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GAO sees progress, more to do on acquisition workforce

The government has made progress to address issues with the acquisition workforce in the decade since a special advisory panel report found that workforce to be “understaffed, overworked, and undertrained,” GAO has said.

That workforce primarily encompasses contracting officers, contracting officer’s representatives and program and project managers, but it also extends to related positions such as engineers, logisticians, and cost estimators, a report said.

Steps in response to that report have included establishing the defense acquisition workforce development fund to help DoD recruit train and retain acquisition personnel and which “has helped DoD close some staffing gaps,” with the department’s acquisition workforce increasing by a quarter in that time. However, the department has not achieved its growth targets for each career field, falling short in six.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.fedweek.com/federal-managers-daily-report/gao-sees-progress-more-to-do-on-acquisition-workforce/

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3 big problems continue to dog federal procurement

Congress and the executive branch have worked for years to improve the quality of and reduce costs for federal acquisition, but some problems continue to hamper many agencies, according to a Sept. 12 Government Accountability Office report.

“Acquisition reform has been on everyone’s agenda for many, many years, decades. There have been proposals in the Congress, there has been changes to the regulations. This has been a very, very active area for a long time,” said Bill Woods, director on the Contracting and National Security Acquisitions Team at GAO, in an agency podcast.

The report evaluated federal agency acquisition improvements against 89 recommendations made by the Acquisition Advisory Panel in 2007 and divided the areas of improvement into three “buckets” that represent the acquisition life cycle: requirements and definitions; competition and pricing; and contractor oversight.

“One is in the requirements, definition process of actually deciding.  What is it does the agency want?  What does it need, and what’s the best way of getting what we need?” said Woods.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.federaltimes.com/acquisition/2018/09/17/3-big-problems-continue-to-dog-federal-procurement/

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GAO acknowledges progress in federal acquisition by Congress and Executive branch, but says ‘challenges endure’

Congress established an Acquisition Advisory Panel to review federal acquisition laws, regulations, and policies — and identify opportunities for improvement.  The Government Accountability Office (GAO) just issued an assessment of the progress made since the Panel’s 2007 report.

Here’s what GAO found:

Congress and the executive branch have taken numerous actions to address key issues the Acquisition Advisory Panel identified in its 2007 report, but these actions have not eliminated some enduring challenges. The figure below presents the key issues the Panel addressed in relation to the life cycle of a typical contract as identified by GAO:

Three of the key issues, and the corresponding challenges, align with specific phases in the contracting life cycle:

  • Requirements Definition: The Panel found that fully identifying requirements before a contract is awarded is key to achieving the benefits of competition. GAO has found that unrealistic requirements have contributed to poor program outcomes at the Department of Defense (DoD), and that the Army’s requirements development workforce decreased by 22 percent from 2008 to 2017.
  • Competition and Pricing: The Panel said that competition can help reduce prices. GAO’s work shows that competition rates have remained steady government-wide, and declined at DOD. See figure below.

GAO also found that agencies are sometimes using bridge contracts — which GAO has generally defined as either extensions to existing contracts or new short-term, sole-source contracts — to avoid a lapse in service caused by delay of a follow-on contract award.   In some instances, bridge contract awards delay opportunities for competition and can place the government at risk of paying higher prices for multiple years.  The figure below depicts how an Army bridge contract for computer support services planned for 12 months was extended to 42 months.

Further, GAO’s work shows that agencies have not fully embraced initiatives and techniques intended to reduce the prices they pay, including consolidated purchasing approaches and robust market research.

  • Contractor Oversight: The Panel raised questions about the capacity of federal agencies to oversee contractors.  GAO found that agencies continue to award contracts warranting increased management attention at a steady rate, such as contracts for management support services. With contracts like those for management support services, there is an increased risk that contractors may perform tasks reserved for the government.  Additionally, GAO found that heavy workloads at the Department of Veterans Affairs have made it difficult for officials who oversee contractors to ensure contractors adhere to contract terms.

Three of the key issues, and the corresponding challenges, cut across all the phases of the contracting life cycle:

  • Acquisition Workforce: The Panel found that the federal acquisition workforce faces workload and training challenges. GAO’s work has shown that DoD has enhanced its workforce, but some workforce gaps endure at DoD and across agencies.
  • Federal Procurement Data: The Panel found that the government’s primary repository for acquisition data contained some unreliable data.  Also, GAO found that the system has demonstrated limitations. For example, guidance from the Office of Management Budget (OMB) required that agencies collect specific contract award data, but the system did not have the capability to do so.
  • Small Business Participation: The Panel found a number of challenges hindering agencies’ efforts to meet small business goals. GAO found small business participation has increased, but many agencies are not in full compliance with requirements governing Offices of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBUs). For example, the directors of these offices should report directly to agency heads or their deputies, but not all agencies have established this type of direct reporting relationship.
What GAO Recommends

GAO did not make any new recommendations in its Sept. 12, 2018 assessment, but it has made numerous recommendations in the past.   Federal agencies have agreed with many of GAO’s recommendations, and have implemented some of them, but not others.  For example, GAO has previously made the following recommendations.

  • The Army should assess the resources needed for the requirements development process. The Army agreed, but it has not yet done so.
  • OMB should provide guidance for agencies to manage bridge contracts. OMB agreed and has drafted management guidance but has not yet finalized it.
  • Certain federal agencies should take steps to document how they conduct market research. The agencies agreed and did so.
  • The Department of Veterans Affairs should develop tools to help oversee contracts. The department agreed and did so.
  • DOD should have issued an updated acquisition workforce plan in fiscal year 2016. DOD agreed and issued the plan.
  • OMB should take steps to improve how agencies collect certain procurement data. OMB generally agreed, but has not yet addressed the recommendation.
  • Certain federal agencies should take steps to comply with OSDBU-related requirements. Most agencies that provided comments agreed or partially agreed. Two agencies — the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and the U.S. Agency for International Development — have addressed the recommendations.

It its latest report, GAO reiterates its belief that all agencies should implement all of these recommendations.

See the GAO’s full report here: https://www.gao.gov/assets/700/694457.pdf

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Federal acquisition workers rate themselves highly on most skills

The government’s civilian acquisition workforce, long under pressure to improve hiring and modernize its skill sets, is feeling more satisfied with its own effectiveness, according to the latest biennial Acquisition Workforce Competency Survey released last week.
Click on image above to see report.

Considered the most comprehensive version of the survey yet (an 83 percent increase in response rates across agencies), it showed that the buyers rated themselves highest for issuing contract order changes and modifications, awarding contracts and competition. Also rated highly were inspection and acceptance and business acumen, said the results analyzed by a partnership between the White House Office of Federal Procurement Policy and the Federal Acquisition Institute.

Areas rated the lowest in proficiency included negotiating forward pricing rates agreements and contracting in contingent or combat environments.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.govexec.com/contracting/2018/08/federal-acquisition-workers-rate-themselves-highly-most-skills/150611

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Acquisition professionals place little importance on innovation, survey finds

The federal government’s procurement professionals are bullish about improvements to federal acquisition, according to a recently released survey, but it definitely isn’t because they’re high on innovation.

Rather, the ninth biennial Acquisition Policy Survey, compiled by the Professional Services Council and Grant Thornton Public Sector, found recurring challenges such as budget instability, hiring difficulties and onerous regulatory burdens were offset by improvements to the human quotient of the acquisition workforce.

The government sought to hire up acquisition professionals in recent years, and that talent is now more seasoned, skilled and “a little more experienced,” according to PSC Executive Vice President and Counsel Alan Chvotkin.

“Some optimism comes from having a better understanding of their job,” Chvotkin told reporters Wednesday.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.nextgov.com/cio-briefing/2018/07/acquisition-professionals-place-little-importance-innovation-survey-finds/149879/

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