procurement and acquisition lead time. By defining it, maybe DoD can shorten it. Defense officials have called for comments. The Professional Services Council plans on submitting them. David Berteau, president of the PSC, joined Federal Drive with Tom Temin to explain.

Source: David Berteau: How DoD can shorten procurement, acquisition time.

State Department updating contracting language to head off confusion, misunderstandings – FederalNewsRadio.com

Published on March 12, 2018 in Blog by The Aggregator

The State Department will be improving transparency in its requirements for contractor cooperation with its Office of Inspector General. While the Foreign Affairs Manual authorizes the OIG to access a contractor’s documents and interview its employees during the scope of an investigation, that provision is not currently explicitly expressed in the contracts signed by vendors. The OIG and the department are moving to correct this issue, and hopefully head off any further confusion or misunderstandings.

Source: State Department updating contracting language to head off confusion, misunderstandings – FederalNewsRadio.com

GAO: Past Performance Evaluation Not Required In LPTA Set-Aside Competition – SmallGovCon

Published on March 12, 2018 in Blog by The Aggregator

Past performance wasn’t a mandatory evaluation factor under an SDVOSB set-aside competition in which award was to be made to the lowest-price, technically acceptable offeror.

Source: GAO: Past Performance Evaluation Not Required In LPTA Set-Aside Competition – SmallGovCon

All things contracting with Larry Allen – FederalNewsRadio.com

Published on March 12, 2018 in Blog by The Aggregator

This week on Amtower Off Center, host Mark Amtower interviews return guest Larry Allen of Allen Federal on a variety of topics, including:

Larry Allen, president, Allen Federal Business Partners

NITAACs non-award of CIO-SP3 unrestricted

Changes coming to GSA Schedules, including OLMs and ODCs on Schedule buys

GSAs excessive 2% contract fees for HCaTS and OS4

SBAs latest on size and status re-certifications

use of OTAs in DoD

GAOs report on misuse of NAICS code when awarding contracts

Novation issues during M&A

Source: All things contracting with Larry Allen – FederalNewsRadio.com

DoD’s Procurement Management Reviews Offer Good Advice for Contractors

Published on March 8, 2018 in Blog by The Aggregator

The Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA) conducts independent reviews of the procurement function of other Defense agencies and field activities that perform contracting operations. These reviews are designed to assess the effectiveness of the contracting function, analyze and assist in resolving identified problem areas (yes, we’re from the Government and we’re here to help), and identify noteworthy practices that may be beneficial to all organizations. These reviews are called “Procurement Management Reviews” or PMRs.

Source: PNWC’s Government Contracting Update: DoD’s Procurement Management Reviews Offer Good Advice for Contractors

8(a) Program: Participant Terminated for Not Paying Subcontractor – SmallGovCon

Published on March 8, 2018 in Blog by The Aggregator

An 8(a) Program participant was terminated by the SBA from the 8(a) Program for failing to pay a subcontractor.

Source: 8(a) Program: Participant Terminated for Not Paying Subcontractor – SmallGovCon

Cities and Municipalities Have Contracting Problems Too

Published on March 7, 2018 in Blog by The Aggregator

We tend to focus our blog writings on Federal Government procurement but states, counties, and municipalities and their contractors face pretty much the same contracting challenges as the Feds. In some respects, they face even more challenges since many do not have contracting professionals nor adequate resources for contract oversight. While they’re not buying major weapon systems (we hope), contracted services represent a significant portion of cities’ budgets. Purchasing decisions often rest with a single person with little, if any, internal controls or checks and balances to prevent or deter fraud, waste, or abuse. The vesting of responsibility with just a few individuals and the lack of adequate oversight is why cronyism tends to fester in many localities. Here’s an example of what we’re talking about.

Source: PNWC’s Government Contracting Update: Cities and Municipalities Have Contracting Problems Too

GSA hopes to have major policy update to schedules ready for 4th quarter buying spree – FederalNewsRadio.com

Published on March 7, 2018 in Blog by The Aggregator

When the General Services Administration finalized a major policy change to the multiple award schedules program in January, industry and agency customers alike were excited.

Little did they know, actually adding order level materials or other direct costs to the IT schedule or professional services schedule was still months away.

Source: GSA hopes to have major policy update to schedules ready for 4th quarter buying spree – FederalNewsRadio.com

Creating a unified corporate focus on winning new business through knowledge management | Lohfeld

Published on March 7, 2018 in Blog by The Aggregator

How difficult is it to collect proof points, metrics, resumes, or past performance related to an opportunity you’re trying to pursue? One way to improve access to your organization’s information assets and improve your win rate is by improving your internal Knowledge Management (KM) system(s).

Source: Creating a unified corporate focus on winning new business through knowledge management | Lohfeld

March 2018 - page 7

You might be interested in

You might be interested in

You might be interested in

You might be interested in

You might be interested in

You might be interested in

You might be interested in

You might be interested in

You might be interested in

You might be interested in