Mission Focused Contracting | The Contracting Education Academy

January 8, 2019 By AMK

Contracting workforce at forefront of Army savings

New Year’s resolutions take on many forms. Whether it’s kicking a bad habit, curbing meals to lose weight or perhaps a making a greater effort to keep in touch with family and friends beyond the occasional social media post, a new calendar year often begins with the best intentions.

A contract specialist with the Mission and Installation Contracting Command (MICC) office at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston discusses Army contract opportunities with two local small business representatives during an industry outreach event in November at the University of Texas at San Antonio Procurement Technical Assistance Center in San Antonio. The event provided contracting guidance, briefings and breakout and match-making sessions with MICC contracting personnel. (Photo by Ryan L. Mattox)

Such intentions may also call for an evaluation of spending in hopes of socking away a little more in retirement accounts or building a coffer for future tuition needs of soon-to-be high school graduates. Similar efforts to save across the government also begin with individual resolutions and don’t necessarily require meticulous analysis.

Introduced as a replacement for the Army Suggestion Program, the Army Ideas for Innovation, or AI2, program became fully operation in 2017 and strives to capitalize on A innovative and creative solutions put forth by civilian and uniformed members of the service that contribute to cost savings, increased productivity and improved processes.

The call for innovative solutions by the government aimed at realizing cost savings isn’t necessarily a novel concept. In fact, a lesser known workforce goes about that task as its daily endeavor. Members of the Army Acquisition Corps possess a combination of requisite education, experience and certification levels vital in carrying out their duties to include contracting. They make up about 34 percent of the Army acquisition workforce consisting of approximately 38,500 professionals responsible for developing, acquiring, fielding and sustaining equipment and services to meet the Army’s present and emerging needs.

Contracting officers in the 1102 career series and Soldiers in the 51 Charlie military occupational specialty at the Mission and Installation Contracting Command make up a subset of the Army Acquisition Corps. They are responsible for acquiring equipment and services that support service members from the time they voluntarily raise their right hand in solemn oath to serve this nation through retirement as part of the Soldier for Life initiative.

In fiscal 2018, MICC contracting officers and Soldiers executed almost 30,000 contracts valued at more than $5 billion. This included contracts for professional scientific and technical services, administrate support, remediation services, construction, manufacturing, educational services, accommodations, food services, and utilities just to name a few. MICC contracts are vital in feeding more than 200,000 Soldiers every day, ensuring installation readiness with many daily base operations support services, readying more than 100,000 conventional force members annually, training more than 500,000 students each year, and maintaining more than 14.4 million acres of land and 170,000 structures.

The Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), which governs processes for acquiring contract goods and services by the DoD as well as all executive agencies, serves as the bible for contracting professionals. It prescribes policies and procedures for negotiating contract awards using other than a sealed bid. By using one or a combination of source selection approaches, MICC contracting officers obtain the best value in a negotiated acquisition.

Employed by contracting officers every day, negotiation tactics can spell significant savings and increased benefit for the Army both on a smaller scale for relatively low-dollar buys through reverse auction as well as with complex acquisitions. As many government contractors discover, skillful negotiation benefits both their respective industry interests and the government as each strives for innovative pursuits to meet operational priorities and focused efforts.

The significant role by MICC contracting professionals in the transition of rotary aircraft maintenance services between contractors at Fort Rucker, Alabama, earlier this year illustrates the value the contracting workforce bares on the Army’s efforts to save costs. The innovative approach to the $4.7 billion contract presents the potential for 191,000 extra flight hours over the next 10 years, according to the GAO, estimated at a DoD benefit of $876 million.

MICC contracting professionals also contribute to government savings by reducing opportunity costs that take on a not-so-tangible form. Efforts by the command to standardize acquisitions for full food services and base operations this year offer enterprise-wide solutions for not only decreasing bid and proposal costs but also dramatically curbing touch labor and procurement acquisition lead time.

Not only does the contracting workforce save the Army money, but also those savings – both tangible and intangible – allows leadership from supported organizations to redirect those funds and resources toward other mission priorities. As trusted business advisers to their mission partners, MICC contracting professionals are dedicated to the timely delivery of contract goods and services in support of Soldiers and the Army’s commitment to readiness.

Source: https://www.dvidshub.net/image/5004231/contracting-workforce-forefront-army-savings

March 18, 2015 By AMK

3 upcoming courses essential to understanding contracting from both contracting officer and contractor perspectives

The Contracting Education Academy at Georgia Tech is offering three courses in the next few weeks that offer essential insights into the federal contracting process, from both a government and a contractor point of view.

CON 120: Mission Focused Contracting is a comprehensive two-week course that covers the entire federal acquisition process, from meeting with the customer to completing the contract closeout process. Highlights include: how Government officials are to perform market research, select the solicitation approach, evaluate bids and proposals, conduct negotiations, make contract awards, modify contracts, evaluate contractor performance, and properly close-out a contract. This course is next offered March 23 – April 3, 2015 on Georgia Tech’s midtown Atlanta campus. For more information and to register, click on the course title above.
COR 206/222: Contracting Officer Representative and the Contingency Contracting Environment is a one-week course that provides a comprehensive review of the role and responsibilities of the Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) in the Government’s contract administration process. Students learn the fundamentals of contracting regulations, types, phases, and other elements of contract administration. Students are also coached on the ethical and legal factors that impact COR responsibilities in the normal course of business and in the Contingency Contracting Environment. This course is next offered March 30 through April 3, 2015 on the Georgia Tech campus. For more information and to register, click on the course title above.
CON 090-4: Contract Administration in the FAR covers all aspects of the Government’s contract management process, including how contracts are monitored, how contract changes are processed, contractors’ rights to file a claims, how contract modifications are authorized, closeout procedures, and contractor performance reporting. This course is five days in length and is next scheduled for April 6-10, 2015 on Georgia Tech’s midtown Atlanta campus. For more information and to register, click on the course title above.

To see a complete listing of upcoming contracting courses, please visit http://contractingacademy.gatech.edu/training.

February 24, 2015 By AMK

Two-week contracting course, beginning Mar. 23rd, appeals to both business and government sectors

“Mission Focused Contracting” — a two-week course that is perhaps the most intensive and comprehensive of any of the courses offered by The Contracting Education Academy at Georgia Tech — begins on Mar. 23, 2015. It’s designed to create benefits for both business people as well as agency officials involved in the government contracting process.

From a business perspective, this course is a boot camp that’s designed to provide insights and details about the government’s entire acquisition process. Business people will leave this course better prepared to submit bids for government work, creating a positive impact on business growth and the bottom line.
From a government standpoint, this is a course originally developed by the Defense Acquisition University (DAU) — that can be used to satisfy both FAC-C and DAWIA certification requirements — educates contracting officers on the entire acquisition process, from initial meetings with internal customers to completing the contract closeout process — and everything in-between.

All participants have the opportunity to learn and apply problem-solving and negotiation skills in a highly-interactive class setting.

Known as CON 120 – Mission Focused Contracting, this course includes a complete review of DAU’s CON 110, 111 and 112, on-line courses that are normally prerequisites for CON 120. Because a review of CON 110, 111 and 112 is built-in to Georgia Tech’s CON 120 offering, students are not required to complete any prerequisites to attend.

As a part of this course, business and agency personnel learn side-by-side how the government:

Completes a market research report.
Develops a bid or proposal package.
Evaluates proposals and award contracts.
Monitors contractor performance, apply remedies, and make proper contract payments.
Modifies contracts, conduct negotiations, exercise options, and complete the contract closeout process.

As a result:

Businesses discover new growth opportunities and learn how to develop more competitive bid proposals.
Government contracting officials gain a better understanding of their role as important members of their agency’s acquisition team.

This 10-day course is very reasonably priced at $2,050 and is next offered March 213 through April 3, 2015 in world-class facilities on the Georgia Tech campus in midtown Atlanta. For more information or to register, please visit https://pe.gatech.edu/courses/con-120-mission-focused-contracting.

August 7, 2013 By AMK

Government contracting courses for 2014 announced

The Contracting Education Academy at Georgia Tech (The Academy) has released its course calendar for calendar year 2014.

Representatives of both the government and private sectors will be pleased to learn that the courses include both traditional favorites as well as new offerings for 2014.

The Academy is an official training equivalency provider of the Defense Acquisition University (DAU). Since each of The Academy’s courses is DAU-equivalent, they satisfy the federal government’s FAC-C and DAWIA certification programs. In addition, continuing education units (CEUs) are granted by the Georgia Institute of Technology.

The Federal Acquisition Certification in Contracting Program (FAC-C) establishes graduated education, experience, and training standards for contracting professionals in all civilian agencies. FAC-C certifications are mutually accepted among all civilian agencies as documentation of accomplishment of these standards.
The Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act (DAWIA) established a very similar, but not identical, program for the Department of Defense (DoD). Civilian agencies may accept DAWIA certification as equivalent to FAC-C certification.

Of particular interest to representatives of the business community is the fact that The Academy’s coursework has been tailored to be relevant to both government contractors and government contracting professionals. This makes The Academy’s classroom one of the few places anywhere where representatives of the private and government sectors can learn side-by-side about federal acquisition. As a result, students find Academy courses especially rich in content and lively in conduct.

Courses currently scheduled for 2014 include:

CON 090-1: Contracting Overview of the FAR (EASC 0901P)—This is the first of four modules from CON 090 – Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Fundamentals and is a limited lecture, exercised-based curriculum that takes a look at the Federal acquisition environment from a macro-level.
CON 090-2: Contract Planning in the FAR (EASC 0902P)—This is the second of four modules from CON 090 – Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Fundamentals and is a limited lecture, exercised-based curriculum that covers acquisition plans, market research, describing agency needs, and the preference for the acquisition of commercial and non-developmental items.
CON 090-3: Contract Formation in the FAR (EASC 0903P)—This is the third of four modules from CON 090 – Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Fundamentals and is a limited lecture, exercised-based curriculum that applies the relevant rules of FAR Part 13 and DFARS Part 213 to make an appropriate contracting decision.
CON 090-4: Contract Administration in the FAR (EASC 0904P)—This is the fourth and final module from CON 090 – Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Fundamentals and is a limited lecture, exercised-based curriculum that covers the various aspects of contract management to include contract modifications and contract closeout.
CON 090: Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Fundamentals (EASC 0900P)—FAR Fundamentals is a four week, resident, foundational course that provides a total immersion into the Federal Acquisition Regulation (Parts 1-53) and the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS).
CON 120: Mission Focused Contracting (EASC 0120P)—Learn the entire acquisition process, from meeting with the customer to completing the contract closeout process, applying leadership, problem-solving, and negotiation skills.
CON 170: Fundamentals of Cost and Price Analysis (EASC 0123P)—Learn to accomplish Cost-Volume-Profit analysis, calculate contribution margin estimates, and develop cost estimating relationships in order to accomplish an effective price analysis pursuant to FAR Subpart 15.4.
CON 260B: The Small Business Programs (EASC 0122P)—Learn the intricacies of the associated programs and initiatives that support the SBP and the DoD’s efforts to improve small business participation in prime contracting and subcontracting.
COR 206/222 – Contracting Officer Representative Course and the Contingency Contracting Environment (EASC 0124P)—The Contracting Officer’s Representative course provides a comprehensive review of the authority and responsibilities of the Contracting Officer Representative. It also addresses the role of the Contracting Officer’s Representative in the Contingency Contracting Environment.

To see each course’s scheduled dates, please click on the links above or visit: http://contractingacademy.gatech.edu/training.

August 1, 2013 By AMK

Course beginning Sept. 16th covers entire federal acquisition process

“Mission Focused Contracting” — perhaps The Academy’s most popular course — is again being offered beginning in September 2013.

This two-week course is the most comprehensive of any of the courses offered by The Contracting Education Academy at Georgia Tech because it covers the entire federal acquisition process. It is invaluable for both business people as well as government contracting officials.

From a business perspective, this course is a boot camp that’s designed to provide insights and details about the government’s entire acquisition process. Business people will leave this course better prepared to submit bids for government work, creating a positive impact on business growth and bottom line.
From a government standpoint, this Defense Acquisition University-equivalent course — that satisfies FAC-C and DAWIA certification requirements — educates contracting officers on the entire acquisition process, from initial meetings with internal customers to completing the contract closeout process — and everything in-between.

All participants have the opportunity to learn and apply problem-solving and negotiation skills in a highly-interactive class setting.

Formally known as CON 120 – Mission Focused Contracting, this course includes a complete review of CON 110, 111 and 112, on-line courses that are normally prerequisites for CON 120. Because a review of CON 110, 111 and 112 is built-in to Georgia Tech’s CON 120 offering, students are not required to complete any prerequisites.

Consider the benefits for students from both the government and private sectors:

As a part of this course, contracting officers will learn how to:

Complete a market research report
Develop a bid or proposal package
Evaluate proposals and award contracts
Monitor contractor performance, apply remedies, and make proper contract payments
Modify contracts, exercise options, and complete the contract closeout process

As a part of this course, companies will:

Discover business growth opportunities for your company in the government sector
Learn how to develop a bid proposal that will put you ahead of the competition
Gain insight on ways to get your small business subcontracting plan approved
Network with and learn alongside government contracting officials to gain a better understanding of the process, roles, and responsibilities of government contracting
Understand how your company fits in as an important member of the acquisition team

This 10-day course is priced at $2,000 and is next offered Sept. 16 through 27, 2013 in world-class facilities on the Georgia Tech campus in midtown Atlanta. For more information or to register, please visit http://www.pe.gatech.edu/courses/con-120-mission-focused-contracting.

For more information on the Contracting Education Academy at Georgia Tech, click here.

New Year’s resolutions take on many forms. Whether it’s kicking a bad habit, curbing meals to lose weight or perhaps a making a greater effort to keep in touch with family and friends beyond the occasional social media post, a new calendar year often begins with the best intentions.

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