industry engagement | The Contracting Education Academy

April 16, 2020 By cs

DoD, DHS setting the bar high for vendor communication

Chris Howard is used to working from home. The vice president of U.S. public sector at Nutanix has been working remotely for 15 years. But even for Howard, the changes brought on by the coronavirus pandemic has required some adjustment.

“This is our new life behind the computer screen. There is no opportunity to meet in person right now so it’s an adjustment period,” Howard said in a recent interview. “I’ve working from home for 15 years, but I always had the flexibility to travel and see clients. But this, our new reality for 10 or 12 hours a day and it can be tough to deal with.”

Howard, like many government contractors, are using video teleconferencing systems to keep in touch with his co-workers and industry and agency partners.

“We are doing a lot of virtual lunches and some virtual happy hours just as a way to get people engaged and have a semblance of a team,” he said.

It’s that engagement and ensuring the relationship continues that is something agencies tend to struggle with. But in this age of social distancing, certain agencies are standing out in how they are communicating with vendors and customers alike.

Keep reading this article at: https://federalnewsnetwork.com/reporters-notebook-jason-miller/2020/04/dod-dhs-setting-the-bar-high-for-vendor-communication/

The Contracting Education Academy at Georgia Tech has established a webpage where all contract-related developments related to the coronavirus (COVID-19) are summarized. Find the page at: https://contractingacademy.gatech.edu/coronavirus-information-for-contracting-officers-and-contractors/

January 14, 2020 By cs

How the Air Force is breaking down perceptions of Federal procurement

The Air Force’s pitch days have become so popular that several of the squadrons are excitedly borrowing the idea.

These squadrons have a good reason to expand this approach to attracting new and different companies. About 80% of all participants in the pitch days are non-traditional defense contractors.

Maj. Gen. Cameron Holt, the deputy assistant secretary for contracting in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics, said he wasn’t surprised by the number of new contractors participating in this new approach to finding emerging technologies.

“We are hoping for those kinds of returns. After all, the idea of Air Force pitch days is specifically for that purpose,” Holt said at the National Contract Management Association’s Government Contract Management Symposium. “A lot is said about government contracting and the barriers being so high. In fact, many venture capital firms will be very open with young tech startups in America and tell them if their business model includes doing business with DoD, then they will not back them because the cash flows are too long, the time periods are too long and the processes are too long.”

Holt said the Pitch Days are breaking down all of those perceptions.

Keep reading this article at: https://federalnewsnetwork.com/air-force/2019/12/how-the-air-force-is-breaking-down-perceptions-of-federal-procurement/

September 25, 2019 By cs

Are meetings with industry actually accelerating military acquisitions?

Military leaders say they are determined to find faster ways to buy cutting-edge technologies.

“We can’t afford to spend seven years thinking about a requirement,” Army Undersecretary Ryan D. McCarthy said during a 2018 visit to Fort Belvoir, Virginia.

“If it is going to take that long, you are probably not going to get it. So, we need to get these capabilities sooner.”

To that end, the Department of Defense has increased the number of engagements with industry, launched alternative contracting vehicles, and taken other steps to streamline innovation more effectively. Industry officials are often clamoring for that interaction, but some say the Pentagon’s efforts are beginning to bear fruit.

One area where those changes are most visible has been in the Army’s modernization of its battlefield network. David Huisenga, president and chief executive at Klas Telecom Government, said he has noticed a marked difference in the quality and quantity of engagements between industry and the Department of Defense.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.c4isrnet.com/industry/2019/09/19/are-meetings-with-industry-actually-accelerating-military-acquisitions/

Chris Howard is used to working from home. The vice president of U.S. public sector at Nutanix has been working remotely for 15 years. But even for Howard, the changes brought on by the coronavirus pandemic has required some adjustment.

The Air Force’s pitch days have become so popular that several of the squadrons are excitedly borrowing the idea.

Military leaders say they are determined to find faster ways to buy cutting-edge technologies.

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