Acquisition
GSA awards IT commodities purchase agreement
BPA goes to 43 small businesses, provides tablet PCs, mobile products and other IT equipment.
Acquisition
Army vows to get aggressive in pursuit of purchasing discounts
Auditors have found that Army officials are neglecting a requirement to seek discounts and price reductions in contracts.
Acquisition
Contracting's seismic shift?
Within the bureaucratic language of a recent OMB memo lies a provision that could dramatically alter federal procurement.
Acquisition
Should the small-biz contracting goal be raised?
Agencies can't hit the target that exists now, making a proposed increase of questionable value at best, according to some small-business advocates.
Acquisition
OMB renews mandatory-use fears
The new strategic sourcing memo urges another look at enforcing mandatory use of strategic sourcing, bringing new criticism from industry.
Acquisition
OMB touts contract reductions, amplifies strategic sourcing push
Agencies have decreased their reliance on contractors, OMB says. Meanwhile, a new memo creates greater accountability for strategic sourcing.
Acquisition
Mobile, cloud poised for growth in 2013
IDC's market forecast identifies technologies that are gaining ground in government, and assesses the spending potential for the year.
Acquisition
Is it time to revisit Clinger-Cohen?
Rep. Darrell Issa, with support from a prominent Democrat, continues to push legislation to update the 1996 law that tackled government IT acquisition and management and created the CIO position.
Acquisition
VA's Tibbits: Vendors need to show the value of their offerings
Without use cases to show how a technology can reduce costs or otherwise benefit an agency, the sales pitches are not helpful, VA official says.
Acquisition
House Small Business chairman skeptical of GSA's new schedules model
Demand Based Model "demonstrates a lack of understanding of how small businesses operate," Rep. Graves suggests.
Acquisition
Experts applaud DOD Better Buying plan
The Defense Department is generally on the right track with its Better Buying Power initiative, experts say. Some refinements, however, could improve it.
Acquisition
DOD advances Better Buying Power effort
Officials want DOD's workforce to move past solutions that just fulfill requirements, in favor of creativity and leadership.
Acquisition
Air Force rapped for inappropriate contract costs
The Air Force inapporpriately authorized more than $100 million in payments for a handheld device contract, IG finds.
Acquisition
Satellites on borrowed time
The fleet of satellites that enable accurate weather forecasting is aging, and the program intended to replace them is both behind schedule and over-budget. As a result, a lengthy gap without the satellites' data is looking more likely.
Acquisition
DOD's Kendall pushes data for better buying
Experts generally applaud effort to improve defense acquisitions, with a cautionary note.
Acquisition
DOD IG report may reveal a need for self-policing
An attorney wonders if changes to the bid protest system make new forms of oversight necessary for task orders.
Acquisition
GSA OASIS contract enters home stretch
OASIS is intended to solve many of the problems associated with professional services contracting, and a draft RFP is just a few weeks away.
Acquisition
HUBZone contracting gets harder
Contracting officers were already having a difficult time finding qualified HUBZone businesses before the Census of 2010 dramatically reduced the number of them available.
Acquisition
Contracting rules at cross-purposes
Agencies are trying to cope with competing acquisition priorities stemming from rules and financial constraints, causing some experts to remember an earlier era of procurement before major reforms.
Acquisition