procurement reform | The Contracting Education Academy

November 8, 2019 By cs

How 5 federal agencies fostered innovation

New report showcases initiatives including a procurement lab and virtual internship program.

In “Risk and Reward: A Framework for Federal Innovation,” the Partnership for Public Service, in collaboration with Slalom Consulting, investigated innovative federal organizations and what made them successful.

Change can be difficult in the federal government, but some agencies are making headway on fostering innovation in the workplace and could serve as a model for others, according to a new report.

The nonprofit Partnership for Public Service and Slalom Consulting, a firm that focuses on technology and business transformation, released a report on federal innovation at their first-ever federal innovation summit on Friday. They conducted interviews across 16 agencies and analyzed federal employee survey data to identify 10 characteristics that best foster innovation. Their report profiled five agencies that have used many of the characteristics to implement successful innovation initiatives.

“While innovative ideas are often stifled by a lack of leadership support, bureaucratic barriers and the absence of incentives and resources, there are many bright spots across the federal landscape,” the report stated. “There are agencies rising to the challenge — creating environments where new ideas are encouraged and are flourishing in areas dealing with national security, global development, health care, federal procurement and space exploration, among others.”

Keep reading this article at: https://www.nextgov.com/cio-briefing/2019/11/how-five-federal-agencies-fostered-innovation/161036/

November 6, 2019 By cs

How a new acquisition approach is changing — and challenging — HHS

The Department of Health and Human Services has adjusted its approach to technology acquisition in order to keep pace in innovation.

In a moment when agencies across the government are grappling with how to adjust their acquisition framework to ensure they have the most advanced technology, HHS CIO Jose Arrieta said his agency has decided to approach acquisition by laying out its objectives first.

“We establish the way we want to interact and work with the contractor,” Arrieta said Oct. 30 at the Data Coalition’s GovDATAx conference.

Another key to the HHS approach has been taking “price off the table” and setting maximum awards ceilings for contractors. Then, the contractors can compete for the work.

HHS has been a leader in federal government in deployment of emerging technologies.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.federaltimes.com/it-networks/cloud/2019/10/30/how-a-new-acquisition-approach-is-changing-and-challenging-hhs

October 30, 2019 By cs

Army’s acquisition boss on artificial intelligence and the evolving procurement process

As the U.S. Army begins to replace its existing fleet with fresh platforms that will form a force capable of countering adversaries across multiple domains and theaters, the acquisition side of the house will face tough choices.

**Army acquisitions chief Bruce Jette, center, receives a briefing on product improvements for cannon systems. (Photo credit: John Snyder, U.S. Army)**

Defense News posed a variety of questions to Bruce Jette — Army acquisition chief — ahead of the Association of the U.S. Army’s annual conference to see what he’s thinking about when it comes to the evolution of the service’s procurement approach, including its relationship with Army Futures Command, which is tasked with modernizing the service.

A year ago you were developing a framework for how you, as the assistant secretary of the Army for acquisition, logistics and technology, would interface with Army Futures Command. How has the framework evolved?

The framework for interfacing with Army Futures Command has evolved as we’ve identified unique, shared or overlapping responsibilities among stakeholders as well as sole responsibilities for each stakeholder.

The major muscle movements are: AFC has lead responsibility in the space between concepts creation and requirements definition, bringing “unity of command” to modernization organizations previously scattered across the Army. Unique to AFC is the responsibility to create concepts for how the Army will fight, and creation of the initial materiel requirement. AFC transitions to a critical supporting role after the concept and requirement refinement milestones, and is essential in collaborative efforts during acquisition activities leading to production. There are overlapping roles of capabilities to requirements throughout the development and procurement processes.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.c4isrnet.com/show-reporter/ausa/2019/10/14/us-armys-acquisition-boss-on-artificial-intelligence-and-the-evolving-procurement-process/

September 27, 2019 By cs

Rethinking acquisition with the end user in mind

The U.S. Digital Service tries to take the temperature of acquisition culture as part of an agency’s journey toward digital transformation.

Originally designed for contract specialists and officers in the CIO Council, the Digital Service Maturity Determination tool is used to score various workplaces on how well they meet certain metrics when undergoing acquisition activities. USDS Digital Services Procurement Expert Florence Kasule explained at a Sept. 11 FCW event that the tool is designed to evaluate transparency, culture of delivery and focus on the user.

“You want and you need to understand what is that team that you’re going to be working with,” said Kasule. “Does that team track and measure feedback openly and honestly, are there intensive and frequent communications with the customer and/or end users of the system? So, when you go through [an] attribute, you’re trying to assess whether that group has all of those practices adopted into the organizational culture or not.”

Keep reading this article at: https://fcw.com/articles/2019/09/24/usds-maturity-determination-russell.aspx

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/

New report showcases initiatives including a procurement lab and virtual internship program.

The Department of Health and Human Services has adjusted its approach to technology acquisition in order to keep pace in innovation.

As the U.S. Army begins to replace its existing fleet with fresh platforms that will form a force capable of countering adversaries across multiple domains and theaters, the acquisition side of the house will face tough choices.

The U.S. Digital Service tries to take the temperature of acquisition culture as part of an agency’s journey toward digital transformation.

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

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