As customers we expect high quality. It’s an expectation we should all keep in mind when the tables are turned and we’re providing a product or service. High quality equals higher customer satisfaction and a greater chance of continued partnership. In Part I of my blog on Effective Quality Control to Support Your Customer, I …
Continue reading “The Effect of Quality Control on Customer Satisfaction – Part II”
When you decide to purchase a certain product or pay for a needed service, it is your expectation that you will receive something of value and of good quality. When quality is not up to par, think about how it makes you feel. I have been places where my first visit was my last due …
Continue reading “Effective Quality Control to Support Your Customer”
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has required Federal agencies to adopt a “Cloud First” approach to evaluating options for new IT deployments. This was born out of the 25 Point Implementation Plan to Reform Federal Information Technology Management by Vivek Kundra, who was the US Chief Information Officer at the time this report …
Continue reading “Cloud or Cloudy? Government’s Transition to Cloud Offerings”
Imagine a college football game day – large crowds of fans, student colors, marching bands, and the cacophony of noise. Once the last touchdown is scored and the crowds leave, the crew that remains behind has the important job of ensuring things are brought to a close and all is in place. Representatives who contribute …
Continue reading “Successfully Quarterbacking Government Contract Closeout Files”
As we move further into an unprecedented era of tighter budgets and post war downsizing, it makes sense to implement Better Buying Power 2.0, the directive published by Frank Kendall, Undersecretary for Acquisition at the Department of Defense (DoD), in April 2013. Bottom line – if you are a program under Acquisition Technology &Logistics (AT&L), …
Continue reading “What Elements of BBP 2.0 are Important to IT Programs and Why?”
In this time of tight budgets and mandates to do more or the same with less, the need for innovation is greater than ever. This is the case wherever you add value to your organization, including acquisition. Frans Johansson, author of The Medici Effect, talks about intersections as “the place that ideas from different groups …
Continue reading “Does Your Organization’s Roadmap Have Enough Intersections?”
Do not assume anything when you are writing a task order against an Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract. Why? Ever write a task order and miss something or miss ensuring the proper contract language rigor is included? For example, what happens when a task order is written against an IDIQ contract and language requiring …
Continue reading “Writing a Task Order Against an IDIQ – Make Sure You’re Covered!”
Picture the acquisition process flow as a wheel. Around the wheel are the pre-award and award process, contract management and finally the contract close-out. Because Contracting Officer’s Representatives (CORs) may be involved in all aspects of the acquisition cycle, they operate as the linchpin that holds it all together. What would happen if you pulled …
Continue reading “Do CORs Matter in Your Agency? Why They Should”
Being “risk-averse” often means trying to completely eliminate risk, which is counter-productive and often impossible. Good managers embrace risk. Why? Because they know that setting up a proper risk management program up front can ultimately save time, money, and avoid potentially serious program execution problems. Think of it as building “sweat equity” into the investment. …
Continue reading “Why Your Program Should Tackle Risk Head On”
A few months ago I wrote about the National Contract Management Association’s (NCMA’s) new Industry Certification in Contract Management (ICCM) in a blog titled “New Certifications Could Help Ease Acquisition Shortfall.” The ICCM is the only available direct equivalent to Defense Acquisition Improvement Act (DAWIA) and Federal Acquisition Certification-Contracting (FAC-C) certifications. Based on the tremendous …
Continue reading “Certification Update – the Latest on NCMA’s ICCM”
