Check out the 2023 agenda below...
Networking Lunch 12:00 p.m.
David Berteau, President & CEO, PSC Ann-Marie Johnson, VP, Federal Market Engagement, CGI Federal
Keynote 12:50 p.m.
Honorable Gabe Camarillo, Under Secretary of the Army
5th Annual PSC Business Forecast Scorecard & Acquisition Policy Survey
1:20 p.m. PSC will roll out both the 11th edition of its Biennial Acquisition Policy Survey and the 5th annual Federal Business Forecast Scorecard. The Survey report reflects feedback from acquisition leaders from 13 federal agencies and provides insights on recent trends in government contracting policies processes; four focus areas are budgets, acquisition approaches, workforce, and collaboration/communication. The Scorecard assesses 70 federal agencies’ procurement forecasts, which allow industry to conduct business planning activities and better meet the needs of their government customers. Walk away with key takeaways from this year's Scorecard including agencies with top marks, where there is room for improvement, and more.
Sebastian Herrick, Sr. Associate for Public Policy, PSC
1:30 p.m. Multi-year, multi-agency contracts (e.g., OASIS+, Alliant 3) offer streamlined vendor selection and support category management objectives across the government. However, government customers are increasingly choosing agency-specific IDIQs (e.g., T4NG2) to address contract requirements. How do agencies decide on their best vehicles to secure needed solutions while fulfilling government priorities? What are the pros and cons of each type of acquisition vehicle, in the agencies’ eyes? How should a company interpret these trends – and position itself to succeed? Panelists: Todd Anthony, Chief Procurement Officer, IRS Tiffany Hixson, Assistant Commissioner for the Office of Professional Services and Human Capital Categories, GSA Stacy McQuage, Contracts Deputy Division Director ebusiness / SeaPort Deputy Program Manager, NAVSEA Jeffrey S. Thomas, Director, Acquisition and Grants Office, NOAA Mark Youman, Senior Vice President, ICF (moderator)
Panel: A Day in the Life of a Federal Government Contracting Officer: Partnerships, Best Practices, and Major Decision Points 2:40 p.m. Companies often share their concerns about federal acquisition but rarely receive information about what keeps contracting officers up at night. With critical understaffing at several agencies, contracting officers are frequently overtasked and under pressure to ensure fair competition under tight deadlines. What major decision points give contracting officers pause? What factors are considered to maintain transparency and consistency in solicitations and how are these factors applied when assessing industry teaming agreements? How can companies better approach contracting officers as colleagues and partners as we work together toward mission success? Panelists: Phillip Lee, Agreements Officer, Defense Innovation Unit Kameke Mitchell, Chief of Contracts, Commercial Space Office, Space Systems Command, US Space Force Sharon Roberts,Associate Director (acting), Acquisition Services Directorate, Interior Business Center, Department of the Interior Monica Taylor, Sr Innovation Coach, PIL, DHS Dorice Kenely, Public Policy Manager, Amazon Web Services (moderator)
Panel: Scorecards & Self-Assessments: Evaluation Trends in the Federal Marketplace 3:50 p.m. Scorecards and self-assessments have become ubiquitous during the proposal process for several large, multi-year, multi-award contract vehicles. In some cases, a bid must reflect a perfect (or near-perfect) score to even be considered by the agency, a situation which some companies believe is “a numbers game” that has little relationship to the solutions being offered. How do agency officials think about these self-assessments? Why are they used in some cases but not in others? What is lost – or gained – by using scorecards, and how should industry best approach this type of evaluation method? Panelists: Nancy Andrews, Program Executive Officer for Combat and Mission Support and Senior Services Manager for Services, U.S. Air Force Jim Ghiloni, IDIQ Labs Group Manager, GSA/FEDSIM Adam Spacht, Director, Compliance and Internal Control Service Strategic Acquisition Center, VA Kitty Klaus, Vice President of Contracts, Easy Dynamics (moderator)
Armchair Discussion 4:40 p.m. This session will be a discussion of how policy and mission perspectives can be best integrated for mission success. In particular, how do elements of the federal acquisition ecosystem—i.e., the range of Government officials who set policies, develop requirements, manage proposal solicitation and evaluation, and oversee implementation, as well as their contracting partners who perform under federal contracts—work together to translate an agency’s needs into solutions? Is understanding the “why” of an acquisition essential to better buying actions, and if so, how can the ecosystem support increased understanding?
Nathan Tash, Deputy Assistant Administrator for Acquisition and Business Services and Acquisition Executive, FAA Mathew Blum, Associate Administrator for Federal Procurement Policy, OFPP
Wrap-up and Closing remarks 5:10 p.m.
Stephanie Kostro, Executive Vice President for Policy, PSC