169 – Pre vs. Post Award Debrief

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Kevin and Paul compare the advantages and disadvantages of Pre-Award and Post-Award Debriefs.

168 Gratuities

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Kevin and Paul discuss FAR 3.2: Contractor Gratuities to Government Personnel. Learn why common behaviors in the…

161 Should I Protest?

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Kevin holds a roundtable (or round-Skype) discussion with Christi Gilbert (an industry contracts/proposal manager) and Steve Lucianetti…

157 Targeting 101 (Updated)

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) This is an update to one of our earliest podcasts, Episode 16 “The Importance of Targeting”.  We…

156 Buy American? With Shelley Hall

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) We’re happy to welcome back one of our favorite retired Contracting Officers, Shelley Hall.  Shelley and Paul…

155 The Importance of the Debrief

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) “The debriefing is an opportunity to prevent protests, not cause them.” Kevin and Paul return to the…

152 Excusable Delays

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Sometimes a contractor is unable to deliver the required goods or services according to the terms of…

150 ENCORE The End of The Fiscal Year

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) The Government Fiscal Year (GFY is the common acronym) runs 1 October through 30 September.  The last…

148 Proposal Color Teams

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) We’ve covered the Government’s acquisition process in many different episodes.  Today Kevin and Paul discuss Industry’s proposal…

147 The Kickoff Meeting

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) The first event after contract award is usually the contract kickoff meeting.  Learn how this important meeting…

145 Why is Teaming Critical?

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Kevin and Paul discuss the importance of teaming decisions and how these decisions can impact winning and…

144 Cost Vs. Price Analysis

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) How does the Government determine that a price is fair and reasonable?  Analysis! Kevin and Paul discuss…

143 GovCon Axioms

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) The Government market is constantly evolving.  But some things never change. Kevin and Paul discuss what won’t…

142 ENCORE – Proposal Schedules

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) This is an encore presentation of a very early episode. How much time does Industry need to…

140 Sources Sought

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) What is a Sources Sought Synopsis?  What about a Sources Sought Notice?  Same thing?  What is one…

139 Be Early

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Kevin and Paul discuss the importance of identifying opportunities earlier than you need to.  Learn why both…

136 ENCORE – Contract Types

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) What is the difference between a Firm Fixed Price contract and a Cost Reimbursable contract?  If you’ve…

135 What is COTS?

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Commercial Off the Shelf? (COTS) Is that the same as a Commercial Item?  Good question! Kevin and…

134 Another Government Shutdown?

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Another year, another potential Government shutdown.  What does this really mean for Government contractors?  What does it…

130 Contract Closeout

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Today we welcome back special guest Shelley Hall to discuss contract closeout. Paul and Shelley provide an…

128 What Are Required Sources?

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Before the Government can buy supplies and services from the open market they must consider “Required Sources”….

127 Lucky vs. Good

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) In a bit of a departure from the normal CO Podcast topics, we get a little “philosophical”. …

126 The 80/20 Rule Revisited

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Episode 002 introduced our take on the 80/20 rule. The 80/20 Rule (of thumb) plays on Pareto’s…

125 Cost Vs. Price With Wendy Frieman

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Do the words cost and price mean the same thing to you?  In most of your life…

124 Past Performance is a Bridge

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Past performance is the bridge to the next contract, whether it is winning new work or just…

123 The Wrap Up Zone

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) It’s time to wrap up the Execution Zones with the final episode in the series: The Wrap…

121 Termination of Contracts

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Kevin and Paul dive into contract terminations. (FAR Part 49) Learn the difference between termination for convenience…

120 Contract Modifications

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) It is likely that your contract will require some kind of modification over its period of performance….

117 The Recompete Zone

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) The Recompete Zone is here!  Are you ready to compete just to keep doing the work you’re…

116 Subcontract Management w/Christi Gilbert

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Welcome back special guest Christi Gilbert! Kevin and Christi discuss subcontract management, specifically relating to service contracts. …

115 What are Delivery Incentives?

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) FAR Part 16.401 describes incentive contracts. Incentives fall into 3 general categories: cost, performance, and schedule. Kevin…

112 Task Order Management w/Christi Gilbert

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) What is a Task Order?  How are task orders managed by Industry?  What should Government acquisition teams…

110 What is CPARS w/Shelly Hall

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) The Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System (CPARS) has been designated as the Federal Government-wide solution for collection…

109 Proposal Production w/Wendy Frieman

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Another excellent episode in our interview series!  Kevin talks to Wendy Frieman, a professional proposal manager who…

108 The Performance Zone

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Welcome to the Performance Zone!  This is where the work gets done… Kevin and Paul introduced the…

107 Pricing Primer

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Cost proposals for Government contracts can be quite different than a proposal or quote in the commercial…

106 The Honeymoon Zone (Execution Zone 1)

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Welcome to the Honeymoon Zone!  Possibly the happiest time in a contract life cycle for both Government…

103 Ethics in Government Contracting

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Ethics never goes out of style…except maybe in election years. If you’re a Government contractor, the FAR…

102 Targeting 301

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) The latest in our continuing series on targeting. First we covered reachable market, target market, and your…

101 Negotiations

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) Negotiations are an important part of the Government acquisition world.  (and the rest of your life, of…

100 What are Cost Incentives?

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!) FAR Part 16.401 describes incentive contracts. Incentives fall into 3 general categories: cost, performance, and schedule. Kevin…