Insourcing failed, DOD’s Gates says. Now what?
Defense Secretary Robert Gates has conceded the Obama administration’s insourcing push has failed to save money. “We weren’t seeing the savings we had hoped from insourcing,” as the Defense Department...
View ArticleSenior acquisition officials question procurement policy direction
Senior federal acquisition officials do not believe that many of the signature procurement policy changes the Obama administration and the Democratic Congress have implemented in recent years are...
View ArticleNow too much federal ‘insourcing’?
An Obama administration official said last week that some federal agencies had gone too far in using government workers to take over responsibilities from contractors. Daniel I. Gordon, administrator...
View ArticleNew Congress could put the brakes on insourcing
The 112th Congress is unlikely to let the Obama administration move full-speed ahead on its initiative to bring contractor jobs back in-house, a consultant and a Republican Senate staff member said on...
View ArticleBest and worst performances in government contracting in 2010
As old years end and new ones begin, I can’t resist the temptation to talk about who had a good year and who had a bad year. Admittedly my criteria are arbitrary so don’t hesitate to disagree. There...
View ArticleContracting spending dips for the first time in 13 years
For the first time in 13 years, the government has cut its annual spending on federal contracting, Obama administration officials announced on Thursday. Federal agencies spent $535 billion to purchase...
View ArticleArmy suspends all ongoing insourcing plans
In an about-face, the Army has suspended all of its ongoing insourcing activities, potentially savings thousands of private sector positions. In a Feb. 1 memorandum, Army Secretary John McHugh...
View ArticleObama wants money to help agency contracting shops
The acquisition workforce is part of the Obama administration’s efforts to put control back into the hands of federal employees President Barack Obama is asking Congress for $16.9 million to go into...
View ArticleOfficials change tone on insourcing
Officials say they never intended for massive insourcing, and the administration has not let it happen. In speeches before industry this week, senior federal officials have attempted to allay worries...
View ArticleDOD reconsiders the insourcing question
Officials say they are taking a strategic approach, but are contractor jobs safer? As the Defense Department works to build its acquisition workforce, officials are reconsidering the question of just...
View ArticleDefense insourcing decisions based on flimsy analysis, according to think tank
A new study pours cold water on the notion that insourcing saves the government money, and calls for the Pentagon to conduct a more careful analysis of how much it costs to bring in-house jobs that...
View ArticleA-76 set for possible DoD revival
Amendments to a $649 billion defense appropriations bill approved by the House of Representatives July 8 would make it easier for the Defense Department to hold public-private competitions for...
View ArticleOMB announces final guidance on inherently governmental functions
Long-anticipated final guidance on “inherently governmental functions” is set for publication on Monday and should clarify confusion over blurred lines in agencies’ understanding of which types of work...
View ArticleWill OFPP’s new guidance be used to take jobs from contractors?
“Critical function” is now the controversial term as agency officials interpret new regulations on what work only federal employees should be doing and could be used to increase the insourcing of...
View ArticleDHS requires ‘Hi, I’m a contractor’ introduction
Homeland Security Department officials want to draw a bright and shiny line between the two teams that work inside a federal department: the federal employees and the contractors. Under DHS’...
View ArticleProcurement shops to become more automated
The regulatory-laden federal procurement process is a tough beast to turn in any new direction. But some experts see a glimmer of hope for a bit of change in the coming five years. The process will...
View ArticleOFPP’s Gordon stresses future continuity as he prepares to leave
As Dan Gordon prepares to leave after two years as the administrator of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy, his message to the acquisition community is simple and clear: continuity. Gordon, who...
View ArticlePentagon moves against conversion of in-house work to contractors
The Defense Department early this month reminded its personnel managers of the ban under current law on converting work recently performed in-house into service work for contractors. The memorandum...
View ArticleCongress clarifies ‘critical function’ definition
The fiscal 2012 National Defense Authorization Act may provide a little more clarity to the blurry term “critical function.” Such a function is a duty “necessary to maintain sufficient government...
View ArticleContractors get insourcing warning under defense bill
As Defense Department officials consider insourcing work, Congress wants them to notify contractors of their decision to bring the work inhouse. The fiscal 2012 National Defense Authorization Act...
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