contract management | The Contracting Education Academy

January 25, 2016 By AMK

How can we get more resources and talent for post-award contract management?

Within the area of public management, procurement is something of a neglected stepchild — especially considering the amount of money spent and the significance of contracting for accomplishing the government’s work.

And post-award contract management is a stepchild of a stepchild, getting scant attention even from people engaged in contracting.

Yet the ultimate success or failure of a contracting effort is very dependent on how well the government manages the contract after it is awarded. Most contracting failures are significantly failures of contract management. In its 2015 annual report on the Performance of the Defense Acquisition System, the Department of Defense, citing a 2014 report by the Institute for Defense Analysis, noted that weapons systems “started during the reforms of the mid-1990s — which encouraged a more ‘hands off’ and ‘let industry do its job’ approach and included a significant downsizing of the DoD acquisition workforce — produced significantly higher funding cost growth than other regimes.”

Keep reading Mr. Kelman’s blog at: https://fcw.com/blogs/lectern/2016/01/kelman-post-award-contract-management.aspx

October 21, 2015 By AMK

To contract better, does government need more in-house experts?

I was recently interviewed by Raj Sharma, CEO of Censeo, which provides consulting services on procurement management in the public and non-profit sectors, in connection with a project he was working on talking with various procurement luminaries inside and outside government about key competencies government procurement officials need.

Prominent on my list was the ability to evaluate and negotiate contract modifications, known colloquially as “change orders.” For any major contract, mods are a way of life, and a staple of contract management. For longer-term contracts, the modified contract often ends up bearing only a small relationship to what originally was signed.

And the content of those modifications has a huge influence on a contract’s success. For example, does the mod water down the original terms of the contract due to the contractor contending performance was impossible? How is the modification priced? (There is a widespread view, captured in the phrase “buy in and get well,” that aggressive pricing during source selection is often counteracted by generously priced mods.) And though I didn’t mention it in the interview, I also should have added that an analogous key competency is evaluating the product or service the contractor submits — since problems in that area can often lead to major modifications.

I was taken aback when Sharma told me I was the first interviewee to mention the ability to manage mods as a key competency.

Keep reading this article at: https://fcw.com/blogs/lectern/2015/10/kelman-contracting-expertise.aspx

March 2, 2015 By AMK

Secret Service taking steps to strengthen certain acquisition policies, oversight, says DHS IG

The Secret Service has adequate oversight and management of its acquisitions, but it needs specific internal policies for acquisitions valued at less than $300 million – an issue that the agency is addressing, the Homeland Security Department’s inspector general said recently.

The IG’s revised audit dated Feb. 10 said the Secret Service should have its own policies and procedures and a designated “component acquisition executive,” or CAE, to strengthen its program. The agency should also integrate best practices into its daily operations, the report added.

“Taken together, these actions will decrease the risk of waste, fraud, and abuse and improve the Secret Service’s ability to acquire goods and services in a timely manner and at a reasonable cost,” the audit said.

Keep reading this article at: http://www.fiercehomelandsecurity.com/story/secret-service-taking-steps-strengthen-certain-acquisition-policies-oversig/2015-02-17

August 13, 2014 By AMK

IG: USPS facility nearly 4 months late paying contractors

The Postal Service made payments nearly four months late to contractors shipping mail out of the Indianapolis processing and distribution facility, a recently released USPS inspector general report says.

The distribution center did not process about $74,000 in exceptional service payments in a timely manner over the eight month period from June 2013 through January 2014, the report says. The Postal Service gives bonuses to contractors who provide exceptional service, including changes in normally scheduled transportation operations including extra trips and late leaving trips.

“Management stated that contractors were alarmed by the frequency and amount of payments the Postal Service owed them and were looking for assistance to resolve these payment issues,” the report says.

Keep reading this article at: http://www.fiercegovernment.com/story/ig-usps-facility-nearly-4-months-late-paying-contractors/2014-08-06

June 5, 2014 By AMK

To improve the contracting workforce, improve training

The need for additional staff resources is the most frequently cited response to improving government contracting. In recent years, considerable resources have been invested in hiring and educating our biggest asset, human capital. This additional staffing and education has so far met with mixed results. This is because people are only as effective as the experience and education they have received.

Contracting executives frequently mention the need to develop judgment, reasoning, and analytical skills, as well as to obtain real-world experience. These goals can be met through exposure to diverse acquisition and operational scenarios. Three years of varied contracting experience (simplified acquisition, major systems, source selection, and acquisition planning) is better than 10 years of doing the same, simplified, repetitive tasks over and over, yet still moving up the career ladder. When that situation occurs, specialists get up to senior levels but with limited experience and knowledge, inhibiting their ability to assume the leadership responsibilities they were intended to.

This occurs because agencies want to fill their positions, even though most applicants did not have the opportunity to obtain the necessary variety of experience, which may require moving from one position to another.

Many smaller agencies cannot offer internships or rotations to round out their experience because of the limited nature of their acquisition mission. In some cases, the agency or firm has the overall resources, but is not organized to manage professional development.

Keep reading this article at: http://www.federaltimes.com/article/20140530/BLG06/305300015/To-improve-contracting-workforce-improve-training

Within the area of public management, procurement is something of a neglected stepchild — especially considering the amount of money spent and the significance of contracting for accomplishing the government’s work.

Search this Website