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DHS wants AI to improve the contract performance assessment reporting system

The Homeland Security Department (DHS) wants proofs or viable prototypes that demonstrate how artificial intelligence can support contracting officers as they conduct past performance evaluations and make effective use of data from the Contract Performance Assessment Reporting System (CPARS), according to a solicitation on the FedBizOpps website. 

Run through the department’s commercial solutions opening pilot program to competitively procure innovative items, the solicitation was originally posted in early August but amended this week to include the government’s answers to submitted questions.

“An AI solution for CPARS may significantly assist contracting officers conducting past performance evaluations by identifying relevant past performance assessment records in a more accurate, consistent, faster and useful manner, reducing the administrative workload on contracting officers while increasing the quality of the outcome,” the solicitation states.

When selecting services over the simplified acquisition threshold, contracting officers are required to consider vendors’ past performance. CPARS is the central system federal officials use to collect and share contractor and vendor past performance information. But according to the solicitation, anecdotal evidence indicates that contracting officers face challenges trying to use the data for past performance evaluations, due primarily to the “volume of records and the inability to rapidly identify relevant reviews.”

Keep reading this article at: https://www.nextgov.com/emerging-tech/2019/08/dhs-wants-ai-improve-contract-performance-assessment-reporting-system/159418/

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Learn how the government administers contracts during week of Dec. 9th

Before the year’s end, you have the opportunity to attend a week-long course at Georgia Tech that comprehensively covers the federal contract administration process.
The course — Contract Administration in the FAR (CON 090-4) — begins Monday, Dec. 9 and concludes Friday, Dec. 13, 2019.  The course is conducted at Georgia Tech’s world-class Global Learning Center located in Midtown Atlanta.  Registration details are at: https://pe.gatech.edu/courses/con-090-4-contract-administration-far.
Students work in teams to answer questions and solve problems involving contract administration.
Who Should Attend
  • Government contracting officials will learn not only the rules but the best practices in contract administration. And, this course satisfies required FAC-C and DAWIA certification programs.
  • Business people, including those to aspire to become federal contractors, will learn how to use the power of being an incumbent to win future contracts as well as how to protect contractual interests.
How You Will Benefit

You will learn:

  • The fundamental concepts of government contract administration.
  • The rights of the parties when contract performance is not timely.
  • Both the government’s and the contractor’s rights when contract performance comes into question.
  • The policies and procedures for preparing and processing contract modifications.
  • How to apply the requirements of applicable contract clauses in various contracting scenarios.
  • The applicable payment clauses and invoicing procedures.
  • The policies and procedures for filing and processing contract disputes and appeals.
  • The policies and procedures pertaining to the complete or partial termination of contracts for the convenience of the government or for default.
  • All pertinent parts of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR)
Course Content
  • Contract administration basics
  • Contract modifications
  • Administration of selected terms and conditions
  • Delays
  • Quality assurance
  • Payment and cost allowability
  • Disputes and appeals
  • Terminations
  • Closeout
Materials

Each student receives a printed Student Guide, exercises, updated supplemental information, and exclusive access to web-based student resources. A complimentary breakfast is provided each morning, along with snacks throughout each day.

Additional Information

The Contracting Education Academy at Georgia Tech (The Academy) is an approved equivalency training provider to the Defense Acquisition University (DAU) and the Federal Acquisition Institute (FAI).  Our courses satisfy both the FAC-C and the DAWIA certification programs.  The coursework also provides students the opportunity to earn continuing education unit credits (CEUs) for acquisition and government contracting professionals as well as business professionals working for the government or pursuing opportunities in the federal contracting arena.

CON 090-4 is the fourth of four modules in the CON 090 course series entitled Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Fundamentals.  The Contracting Education Academy at Georgia Tech offers the entire CON 090 series in four, one-week classes.  Each module stands on its own, allowing students multiple opportunities throughout the year to complete the entire CON 090 course without the challenge of being away from work or home for a straight month.  Because of Georgia Tech’s unique instructional approach, the four modules can be taken in any order.

More Information and To Register

For more information on this course, please visit: https://pe.gatech.edu/courses/con-090-4-contract-administration-far

 

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RPA takes hold in agency procurement

Robotics process automation “is exploding” across government, according to Joanie Newhart, associate administrator of acquisition workforce programs in the Office of Management and Budget’s Office of Federal Procurement Policy.
Cybersecurity experts have a new tool in the fight against hackers – a decoy robot. Researchers at Georgia Tech built the “HoneyBot” to lure hackers into thinking they had taken control of a robot, but instead the robot gathers valuable information about the bad actors, helping businesses better protect themselves from future attacks.

Speaking at the Shared Services Leadership Coalition RPA conference, Newhart said OFPP is monitoring how agencies are using RPA, especially when it comes to procurement. The Department of Health and Human Services is piloting RPA for the closeout phase of acquisitions, and the General Services Administration is using it to smooth out some of its internal processes such as sifting through data to find unpaid invoices. At the Department of Treasury, RPA is facilitating background reviews of contractor performance to help its contracting officers with their due diligence in awarding contracts, she said.

Those kinds of RPA applications could transform federal acquisition in only a few years, as they take over repetitive internal tasks, according to Newhart. OFPP, she said, plans share some of its observations on RPA with agencies soon.

Keep reading article at: https://gcn.com/articles/2019/05/30/rpa-procurement.aspx

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Learn how the government administers its contracts during week of June 24th

Now you have the opportunity to attend  a week-long course at Georgia Tech that comprehensively covers the federal contract administration process.  

The course — Contract Administration in the FAR — begins Monday, June 24 and concludes Friday, June 28, 2019. Registration details may be found at: https://pe.gatech.edu/courses/con-090-4-contract-administration-far.

Students work in teams to answer questions and solve problems involving contract administration.
Who Should Attend
  • Government contracting officials will learn not only the rules but the best practices in contract administration. And, this course satisfies required FAC-C and DAWIA certification programs.
  • Business people, including those to aspire to become federal contractors, will learn how to use the power of being an incumbent to win future contracts as well as how to protect contractual interests.
How You Will Benefit

You will learn:

  • The fundamental concepts of government contract administration.
  • The rights of the parties when contract performance is not timely.
  • Both the government’s and the contractor’s rights when contract performance comes into question.
  • The policies and procedures for preparing and processing contract modifications.
  • How to apply the requirements of applicable contract clauses in various contracting scenarios.
  • The applicable payment clauses and invoicing procedures.
  • The policies and procedures for filing and processing contract disputes and appeals.
  • The policies and procedures pertaining to the complete or partial termination of contracts for the convenience of the government or for default.
  • All pertinent parts of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) having to do with contract administration.
Content
  • Fundamentals of contract administration
  • Contract modifications
  • Administration of selected terms and conditions
  • Delays and how to handle them
  • Quality assurance
  • Payment and cost allowability
  • Disputes and appeals
  • Terminations — for convenience and for default
  • Closeout procedures and requirements
Materials, Resources and Amenities

Each student receives a printed Student Guide, exercises, updated supplemental information, and exclusive access to web-based student resources. A complimentary breakfast is provided each morning, along with snacks throughout each day.

Additional Information

The Contracting Education Academy at Georgia Tech (The Academy) is an approved equivalency training provider to the Defense Acquisition University (DAU) and the Federal Acquisition Institute (FAI).  Our courses satisfy both the FAC-C and the DAWIA certification programs.  The coursework also provides students the opportunity to earn continuing education unit credits (CEUs) for acquisition and contracting professionals as well as business professionals pursuing contract opportunities in the federal contracting arena.

More Information and To Register

For more information on this course, please visit: https://pe.gatech.edu/courses/con-090-4-contract-administration-far

 

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GAO: National Nuclear Security Administration needs better contract oversight

Some of the field offices of the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) aren’t using a key Energy Department IT system to track important management and operations contracts, an oversight the Government  Accountability Office (GAO) warns could potentially cost NNSA millions.

The NNSA, the semi-autonomous agency within the Energy Department, should officially advise its field offices to use a DOE’s Strategic Integrated Procurement Enterprise System (STRIPES) system to manage billions in management and operating (M&O) contracts, GAO said.

Those field offices, said the report, are using the web-based STRIPES for contract writing and modification, but not tapping its document management capabilities.

For the audit, GAO monitored contracts from NNSA’s Office of Acquisition and Project Management (OAPM), which is in charge of managing the M&O contracts for field offices. NNSA spent $11 billion through such contracts in fiscal 2016, GAO noted.

Keep reading this article at: https://fcw.com/articles/2018/08/06/gao-nnsa-rockwell.aspx 

 

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