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Dovell Bonnett and
Peter G. Tuttle are now friends 4 years, 9 months ago
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Peter G. Tuttle replied to the topic How Would You Fix Procurement? in the forum Acquisition, Contracting, Procurement 7 years, 2 months ago
Jaime hits the nail on the head. Let me add a couple of additional thoughts to his articulation.
The “real” problem is not the regulations that form a framework for the Federal purchasing process, but how they are, or are not, interpreted and implemented by some of our Federal friends. There is plenty of flexibility allowed (look at FAR1.102-4…[Read more] -
Peter G. Tuttle replied to the topic Wikispeed our federal purchasing tools? in the forum Acquisition, Contracting, Procurement 8 years, 3 months ago
Hi Geri. Speed of change is not always a vendor’s “system” or “software” issue. Many agencies have pretty deliberate change management processes for some very valid reasons. Depending on the system you are using and the agency you are employed with, you may be experiencing the worst of both worlds. Hopefully, all the “buzz” lately about agile…[Read more]
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Peter G. Tuttle replied to the topic Should Gov’t Raise Credit Card (micropurchase) Limit? in the forum Acquisition, Contracting, Procurement 8 years, 3 months ago
Raising the micropurchase threshold to $10K is a great idea. We now have the technology to oversee and report on purchasing transactions in either real or near-real time. You no longer have to depend on hard-to-generate reports using stale forensic data. Will there still be abuse; sure? Today, depending on which software solutions you use, you…[Read more]
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Peter G. Tuttle replied to the topic Past Performance a Tool For Cost Savings? in the forum Acquisition, Contracting, Procurement 8 years, 6 months ago
Happy Wednesday, gang!
1) What do you think of this idea? Great for large businesses; lousy for small businesses. It would also translate into phony inflated metrics.- you’d be measuring if a contractor could afford to give up some profit. Some can; some can’t.
2) What are some of the potential drawbacks? It’ll become yet another bullying…[Read more] -
Peter G. Tuttle replied to the topic Work Smarter Not Harder in Contract Management in the forum Acquisition, Contracting, Procurement 8 years, 6 months ago
What a great subject, Jamie. One complication comes in when the government adds in requirements beyond the agreed-to scope of work and the contractor’s program and corporate management decide not to push-back or charge for the out-of-scope work for fear that playing hard ball would damage the “relationship.” I have heard this ad nausem. Bad…[Read more]
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Peter G. Tuttle replied to the topic Do you speak plainly? in the forum Communications, Citizen Engagement, Customer Service 8 years, 7 months ago
Indubitably!!
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Peter G. Tuttle replied to the topic Privatizing Gov’t Services – Makes Sense? in the forum Acquisition, Contracting, Procurement 8 years, 7 months ago
This is the part I like: “To dissuade companies from raising prices or reducing the quality of service, the town awarded contracts to a couple of losing bidders for every winner it hired. The contracts do not come with any pay or any work — unless the winning bidder that prevailed fails to deliver.” It sends a pretty clear message that there is…[Read more]
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Peter G. Tuttle replied to the topic Why not just get rid of the FAR? in the forum Acquisition, Contracting, Procurement 8 years, 8 months ago
The FAR is actually a pretty good document when it’s interpreted correctly, used correctly, and placed in context of the overall Federal acquisition process (e.g. more than just the actual procurement phase). There is flexibility built into the FAR where acquisition practitioners are encouraged to use their business savvy (FAR 1.102-4 Role of…[Read more]
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Peter G. Tuttle replied to the topic Why Should Acquisition Professionals Visit GovLoop? in the forum Acquisition, Contracting, Procurement 8 years, 8 months ago
GovLoop is a great place to conduct a necessary ongoing dialog about our acquisition profession and how we execute our respective missions. We can discuss issues and share best practices using a “safe” venue. The challenges that we all face in the acquisition world can be pretty daunting at times and GovLoop can be a place to reach out, pulse…[Read more]
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Peter G. Tuttle replied to the topic Government-Contractor Relationships: Collaborative, Cordial or Conflict-Laden? in the forum Acquisition, Contracting, Procurement 8 years, 8 months ago
Let me approach this from a different perspective. With the recent conference fiasco at GSA PBS, we are now seeing knee-jerk reactions on the parts of both Agencies and Congress to avoid future travel/conference problems. That’s fine, except for the historical fact that some conferences or events (hosted by such as professional associations like…[Read more]
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Peter G. Tuttle replied to the topic Cut Government Employees, But Keep Contractors? in the forum Acquisition, Contracting, Procurement 8 years, 9 months ago
Hi Robert. I agree that it extremely difficult to conduct longer term planning in a fluid political and fiscal climate. On the other hand, executives should have a very good idea of what skills must be retained (either organically or outsourced) in order for their organizations to remain viable. The task of distinguishing the “must haves” from…[Read more]
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Peter G. Tuttle replied to the topic Cut Government Employees, But Keep Contractors? in the forum Acquisition, Contracting, Procurement 8 years, 9 months ago
It’s pretty easy to remove individual’s who are contractor employees. I’ve seen them disappear in less than 24 hours with no cost penalty to the government for the change . Poor performance and “fit” issues seem to be the biggies, as well as security clearance issues. Now, the ease of removing of contractor firms for cause is another story.…[Read more]
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Peter G. Tuttle replied to the topic Cut Government Employees, But Keep Contractors? in the forum Acquisition, Contracting, Procurement 8 years, 9 months ago
Corey: Yes, it happens. Let’s cut to the chase here. Inadequate long-term human capital planning has also added to this situation. Here we go again.
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Peter G. Tuttle replied to the topic Should government employees receive formal training on how to manage consultants? in the forum Acquisition, Contracting, Procurement 8 years, 9 months ago
Great discussion. At the risk of oversimplifying the issue, this appears to be part of the larger ongoing discussion of knowing what you want in the first place (requirements generation) and determining if you got what you paid for (oversight, performance measurement, etc.). Scope management also comes to mind. I absolutely agree that customers…[Read more]
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Peter G. Tuttle replied to the topic Why Do Projects Fail? in the forum Program and Project Management 8 years, 9 months ago
Hi Josh: Lousy communications…hmm, where do I start? Here are a few danger signs:
1. Use of half-truths or lies in discussions, requests, etc.
2. Lack of timliness in responding
3. Smoke-blowing instead of meaningful dialog
4. Reliance on email exclusively, instead of all manners of commo
5. Overly complex messaging -
Peter G. Tuttle replied to the topic Why Do Projects Fail? in the forum Program and Project Management 8 years, 9 months ago
Here are a few of my favorites:
1. Lousy communications
2. Lack of collaboration
3. Unrealistic expectations
4. No support from leadership (beyond lip service)
5. Lack of project alignment with the organization’s “true” mission or goals -
Peter G. Tuttle replied to the topic Should Collaboration be Used as an Evaluation Factor as Part of Past Performance in the forum Acquisition2.0 8 years, 10 months ago
Hi Mary. Enjoy the conference! At this point in the game, collaboration is so critical to the continuing effective use of resources and cost savings that it should be considered as a past performance evaluation factor on those procurements that can benefit from it. I see it as something especially complex weapons systems, services and IT…[Read more]
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Peter G. Tuttle replied to the topic Small Business Goals – How Do We Truly Meet Them? in the forum Acquisition, Contracting, Procurement 8 years, 11 months ago
Hi Jaime. Great timing. Last week I was talking with a very senior Federal acquisition official and he had the best suggestion I’ve heard of yet – Make the agency/department small business goals applicable to a number of corporate-level executives, not simply those executives in the procurement rganization.
If the “tone” from the top is that…[Read more] -
Peter G. Tuttle replied to the topic What are the Hurdles for Cloud Procurements? in the forum Acquisition, Contracting, Procurement 8 years, 11 months ago
Hi Steve. Let me add a twist to your question: What are the hurdles that need to be faced and overcome for Agency procurement organizations to actually perform their mission using the cloud? Rationale for question: Agencies are scrambling to reduce the cost of governing, in part, by reducing their physical footprint. Given the state of 21st…[Read more]
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