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October 9, 2020 By cs

Why government must change its management model

Bureaucracy is getting worse, not better.

COVID-19 and the sudden shift to working remotely has accomplished something presidential initiatives, commissions and consultants failed to do — it’s forced work units and their managers to rethink working relationships.  There is no time or reason to do another study; agencies have to make it work.

On the positive side, this could finally provide the impetus to shed bureaucratic practices.  As John Kamensky argued in a recent column, it’s time to “strengthen unit-level health and performance.” That’s also the theme of a new book, Humanocracy, a “passionate, data-driven argument for excising bureaucracy and replacing it with something better.”  The book advances the ideas in Kamensky’s column in some important ways.

The Need to ‘Excise Bureaucracy’

Government today is confronted by multiple workforce concerns: the abrupt need for highly qualified, dedicated front line workers to battle COVID; redefined manager-employee working relationships imposed by remote working; the continuing aging of the workforce; a work experience that by all reports contributes to early turnover of new hires; and a need for improved performance.  Government is also affected by demographic trends, the changing career choices of the next generation of workers, and talent shortages in a number of fields. Looking ahead, in the absence of needed change, the workforce problems will deepen and performance will deteriorate.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.govexec.com/management/2020/09/why-government-must-change-its-management-model/168449/

Filed Under: Government Contracting News Tagged With: bureaucracy, change management, civil service, coronavirus, COVID-19, government reform, learning culture, management, OMB, pandemic, performance, reform, trust, workforce

June 18, 2020 By cs

Small business contractors experience diverse results under Coronavirus

Some firms suffer amid COVID-19, while others benefit from prescient agencies.

The COVID-19 coronavirus has been a mixed bag for small business contractors working with the federal government. Some are facing unique challenges as they try to fulfill their contractual obligations amid site shutdowns, while others are able to meet their obligations relatively seamlessly under contracts designed for telework.

Small business problems range from workers’ compensation details to meeting contractual specifications when not allowed to work on government sites. These problems may be the tip of the iceberg as the government moves forward in the post-COVID-19 era, experts say.

Yet some contracting bodies lessened the impact by awarding contracts that allowed, or even encouraged, telework and other alternate workplace requirements. Ultimately, structuring future contracts along these lines, where applicable, may hold the key to prevent challenges if similar situations unfold.

Uncertainty is the overriding concern of federal small business contractors, says Forrest Burke, CEO of Connected Logistics.  He relates that the federal government has shown flexibility in the move toward telework, and that flexibility has helped the transition become more seamless. But the top priority for many small businesses is to maintain their staff, and that often requires out-of-pocket outlays to keep people on payroll.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.afcea.org/content/small-business-contractors-experience-diverse-results-under-coronavirus

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/

Filed Under: Government Contracting News Tagged With: coronavirus, COVID-19, DISA, FAR, flexibility, pandemic, small business, telework, undefinitized contract action, workforce, workplace flexibility

October 18, 2019 By cs

Executive orders issued to combat ‘bureaucratic abuse’ by ‘rogue agencies’

President Donald Trump signed a pair of executive orders last week that the White House said were meant to curtail what it views as “abuses” of American citizens by federal agencies.

The orders deal with what the administration said is a federal bureaucracy that is “running roughshod” over individuals’ and companies’ legal and constitutional rights: they demand that agencies increase transparency in their regulatory and enforcement processes and reduce what the White House said is an overreliance on informal rulemaking.

Both executive orders address the Administrative Procedure Act. The administration said agencies too often use informal guidance as a work-around to the notice and comment processes the APA demands. So going forward, agencies will have to treat all guidance documents they issue, or have published before, as non-legally-binding.

Until now, the White House said, agencies have sometimes used guidance as a stand-in for formal regulations.

Keep reading this article at: https://federalnewsnetwork.com/agency-oversight/2019/10/trump-administration-issues-orders-to-combat-bureaucratic-abuse-by-rogue-agencies/

Filed Under: Government Contracting News Tagged With: abuse, bureaucracy, Executive Order, guidance, red tape, rulemaking, transparency, workforce

September 11, 2019 By cs

The aging federal workforce needs ‘new blood,’ experts say

It’s a trend no healthy organization wants to see — a workforce that grows progressively older every year, with diminishing appeal for talented young people.
OPM data. ATLAS graphic via Government Executive.

That’s the position the federal government is in today. The number of workers over 60 is almost double the population under 30.

It’s a problem, said University of Texas Professor Donald Kettl, because it’s not just about replacing the older workers, but replacing them with, “a different kind of workforce for the future” — one prepared to manage in the age of social media and data analytics.

According to the most recent federal workforce data from the Office of Personnel Management, as of June 2018, 14% of the federal workforce is over 60, while just 7.8% is under 30 (out of a population of 2,099,149). Twenty years ago, the over-60 population represented 5.7% of the workforce, while 7.5% of the workforce was under 30.

The chart below illustrates the problem (Government Executive did not include data for workers under 20).

Keep reading this article at: https://www.govexec.com/workforce/2019/08/aging-federal-workforce-needs-new-blood-experts-say/159585/

Filed Under: Government Contracting News Tagged With: acquisition workforce, baby boomers, data analytics, retirements, social media, workforce

July 17, 2019 By AMK

Pentagon aims to expedite security clearance process with $75 million award

Perspecta Enterprise Solutions LLC won a $75 million other transaction agreement on May 14 to continue modernization of the federal security clearance process, in particular with machine learning and related technology.

The Defense Security Service and Defense Information Systems Agency awarded the 24-month OTA, which covers improvements to National Background Investigation Services information technology.

Perspecta will help DSS — which will eventually be renamed the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency — expedite background investigations, adjudications, continuous vetting and insider-threat programs by creating a Security Enterprise Architecture and Data Services prototype.

When a new employee or transfer needs clearance, the prototype will use machine learning and natural language processing to pull from disparate data sources to fill out form information. Previously a full investigative package was prepared manually and handed over for adjudication.

Keep reading article at: https://www.fedscoop.com/security-clearances-perspecta-enterprise-solutions-ota/

Filed Under: Government Contracting News Tagged With: Amazon GovCloud, automation, background investigation, Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency, Defense Security Service, DevSecOps, DIA, DoD, DSS, IT, machine learning, NBIS, OTA, Pentagon, Perspecta, prototype, security clearance, security modernization, workforce

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