Federal IT Acquisition Transformation

DESCRIPTION

Federal agencies face conflicting pressure to meet ever-increasing mission requirements while cutting costs. The past several years has ushered in numerous IT acquisition reform initiatives that will have varying impact in the near-term and long-term. This report offers contractors analysis of the market issues driving the need for reform, analyzes agency readiness and market impact of major IT reform initiatives, and presents recommendations for doing business in a fluctuating environment.

KEY FINDINGS

The federal government has come under fire in the last several years for mismanagement of IT programs and acquisitions. Procurement timelines are lengthening, and cumbersome acquisition regulations make it difficult to acquire cutting edge technology. More than $2.3 billion is considered “at risk” according to the IT Dashboard. To combat these problems, a number of initiatives have been launched to improve federal IT acquisition. Deltek’s research into federal IT reform efforts indicates:

• Despite the support in the market today for these initiatives, implementation and expansion could stall as it has with past initiatives and legislation due to funding and workforce limitations.
• Many practices can be put in place today with existing laws and regulations that could improve IT acquisition and management, but only a small number of innovative organizations are attempting to use these practices.
• Cultural change is imperative. Risk aversion deters contracting personnel from new approaches or innovative contracting methods even if they fit within current parameters of the law.
• Changes to IT acquisition, contracting culture, and IT program management will be incremental; it may take many years to implement some initiatives in a way that filters down to the day-to-day acquisition operations.

CRITICAL INSIGHT FOR VENDORS

The report will help federal IT contractors:

• Understand the contracting and legislative environment fostering IT acquisition reform.
• Identify the implications of the environment and trends on large and small contractors doing business with the federal government.
• Identify tactics for maximizing opportunities and navigating the IT acquisition reform environment.

Deltek's Federal Information Technology Acquisition Transformation report is delivered in PowerPoint® format. The report package also includes a PowerPoint® Executive Briefing, and an Excel® workbook.