Contracting Officer Podcast 2.0 (samples)

All Episodes are inside Skyway Central© Click here to access your Contracting Officer Podcast 2.0 License and start listening today

All Episodes are inside Skyway Central© Click here to access your Contracting Officer Podcast 2.0 License and start listening today

All Episodes are inside Skyway Central© Click here to access your Contracting Officer Podcast 2.0 License and start listening today

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Today we welcome special guest Geoff Orazem (Eastern Foundry, Federal Foundry, Agency-Capital) and return to a semi-regular topic: SBIRs.  Listen and learn as Paul absorbs Geoff's unique take on why SBIRs are a great way for small businesses to enter GonCon, what processes are stream...

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) There are thousands of pages of Government acquisition regulations. Between the FAR and 30+ supplements, not to mention local guidance, how do you know what applies to you? Kevin and Paul dive into the pile of regs and come up with answers.  Listen and learn to gain a little clarity on wh...

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Kevin and Paul continue the conversation from previous "who is the customer and how/when should I talk to them" kind of episodes.  Listen and learn customer roles as well as when each role has influence over the acquisition process.  The discussion continues with what can go wro...

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) The Defense Production Act (DPA) is in the news due to COVID-19.  You might also hear about rated contracts or rated orders.  Listen and learn as Kevin and Paul explain how the DPA and DPAS compel companies to produce and deliver the Government's requirements before producing or deli...

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Why can’t the Government just stick with their current services contractors or system developers?  Why do they always want to change?  Kevin and Paul discuss the differences between the business-to-business (B2B) market and the business-to-government (B2G) market.  Learn why the Governmen...

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) In Part 1 of our past performance series (Episode 267) we covered the factors the government uses in evaluating past performance and what they mean in context. Part 2 gets deeper into how past performance is used in the source selection process and Part 3 talks application of past perform...

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Contracting Officers must determine that a company is responsible before awarding a contract.  How does a small company that has never done business with the Government convince the Contracting Officer that they are responsible?   Paul welcomes special guest (and Skyway contracting office...

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) When you're looking for buried treasure, it's helpful to have a map.   GovCon presents you with a map to contract award - if you choose to use it.   Kevin and Paul discuss how the government's acquisition plan is the map, and the key to a successful acquisition.  Listen and...

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Kevin and Paul describe the role and responsibilities of the Contracting Officer from a FAR perspective and a practical perspective.   Learn how Contracting Officers are appointed and why there can be different names for Contracting Officers depending on their role.  (yes...we've tal...

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Letter contracts are a special type of contract that allow the Government to authorize a contractor to start work immediately when there isn't time to negotiate every detail of the contract in time to meet the requirement.   Kevin and Paul discuss the letter contract process and the...

Kevin and Paul describe the symptoms of a preventable disease that often infects the incumbent contractor during a recompete: the dreaded incumbentitis.   Many recompetes are lost because the incumbent contractor becomes overconfident and fails to recognize changes that have occurred during the period of performance of their current contract.  Learn how to recognize the symptoms and how both gover...

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Kevin welcomes back Vicki Strycharske to discuss best practices for proposal writing - this time focusing on the Proposal Kickoff meeting.  Vicki is a regular guest, former contracting officer, professional proposal manager, and Skyway Acquisition Solutions team member.   This is Step 3 o...

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Episode 300!  Today Kevin and Paul take a look back at what they've learned the podcast is really about.  From the first episodes to the days of COVID, the Contracting Officer Podcast has focused on ground level, "what can you do about it today" information for everyone who...

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) We spend a lot of time on this podcast talking about the complexities inherent in giant source selections government by FAR Part 15 rules. Which means we talk about the few major acquisitions and maybe neglect the vast majority of Government purchases - those that are below the Simplified...

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Kevin and Paul discuss the common fear of exposing your work (or your ideas) to others before they are complete. Fear of critical feedback or just plain old criticism often stifles early collaboration that can provide context and improve products and results.  Listen and learn how exposin...

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) What does a COTR do?  What can a COR direct a contractor to do? What is outside the scope of their authority?  In this special holiday encore episode you’ll learn the answers to these questions and more as Kevin and Paul discuss the role of Contracting Officer Technical Representatives (s...

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Kevin and Paul discuss the SBIR program, a great way for small businesses to enter the government market or to grow their capabilities.  It's also an exciting way for the Government to streamline the acquisition process for innovative concepts.  The Air Force has used "Pitch Day...

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) This week we welcome special guest Michael Derrios, currently the Senior Procurement Executive and Head of Contracting Activity for the United States Coast Guard.  Mr. Derrios shares his insight on the challenges that Contracting Officers face due to their unique power to obligate the Gov...

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Sometimes it is difficult for the Government acquisition machine to operate as efficiently as the commercial world's.  (Understatement of the year...it is difficult almost all the time) Kevin and Paul discuss an acquisition that started well, with the Air Force creating an acquisitio...

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Kevin and Paul discuss the concept of perfect competition - where the competition has commoditized the product or service so that price is all that is left to compare.  Learn how this situation can stifle innovation and result in fewer opportunities for new entrants or alternative approac...

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) The Government's choice of evaluation criteria are the critical element in any source selection.  The evaluation criteria define how the Government selects a winner...and how industry writes a proposal to win.  If the criteria are well written and well understood, we all win.  The Go...

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) In Part 1 of our past performance series (Episode 267) we covered the factors the government uses in evaluating past performance and what they mean in context.  This week Kevin and Paul review why a Government solicitation must explain how past performance will be evaluated as well as how...