**FINAL**

**Office of the Chief Acquisition Officer**

####### GSA Acquisition Workforce Forum

*\--Informing the GSA acquisition workforce on the latest acquisition
news and events!*

**EDITION THIRTEEN**

**FALL 2006**

**[INSIDE THIS ISSUE:]{.underline}**

**CAO Corner**

**From the Desk of the Editor**

**OCAO Update**

**GSAM Rewrite Underway**

**It's a Wrap: SARA Panel Final Recommendations**

**e-Buy Update**

**GSA Advantage Update**

**Office of Organizational Resources Issues Procurement Bulletins**

**PBS Contract Writing System New Release**

**Professional Development**

**OCAO Partners with DOI on Governmentwide Acquisition Intern Program**

**Small Business Corner**

**Tour of Duty**

**Southeast Sunbelt Region at NC Defense Trade Show**

**Northwest/Arctic Region Supports 1st Annual Native American Alliance**

**Green Procurement**

**Potomac Yard Project Receives LEED Gold Award**

**SE Sunbelt Region Wins 2006 Federal Energy and Water Management
Award**

**IAE Corner**

**Then & Now: Integrating the Acquisition Environment---Part 1**

**Section 508 Update**

**GSA and JWOD Strategic Alliance**

**JWOD Thanks GSA for its Support!**

**JWOD Supports GSA During GSA's SmartPay Conference**

**Check It Out!**

**Quote:**

*"All of our citizens should have the opportunity to live and work with
dignity and freedom. Every October, we observe National Disability
Employment Awareness Month, to recognize the talents, skills, and
dedication of disabled Americans who are a vital part of our workforce."
-- President George W. Bush*

**CAO CORNER by Emily Murphy**

GSA is in the midst of implementing a multi-year effort that is
producing significant, across-the--board changes in all aspects of
procurement. A driver of recent change is the government's increasing
reliance on outside contractors to perform many functions critical to
agency operations. With scarcer resources, both financial and human, all
government agencies\--including GSA, are turning increasingly to the
private sector.

Big increases in the number of contracts being awarded by the government
each year put considerable pressure on federal acquisition functions at
all levels. Many agencies, including GSA, are scrambling to keep up.
Here are a few steps we're taking to ensure that acquisition
professionals are adequately prepared to execute their demanding and
changing responsibilities.

**Developing Interagency Standards.** Why is this important, you may
ask? With workloads shifting, people working on an acquisition may not
always be in the same location or even in the agency. With a common set
of standards this won't matter. The government becomes much more
flexible to respond to needs as they arise and as they change. In the
case of disasters, contracting staff could immediately be reassigned to
a different job to assist responding agencies without concern for
capabilities. As it relates to the workforce itself, contracting
personnel would have more flexibility to pursue new and unique
opportunities within the federal workforce, giving them the opportunity
to expand their horizons. Giving contracting personnel these
opportunities will, hopefully, provide the upcoming workforce with added
incentive to remain in the federal government.

**Skill Gaps and the "Complete" Contracting Officer.** Through various
tools, GSA has gone through a skills gap analysis of its 1102 series
employees at all levels. Using the information we've gathered thus far,
we're developing common certification levels. We're also taking it a
step further by using the results of these analyses to focus the
training dollars we have on the areas our workforce scored lowest. We're
developing courses that can cover a variety of skill gaps in a single
course as well as courses that focus on just one competency.

We're also expanding the acquisition workforce to include project
management. Preparing contracting officers of the future should include
training across project management functions---finance, legal,
management---as well as across contracting types. In the changing
acquisition environment, a well rounded contracting officer will need to
have a basic understanding of the skills of the rest of the acquisition
team in order to do things better, faster, cheaper, and with fewer
people.

These are only a few of the areas we're focusing on in developing the
acquisition workforce. Through the Federal Acquisition Institute (FAI)
and the Center of Acquisition Excellence, I believe we are on track to
be able to meet both your development needs and the needs of the federal
government as a whole. There is a lot more work to be done, but I am
confident that we at GSA, and as a government, will achieve great things
for the acquisition workforce.

**From the Desk of the Editor** by Judy Steele

This edition of the "Forum" is about change, updates and results. OCAO
is well into a rewrite of the GSAM which will make our jobs as
acquisition professionals easier to perform. The SARA Panel has wrapped
up their work and made final recommendations. Two new Procurement
Information Bulletins have been released by PBS. OCAO has also renewed a
partnering agreement with the Interior Department to support Interior's
Governmentwide Acquisition Intern Program. Results have been
immediate---we have already welcomed our first Intern from that program,
Kelly Lael. Articles on updates to e-Buy, GSA Advantage, a new release
of the PBS Electronic Acquisition System, and an upcoming new release of
the Buy Accessible Wizard demonstrate how GSA is working to update tools
to facilitate the acquisition process.

Please take time to read Part 1 of the article Lisa Cliff and I wrote
(with invaluable input from the whole IAE Program Office), "Then & Now:
Integrating the Acquisition Environment." Part 1 of this article
discusses how the IAE initiative evolved. Parts 2 and 3, which will be
published in the Winter and Spring 2007 editions of the newsletter, will
discuss what life was like for acquisition professionals before IAE, and
what it is like now. Those of you who are new to the acquisition
profession may be interested in seeing what those of us "oldtimers" had
to go through! The complete article will be published in the November
edition of "Contract Management," the National Contract Management
Association magazine.

We hope you will find this issue of the "Forum" to be helpful in
informing you on some of the changes underway at GSA. Please forward any
comments, suggestions and articles for the newsletter to the Editor,
Judy Steele, at <judy.steele@gsa.gov>. The "Forum" is here to meet the
needs of the GSA acquisition community and we can't do that without
[your]{.underline} input!

**OCAO UPDATE**

**GSAM Rewrite Underway**

OCAO is beginning a comprehensive review of the General Services
Administration Acquisition Manual (GSAM.) The goal is to have the GSAM
completely revised by December 2008. Revisions to the GSAM are necessary
to maintain consistency with the FAR; and to implement streamlined and
innovative acquisition procedures that contractors, offerors and GSA
contracting personnel can utilize when entering into and administering
contractual relationships. The GSAM rewrite initiative will provide new
and/or augmented coverage, revise sections which have become irrelevant
because of changes in technology or business processes, and delete
unnecessary burdens on small businesses.

The GSAM rewrite effort is organized into seven teams consisting of
employees throughout the country, representing all of the Regions. OCAO
chose to organize a team of experts consisting of subject matter experts
from services and staff offices to draw from the knowledge base and best
practices of GSA employees nationwide. The teams have been working
diligently on several high priority GSAM parts. Their insight and input
will help revise, maintain, and publicize the GSAM. For more
information, contact Beverly Cromer at <beverly.cromer@gsa.gov> or
202-501-1448.

**It's A Wrap: SARA Panel Final Recommendations**

by Laura Auletta, Executive Director, Acquisition Advisory Panel

In the update on the Acquisition Advisory Panel (SARA Section 1423
Panel) in the Spring edition of the newsletter, I provided you with the
recommendations from the Small Business Working Group and the
Interagency Contracting Working Group. Since then, the SARA Panel has
adopted recommendations covering performance-based acquisitions,
commercial practices, the acquisition workforce, the appropriate role of
contractors supporting the government, and data. This article will
describe the general purpose of the recommendations for each of the
working groups. You may review the actual findings and recommendations
at the Panel's website at
[www.acquisition.gov](http://www.acquisition.gov/) by selecting the link
for the Acquisition Advisory Panel, and, once at our website, selecting
"Panel Recommendations To Date."

It is important to note that until implemented by statute, regulation or
policy, the Panel's recommendations are just that, recommendations. This
article should not be interpreted as policy implementing any of these
recommendations.

The SARA Panel has been busy over the last 18 months. (Please see the
Winter 2006 edition of the newsletter for more background information on
the Panel.) During the last year and a half, the Panel:

-   Held 31 public meetings

-   Heard testimony from over 100 witnesses representing over 85
    organizations including federal agencies, trade associations,
    commercial companies, government contractors, both large and small,
    government audit agencies, government watchdog groups, academics,
    and private citizens

-   Recorded nearly 7,500 pages of transcripts

Three of the specific areas the Panel was tasked to review were
commercial buying practices, performance-based acquisitions, and
interagency contracting. The Panel was to recommend changes that would
advance the best interests of the government and improve the efficiency
of the acquisition system while maintaining its ethical and financial
integrity.

During the testimony of the more than 100 witnesses who addressed the
Panel and the Panel's research, several themes began to emerge and
intersect in the working groups:

-   The importance of a competitive process to drive the best outcomes

-   The importance of requirements analysis to derive the benefits of
    competition

-   Lack of tools necessary for requirements analysis or market research

-   Uneven or inadequate data collection rendering comprehensive
    analysis difficult, and

-   Transparency lacking in key areas

**Commercial Practices*. ***The Panel invited speakers with expertise in
given areas including commercial companies who purchase services from
other firms. They included Procter & Gamble, Disney Corporation, and
General Motors, among others. These firms were asked about how they buy
services for their companies, and in particular, how they buy solutions.
Here is what they told the Panel:

-   They apply significant resources to these engagements, especially in
    the upfront requirements definition stages

-   Because of this emphasis in analyzing their requirements, they are
    able to procure these services performance-based and at a fixed
    price

-   They rarely buy solutions under time and materials (T&M) contracts
    because they are expensive to manage properly

-   They nearly *always* compete these acquisitions

-   Competition not only provides better pricing, it also fuels
    innovation

-   They allow significant exchange with the companies during the
    competition and generally down-select to two or three companies
    during the competition

-   They continually monitor performance after award

The Panel compared this to information collected about government
procurements:

-   Significant dollars are awarded non-competitively (32% of all
    contract awards in 2004 were non-competitive)

-   Since 2000, competitive procurements resulting in only one offer
    have doubled

-   The Government Accountability Office (GAO) and the Inspectors
    General from GSA and the Defense Department, in both testimony and
    their reports, found that orders under interagency contracts

    -   frequently did not comply with competition requirements

    -   lacked sufficient government surveillance of T&M orders

    -   lacked clear roles and responsibilities between those holding
        the contracts, those ordering off of them, and the end user

-   Government contractors and trade associations told the Panel that
    the government frequently doesn't describe its requirements
    sufficiently to allow fixed pricing

-   The GAO said there was little visibility into interagency contracts

-   The government cannot identify how many interagency contracts exist
    outside of the GSA multiple award schedules (MAS) program and
    governmentwide acquisition contracts (GWACs).

-   Approximately \$140 billion was awarded under interagency contracts
    in FY 2004

-   The GAO has added interagency contracts to their "High Risk" series

Based on what commercial firms told the Panel and the information it
gathered, the Panel's emphasis on competition is understandable.
Recommendations adopted reinforce the importance of competition and
improved transparency when competitive procedures are waived. For
instance, the Panel recommended that the Section 803 requirements for
DoD be expanded governmentwide for multiple award contracts to ensure
all vendors who may offer are notified of opportunities and that
agencies solicit sufficient numbers to ensure three offers are received.
The Panel also recognized the need for better requirements definition
but clearly understood the challenge this poses to an already strained
workforce. Therefore, the Panel recommended providing tools to assist
acquisition personnel in developing requirements and maintaining market
expertise.

**Interagency Contracting.** As to the recommendations for improving
interagency contracting, the Panel suggested more emphasis on the
business disciplines necessary for the creation of well-managed
interagency contracts -- focusing on a clear business case, sufficient
resources, and delineation of roles and responsibilities when an agency
decides to set up or continue such a contract. The recommendations also
focus on transparency -- in fact, some of you may have been involved in
the data call from the Office of Federal Procurement Policy (OFPP) which
was an initial step recommended by the Panel to get an idea of how many
of these contracts are in existence. The Panel agreed that competition
among agencies using competing interagency contracts was good but
inefficient duplication degrades the value of these vehicles to leverage
buying power and reduce overall administrative costs to the government.
Therefore, identification of these contracts is critical.

**Small Business.** The Panel also heard testimony from small businesses
concerned with the impact of interagency contracts on their
opportunities to participate in government procurements. The Panel
recommended, therefore, statutory authority to reserve for small
business some prime contract awards under full and open competitions for
multiple award contracts that would not otherwise be suitable for a
total small business set-aside. The Panel also recommended statutory
authority to reserve certain orders under these contracts for just small
business competition. If implemented, these recommendations would
provide authority for such reservations but would not make them
mandatory.

**Performance-Based Service Acquisitions.** Based on a written public
comment, the Panel initiated its own survey of performance-based service
acquisitions (PBSA). The Panel randomly selected about 76 contracts and
orders from those coded as performance-based in FPDS-NG from the top 10
contracting agencies. Approximately 64 were received and reviewed with
the following findings:

-   36% contained the elements of a performance-based acquisition

-   42% were clearly not performance-based (quite a number of these were
    determined by the agencies themselves not to be performance-based
    and mistakenly coded as such in FPDS-NG)

-   22% required significant improvement in one or more elements of a
    PBSA

While not intended to be a statistically valid survey, the results
support the GAO study done in 2002 and testimony heard from federal
agencies about the challenges they face when trying to apply PBSA
techniques. In the 22% where significant improvement was needed, the
most common problem was that the measures weren't linked to a specific
outcome or quality attribute. The most positively reviewed contracts or
orders frequently used service level agreements (SLAs) to define
performance levels and objective measures. The Panel heard testimony
that commercial companies use performance-based techniques to drive
innovative solutions. But it also heard from government contractors that
many solicitations they receive could be written as performance-based
but are not. The Panel's recommendations focus primarily on providing
more guidance on how to assess a requirement for suitability for
performance-based acquisition techniques as well as guidance on applying
the technique, such as developing measurable performance standards and
appropriate incentives.

**Acquisition Workforce.** The acquisition workforce recommendations
focus on the need to consistently define and identify and provide human
capital planning for the acquisition workforce in order to assess the
needs of agencies. The Panel found that while acquisition reform
simplified purchasing under the simplified acquisition threshold,
purchasing above that threshold became more complex and the services
bought by the government are more sophisticated than ever. The Panel
recommends incentives to retain experienced senior personnel and a
governmentwide intern program to attract high quality personnel at the
entry level. But the Panel also recognizes the need to focus on
continuing training and recommended numerous improvements including
agency head approval before training funds can be diverted for other
uses and an OFPP review of whether the training of an individual agency
is sufficient to support its Human Capital Management Plan for the
acquisition workforce. The Panel recommended reauthorization of the SARA
Training Fund.

**Appropriate Role of Contractors Supporting the Government.** The Panel
recognized the growing use of contractors in the workplace to help
agencies meet their missions. This emergence of what is frequently
called the "blended workforce" has resulted in some confusion,
especially with respect to the concepts of inherently governmental
functions, personal services, and organizational and personal conflicts
of interest. It also raises questions of how to protect contractors'
confidential and proprietary data when in the hands of other contractors
working side-by-side with government personnel. The Panel acknowledged
the need for contractor support to meet agency mission; however, it
found that the proliferation of contractors in the workplace raises some
questions that must be addressed. The Panel, therefore, recommended
updating the principles for agencies to apply in determining which
functions must be done by civil servants and staffing these adequately.
But it also found that the provisions that limit the government's
ability to direct the work of contractors onsite create inefficiencies.
Therefore, it recommended removing these artificial barriers to allow
the government to direct a contractor's workforce on the substance of
work or tasks to be performed while maintaining the prohibition on
governmental personnel performing in any supervisory capacity with
respect to a contractor's workforce (e.g., hiring, leave approval,
promotion, performance ratings). The Panel also recommended training and
tools to assist government personnel in the identification of contractor
organizational and personal conflicts of interest and how to address or
mitigate these and how to protect contractor confidential and
proprietary information in a blended workforce environment.

**FPDS-NG Data.** Finally, the Panel recommended improvements in the
accountability of data submissions to FPDS-NG, finding that some key
data in the system is either erroneously entered (as in the case of the
performance-based data described above in the Panel's survey) or for
other reasons provides little visibility into the government's
procurement. For instance, the Panel frequently found anomalies within
given transactions, where, for instance, the supply or service code
completely contradicted the NAICS code or, where billions of dollars of
GSA schedule orders were coded as "noncommercial." Therefore, the
Panel's recommendations include that during Procurement Management
Reviews (PMRs), and IG and GAO reviews, accuracy of FPDS-NG data for
given transactions should also be reviewed to ensure consistency with
the contract or order file.

You are encouraged to monitor the Panel's website. The Panel's draft
final report will be posted for public comment. The Panel will submit
its final report to OFPP and Congress later this year. For more
information, contact Laura Smith-Auletta at <laura.auletta@gsa.gov> or
202-208-7279.

**e-Buy Update**

GSA's e-Buy, the federal government's premier Request For Quote (RFQ)
tool, is designed to facilitate the request for and submission of
quotes/proposals for supplies and services offered under GSA Schedules
and Governmentwide Acquisition Contracts (GWACs). As customer agencies
and vendor needs grow, we are continuously improving and enhancing
e-Buy. For instance, for our customer agencies, we have improved and
streamlined the purchase order process and updated the address features.
Also, we have included more sorting functionality for RFQs and
integrated links to vendor attachments on the RFQ detail page, making it
easier to manage your RFQs.

We have also included more sorting functionality for RFQs for our
vendors. Buyer modifications are now dated for identification purposes.
Schedules and Special Item Numbers (SINs) selected by the buyer now
appear on the RFQ for referencing capabilities. Also, the time remaining
on an RFQ is now shown at the bottom of the screen to assist in a timely
response to buyer RFQs. In addition, new training materials such as
webcasts and updated tutorials have been added to the e-Buy homepage.
For more information, check out the website at
[www.ebuy.gsa.gov](http://www.ebuy.gsa.gov/) or contact Sandra Ladds at
<sandra.ladds@gsa.gov> or 703-605-2630.

**GSA Advantage Update**

GSA Advantage provides the most convenient one-stop shopping source to
meet all your procurement needs. With GSA Advantage, you have the most
reliable resource for federal purchasers, the most comprehensive
selection of approved products and services, and the ability to complete
purchases quickly, with confidence, and at best value. We have
introduced several new special categories on GSA Advantage:
Environmental, Disaster Relief, Fire, and Homeland Security. These
special categories have been tailored to help customers locate related
products and services as well as provide useful links and information
relating to associated laws and regulations.

Purchasing or "checking out" your products is now faster and easier. We
recently updated and streamlined the "Checkout" process. One page now
tells it all! The new "Checkout -- Review" screen displays a summary of
your order including payment information, customer information, items
being ordered, etc., and provides links to easily update this
information if needed. The shopping cart now displays the vendor name
with each product, and you now have the ability to add the same product
to the cart as long as it is configured differently using the
options/accessories link. New sorting capabilities have been added to
the Search Results page allowing you to sort by price or by
manufacturer. In addition, the Address Book has been reconstructed for
better clarity and usability. Now you can view all your addresses at one
time and designate an individual to receive shipment. Lastly, Order
History has been improved to provide more information about your order.
Shipping addresses and individuals receiving shipment are now listed at
the bottom of the page. Environmental and other symbols associated with
products ordered are now displayed, and you now have the ability to view
and print Purchase Orders from the Order History page.

Look for more exciting changes coming to GSA Advantage in the near
future! For more information, check out the website at
[www.gsaadvantage.gov](http://www.gsaadvantage.gov/) or contact Sandra
Ladds at <sandra.ladds@gsa.gov> or 703-605-2630.

**Office of Organizational Resources Issues Procurement Bulletins**

The PBS Office of Organizational Resources' Vendor Acquisition Division
obtained the OCAO's concurrence and regional input toward the
development of Procurement Information Bulletin (PIB) 06-05. PIB 06-05
implements OCAO\'s Acquisition Letter V-06-05, Assisted Acquisitions:
Periodic Review Requirements and Fiscal Year Cut-Off-Dates, tailored for
PBS operations. The PIB was signed by Commissioner Winstead for national
distribution on August 8, 2006. The PIB provides for target compliance
completion dates and a \$50,000 review threshold for certain
procurements.

The Acquisition Division also obtained regional, headquarters, and
senior executive input in the development of a strategy for consistently
managing the PBS Acquisition and Procurement program. The result was
implementation of PIB 06-04, which focuses on Acquisition Excellence
through the compilation of a uniform set of tools and approaches the
regions can use to improve the PBS acquisition process. PIB 06-04 was
signed by Commissioner Winstead for national distribution on July 21,
2006. For more information, contact Barbara Bartee at
<barbara.bartee@gsa.gov> or 202-501-1824.

**PBS Contract Writing System New Release**

PBS Office of the Chief Information Officer (CIO) deployed a new version
of the PBS Electronic Acquisition System (EAS) on June 12. This version
of EAS uses the commercial product Comprizon Suite to provide PBS
associates with a national web enabled system to manage the full life
cycle of procurement activities and contract administration. In
conjunction with several look and feel improvements, other behind the
scenes improvements resulted in a significant increase in response time.
Also, a National Interest flag was added, enabling easy identification
of hurricane related actions.

In preparation for deployment of Comprizon Suite 8.0, PBS successfully
provided a demonstration of the new capabilities to over 500 of the
active users. This was accomplished by utilizing interactive Lotus
Sametime sessions hosted by the PBS CIO and presented by CACI, system
support contractor, that included a powerpoint presentation followed up
with a live on-line demo of the system and Q&A session on the new
version. There was one demo per region and, based on statistics
gathered, PBS was able to reach a third of the active users in up to 23
different locations at once without incurring any significant travel
costs. For more information, contact Greg Yantis at
<greg.yantis@gsa.gov> or 540-338-7808.

**PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT**

**OCAO Partners with DOI on Governmentwide Acquisition Intern Program**

Over the last few months, the Office of National and Regional
Acquisition Development has been making great strides in continuing to
develop training, educating, and expanding the acquisition workforce. As
part of our commitment to professional development, we are partnering
once again with the Department of the Interior (DOI) Governmentwide
Acquisition Management Intern Program. This is a three-year program
which allows interns to rotate to four or five different federal
agencies. This program is designed to develop federal government
Contract Specialists into procurement professionals, allowing them to
become the government business leaders of the future. Supervisors
prepare an Individual Development Plan (IDP) for each intern that guides
their training and assignments throughout the program, including four,
six-month long rotational assignments at one of the sponsoring
government agencies. Interns are permanently assigned to jobs in one of
the sponsoring agencies.

Over the next three years, GSA will have four DOI interns rotating
through different offices within GSA. We are pleased to announce that we
have recently welcomed our first DOI intern for 2006, Kelly Lael. Kelly
has been involved in several procurement--related projects while
rotating through GSA, such as: reviewing RFPs and proposals,
participating in A-76 studies, and observing Source Selection Boards.
Kelly is very enthusiastic about this program and about GSA; she likes
the procurement field and is anxious to complete all of the coursework
necessary to be Clinger-Cohen compliant. We wish Kelly, and all of the
interns who will be joining GSA through this DOI program, the best of
luck in their federal government careers. For more information, contact
Rachael Stevens at <rachael.stevens@gsa.gov> or 202-208-1261 or Ronald
Quinn at <ronald.quinn@gsa.gov> or 202-219-1362.

##### SMALL BUSINESS CORNER

**Tour of Duty: GSA's Small Business Initiative Benefits Service
Disabled Veterans**

The Veterans Entrepreneurship Act and Small Business Development Act of
1999 established an annual governmentwide goal of not less than 3
percent of the value of prime contract and subcontract awards for
participation by small business concerns owned and controlled by service
disabled veterans. Executive Order 13360 tasked GSA to establish a GWAC
to strengthen opportunities in federal contracting for Service Disabled
Veteran Owned Small Businesses (SDVOSBs). As a result of the order, the
Veterans Technology Services Governmentwide Acquisition Contract (GWAC)
or VETS GWAC was implemented.

The VETS GWAC provides federal agencies the ability to achieve small
business goals through purchases of information technology (IT)
solutions from small businesses owned by service-disabled veterans. It
provides federal agencies with a new way to achieve small business goals
through purchase of IT solutions from a pre-competed pool of SDVOSB
firms. VETS is a multiple award, indefinite-delivery indefinite-quantity
contract designed to provide worldwide IT solutions to federal agencies
while strengthening opportunities in federal contracting for SDVOSBs.

VETS is the first GWAC set-aside for SDVOSBs and it is being procured by
the GSA Small Business GWAC Center, which manages a diversified
portfolio of small business GWACs. The Center's currently active GWACs
are the 8(a) STARS (Streamlined Technology Acquisition Resources for
Services) GWAC and the HUBZone (Historically Underutilized Business
Zone) GWAC.

GSA GWACs are multiple award, solutions-based contracts for IT. GWACs
are defined as task order or delivery order contracts for IT established
by one agency for governmentwide use (FAR 2.1). VETS GWAC will provide
not only socioeconomic credit toward agency procurement preference goals
but also a variety of benefits that GSA GWACs offer. Customers can take
advantage of GWACs' streamlined process -- a competition within a
qualified pool of contractors at the task order level. The GWAC Program
office will assist customers in meeting their agency IT requirements by
providing education and training, statement of work review, delegations
of authority, and guidance throughout the process. There is also online
training available, \"Governmentwide Acquisition Contracts (GWACs)
Overview,\" which contains valuable information on the proper use of
GWACs. For more information about VETS, please visit our website at
[www.gsa.gov/vetsgwac](http://www.gsa.gov/vetsgwac) or contact the Small
Business GWAC Center at 877-327-8732.

**Southeast Sunbelt Region at NC Defense Trade Show**

The Southeast Sunbelt Region participated in the 5th annual defense
trade show and government procurement workshop sponsored by U.S.
Representative Robin Hayes at the Fayetteville Technical Community
College, Fayetteville, North Carolina. Approximately 100 small business
owners took advantage of meeting industry partners such as Boeing; Booz
Allen Hamilton; Danskin, Inc.; Ft. Bragg Army Contracting; Pope AFB
Contracting Squadron; Seymour Johnson Contracting, and approximately 60
other exhibitors, including the Small Business Administration\'s North
Carolina District Office. The trade show gave small businesses an
opportunity to meet and network with federal buying activities and large
prime contractors. Dinora Gonzalez, Regional Small Business Technical
Advisor, presented information on how to do business with GSA; and John
Porter, Customer Service Director, assisted vendors with questions on
getting on GSA Schedule. For more information, contact Dinora Gonzalez
at <dinora.gonzalez@gsa.gov> or 404-331-3031.

**Northwest/Arctic Region Supports 1st Annual Native American Alliance**

The Northwest/Arctic Region\'s Office of Small Business Utilization
participated in the 1st Annual Native American Alliance Trade Fair, held
in Auburn, Washington, August 22. This event kicked-off the previous
night at the Boeing Museum of Flight and was attended by Washington
State congressional staffs, government agency representatives, and local
and national small business owners. The trade fair was sponsored by
Northwest American Indian Development and the National Center for
American Indian Enterprise Development. These organizations are
committed to helping American Indian communities progress towards
self-sufficiency through integrated business and economic development
activities. The event attracted over 300 participants. For more
information, contact Kenyon Taylor at <kenyon.taylor@gsa.gov> or
253-931-7956.

**GREEN PROCUREMENT**

**Potomac Yard Project Receives LEED Gold Award**

Congratulations to NCR's EPA at One and Two Potomac Yard project team
for receipt of the U.S. Green Building Council's Gold LEED (Leadership
in Energy and Environmental Design) certification rating. The
prestigious rating recognizes the buildings' features such as 20% energy
savings, 40% water use reduction, a "green roof" building connector,
environmentally friendly fixtures and finishes, and the use of recycled
content in most of the products. The buildings, located on the 300-acre
Potomac Yard site in Arlington, Virginia, are the centerpiece of a
portion of the former railroad yard and a premier urban redevelopment
project.

Some of the key features of these state-of-the-art facilities include
"daylight harvesting" allowing more light to come into the workspace and
perimeter overhead lighting that will dim automatically based on ambient
daylight. The result is an employee-friendly building that brings the
natural settings into every office. It will be equally inviting to
visitors and reflects EPA's mission -- to protect human health and the
environment.

With 412,590 rentable square feet of office space, this build-to-suit
lease is the new home for EPA's Office of Solid Waste and Emergency
Response and Office of Prevention Pesticides and Toxic Substances.
Approximately 1,600 people will work in this facility. Congratulations
to Triangle Service Center associates Daryl Jackson, Contracting
Officer; Bob Roop, Section Chief; Sonia Mena, Realty Specialist; Monica
King, Lead Budget Analyst, RWA Team; Scott T. Jackson, Project Manager;
and George Jett, Project Inspector! For more information, contact Cherie
McClung at <cherie.mcclung@gsa.gov> or 202-708-5110.

**SE Sunbelt Region Wins 2006 Federal Energy and Water Management
Award**

The John J. Duncan Federal Building in Knoxville, Tennessee, was named a
winner of the Federal Energy and Water Management Award from the Federal
Interagency Energy Policy Committee and the Department of Energy\'s
Federal Energy Management Program. The governmentwide awards recognize
significant contributions toward increased energy efficiency and water
conservation within the federal government. GSA was cited for making a
real environmental impact through creative thinking, group collaboration
and an over-arching passion to comply with federal energy reduction
mandates at the Duncan building. The GSA Team exceeded Fiscal Year 2005
energy reduction goals by 33 percent - a reduction equivalent to 91,000
gallons of gasoline per year, and reduced water usage by 400,000 gallons
per year, by utilizing green energy sources for electricity. Through
office-waste and construction material recycling programs and through
educational programs for the tenants and the maintenance and cleaning
staffs, the Team reduced waste from the Duncan Building entering
land-fills by 40%. The building has received the Environmental
Protection Agency's Energy Star Building Certification and the Federal
Energy Saver Showcase Designation and is qualified for the Leadership in
Energy and Environmental Design Award for an Existing Building (LEED --
EB) Certification. The Knoxville GSA team included C. Johnathan Sitzlar,
Dennis Gentry, John McCrum, Timothy Wisner and Sandy Jones. For more
information, contact Gary Mote at <gary.mote@gsa.gov> or 404-331-2774.

**IAE CORNER**

**Then & Now: Integrating the Acquisition Environment\--Part 1**

**by Judy Steele and Lisa Cliff**

The Integrated Acquisition Environment (IAE), a Presidential
e-Government initiative managed by GSA, has facilitated every phase of
the acquisition lifecycle, from market research to contract
administration. The purpose of this article is to familiarize the
acquisition community with the IAE systems and provide examples of what
life for the federal contracting community was like before IAE, and what
it is like now. The goal of the article is to inform the readers about
technology, services, and benefits IAE provides both buyers and sellers.

**Background.** Prior to 2001, there were few governmentwide shared
acquisition systems and no collaboration incentives in agencies' budgets
or management processes. Most federal agencies used commercial software
packages for contract writing systems. Several agencies developed
specialized systems to handle specific functions such as vendor data,
past performance monitoring, etc. The integration of all the federal
acquisition processes was one of the 24 e-Government initiatives under
President Bush's Management Agenda. In 2001, Teresa Sorrenti was named
Program Manager of IAE, heading up the office which would provide
overall management and execution of this governmentwide effort. In
keeping with the Services Acquisition Reform Act, IAE was later
relocated to the office of the new GSA Chief Acquisition Officer, in the
Office of Acquisition Systems, with Teresa as director and Earl
Warrington as her deputy.

The goal of the IAE initiative was formidable---to integrate, unify and
streamline all the federal acquisition processes. How was this
accomplished? The team first established a business structure for IAE.
They mapped the business processes inherent in the acquisition process.
The IAE business structure provides a secure business environment that
facilitates and supports cost-effective acquisition of goods and
services in support of agency mission performance. This consists of four
major parts:

1.  Business Partner Network (BPN). BPN provides a single point of
    registration and validation of supplier data that can be accessed by
    all agencies. BPN includes CCR, ORCA, PPIRS, EPLS, and eSRS.

2.  Acquisition Information Reporting (AIR). This provides a central
    point for consolidated collection and access of statistical and
    management information related to government acquisitions. It
    includes FPDS-NG.

3.  Standard Transactions. It was important to develop a standard
    glossary and vocabulary to facilitate exchange of data between and
    within agencies.

4.  eMarketplace. Provides services used during the contracting and
    ordering process. Includes FedBizOpps, FedTeDS, and WDOL. Future
    plans for eMarketplace include launching an updated version of an
    online Interagency Contract Directory (ICD) to simplify and
    facilitate leveraging government buying.

According to Teresa Sorrenti, the IAE team decided **not** to "reinvent
the wheel." If agencies had systems that fit the IAE requirements, they
would **Adopt** those systems. They would **Adapt** systems which were
similar to what was required, and **Acquire** new ones where necessary.
Once the business plan was decided and the structure was in place, the
IAE team developed an organizational strategy to perform their mission.
This consisted of:

-   Organizing teams of acquisition professionals from across the
    government to perform requirements analysis of their acquisition
    needs. This involved more than 300 volunteers from 65 agencies.

-   Leveraging existing systems, eliminating duplicative systems,
    building new systems where necessary.

-   Communicating across agency cultures, creating buy-in across the
    board.

This was not an easy process. As Earl Warrington said, "The effort each
agency went through to transform and operate within IAE was
underestimated. Change management was difficult and getting agencies to
give up their own automation systems was also challenging."

While IAE system Project Managers are often located in other agencies
\[National Technical Information Services, Department of Defense (DoD),
etc.\], this is a federation of services managed overall by GSA. The
governance model for IAE is a tiered structure of management whose
components are:

-   Acquisition Committee for E-Gov (ACE), an executive steering
    committee under the Chief Acquisition Officers Council that provides
    strategy, vision, scope and resources;

-   Program Management Office, which executes and manages the
    operations;

-   Business Area Managers who oversee a portfolio of related services
    to execute IAE strategy, manage development and implementation, and
    ensure inter-operability of the shared services;

-   Multi-agency Business Area Teams that guide system requirements and
    development;

-   Project Managers that execute the development, operations and
    maintenance of the IAE shared services; and

-   IAE Change Control Board (CCB) that approves and prioritizes
    enhancements across shared services under the auspices of the IAE
    Configuration Management Plan. This provides the process to approve
    enhancements to the shared services, ensuring their ongoing
    inter-operability.

Through the work of a dedicated team of professionals from across the
federal enterprise, IAE is achieving its goal of streamlining the
intricate system of processes that is needed to buy and track \$350
billion in goods and services annually.

IAE has been a success. Five systems have been honored with awards. Of
the ten systems discussed in this article, all but three are required
for use by the FAR. The Government Accountability Office pointed to IAE
as "an example of effective collaboration" that had contributed to
advancing the goals of the Presidential e-Government initiative. Another
benefit of this process, according to Earl Warrington, was that it
opened up a huge communication channel between agencies; and between
GSA, the Office of Federal Procurement Policy (OFPP), and agencies. It
has allowed agencies to explore new opportunities to make their business
environment more efficient. Teresa Sorrenti pointed out that the user
groups and committees now established allow agencies to be more attuned
to what other agencies are doing and what is out there to be shared.

IAE played a valuable role in support of the war on terrorism by
providing tools and services needed to help the government fight the war
at home and abroad. Recovery efforts for last year's hurricanes in the
Gulf Coast were supported by the services IAE provides. For example,
FPDS-NG was able to add a new field to identify Katrina support
procurements less than thirty days after the storm, and continues to
provide statistics on support to the affected areas. If it involves
procurement, transportation of sensitive data to vendors, reporting
procurement data to Congress, keeping track of government vendors, or
providing payment information on contracts, it all falls under the
umbrella of services provided by IAE.

*(The next edition of the newsletter will begin a discussion of each IAE
system. NCMA will publish this article in full in the November "Contract
Management" magazine.)*

**SECTION 508 UPDATE**

In July 2006, the Office of Governmentwide Policy conducted a review of
all solicitation actions of fifteen federal agencies published in
FedBizOpps during a one-week period in June 2006. The results were a
stark indication that federal agencies overall are not fully
implementing the requirements of Section 508 as specified in the Access
Board Standard and in the April 2001 FAR Final Rule (FAC 97-27). Less
than 5% of the solicitations met the requirements. Section 508 requires
the acquisition community to meet three basic responsibilities in
preparing a solicitation or prior to purchasing electronic and
information technology (E&IT):

1.  Determine if the acquisition is subject to Section 508;

2.  If the acquisition is subject to Section 508, identify which
    specific provisions of the Access Board's standard apply to the
    acquisition; and,

3.  Conduct sufficient market research to report on the availability of
    E&IT that meets all or part of the applicable accessibility
    standards.

Effectively meeting these responsibilities will lead to better
solicitations, and better solicitations will lead to more accurate
responses and eventually the most appropriate acquisition of E&IT based
on all procurement regulations and business needs.

We continue to enhance the Buy Accessible Wizard to assist all who are
part of the acquisition process to understand and meet these
responsibilities. As of today, the latest version of the Buy Accessible
Wizard (version 2.2) is available free for anyone to use at
[www.buyaccessible.gov](http://www.buyaccessible.gov/). The Buy
Accessible Wizard is the quickest, easiest, and most efficient way to
implement an agency compliance process that meets the three
responsibilities **and documents each step in the process to ensure due
diligence**. In addition, the Buy Accessible Wizard provides
documentation of these responsibilities as part of the acquisition
package.

At the end of September a new release of the Wizard (version 3.0) will
be submitted at GSA for certification and accreditation approval (a
process more commonly known as C&A). As we announced in the last
newsletter, GSA is taking the necessary steps to store Wizard
information for any registered agency user. In addition, the new Wizard
will provide solicitation support (a \'solicitation checklist\', an
updated Wizard summary, and a new \'solicitation template\'), making it
easier to develop specific and appropriate language for solicitations.

Until Version 3.0 passes C&A, version 2.2 will remain in operation.
Version 2.2 features a robust search capability to find accessibility
information that vendors have provided and a complete worksheet to
record the results of market research. This version also provides the
ability for users to save Wizard sessions before they are completed,
allowing users to resume where they stopped at their convenience.

To learn more about how Buy Accessible tools can be used to enhance your
compliance process for Section 508, go to
[www.buyaccessible.org](http://www.buyaccessible.org/) or contact Terry
Weaver at <terry.weaver@gsa.gov> or 202-501-4906.

## GSA AND JWOD STRATEGIC ALLIANCE 

**JWOD Thanks GSA for its Support!**

In honor of October's observance of National Disability Employment
Awareness Month, the Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or
Severely Disabled, together with National Industries for the Blind
(NIB), and NISH (providing employment opportunities to people who have
severe disabilities) would like to thank GSA for its continued support
of the Javits-Wagner-O'Day (JWOD) Program. The JWOD Program strives to
reduce the very high unemployment rate -- nearly 70 percent -- faced by
individuals who are blind or have other severe disabilities by providing
employment opportunities on federal contracts nationwide.

Congress designated National Disability Employment Awareness Month as a
time to increase the public's awareness of the contributions and skills
of American workers who are blind or severely disabled and to highlight
the specific employment barriers that exist today that need to be
addressed and removed. The JWOD Program uses National Disability
Employment Awareness Month as a time to recognize both the contributions
of JWOD employees who are blind or have other severe disabilities whose
efforts support the missions of various federal agencies, as well as the
Program's federal customers who help the JWOD Program meet its
employment mission by purchasing products and services provided by
participating nonprofit agencies.

Always a strong and loyal partner of the JWOD Program, GSA has ensured
the provision of quality products and services to federal customers. Not
only are many SKILCRAFT® and other JWOD products available to federal
customers from a variety of large and small businesses through the GSA
Schedules program, but also GSA's Global Supply program remains the
largest channel for the sale of JWOD products.

Federal customers, we would like to thank you for purchasing SKILCRAFT®
and other JWOD products and services. With your purchasing decisions,
you assist people who are blind or have other severe disabilities in
making a valuable contribution to society and leading more independent
lives, enabling many individuals to reduce dependence on government
support and join the ranks of taxpayers.

We look forward to your participation in October's observance of
National Disability Employment Awareness Month, and by doing so,
recognizing the many achievements and benefits of the JWOD Program while
spreading the word throughout the federal government that JWOD Works for
America. For more information on the JWOD Program, please visit
[www.jwod.gov](http://www.jwod.gov/) or contact Stephanie Lesko at
<slesko@jwod.gov> or 703-603-2146

**JWOD Supports GSA During GSA's SmartPay Conference**

Hundreds of federal employees charged with coordinating the government's
SmartPay credit card program have a better understanding as to how their
official actions help create jobs for Americans who are blind or have
other severe disabilities thanks to the GSA SmartPay conference. During
the event, which was held in St. Louis, Missouri, August 1-3, 2006, more
than 3000 federal employees from around the world had an opportunity to
interact with representatives of the JWOD Program. This year, as in
years past, the JWOD Program had a large professional presence.

The GSA SmartPay conference targets government personnel involved with
the SmartPay credit card program -- namely, Agency/Organization Program
Coordinators (A/OPCs). The A/OPCs are the credit card managers who train
the credit card holders; and therefore the SmartPay conference provides
a great venue for the JWOD Program to "train the trainers."

National Industries for the Blind (NIB), one of the two central
nonprofit agencies that helps administer the JWOD Program, upgraded its
exhibit presence this year by making use of a new 20 foot display. The
booth provided information on the quality SKILCRAFT® products available
for any office requirement, and the exhibitors were honored by visits
from GSA customers and business partners.

In keeping with GSA\'s St. Louis theme for the conference, NIB invited
two Missouri-based JWOD-participating nonprofit agencies (NPAs), St.
Louis Lighthouse and Alphapointe Association for the Blind
(Alphapointe), to be a part of the JWOD exhibit. Adding these two local
NPAs allowed for greater dissemination of the JWOD message. NIB arranged
two tours of the St. Louis Lighthouse on the final day of the
conference. One of the JWOD Program's premier NPAs employing people who
are blind, the St. Louis Lighthouse has been a long-term quality
supplier to GSA for many high quality SKILCRAFT® products, including
enamel, aerosol paint, correction fluid, and tree marking paint. More
than 60 SmartPay conference attendees saw first-hand how successful the
JWOD Program is at creating jobs for this underserved population. The
Lighthouse staff was extremely hospitable, and the tour was not only
educational, but very entertaining. As with any visit to a
JWOD-participating NPA, the tour strengthened the partnership the JWOD
Program has with its valued government customers.

GSA Global Supply graciously invited NIB representatives to present at
both of its scheduled training sessions during the conference while GSA
Global Supply's training course included several references to the JWOD
Program and SKILCRAFT® products. Along with the registration materials,
each attendee received a SKILCRAFT® pen, provided by Alphapointe, and a
JWOD flyer.

As always, the JWOD Program remains grateful for the opportunity to
participate in GSA's SmartPay conference in such a meaningful way. A big
thank you goes out from the JWOD Program to the GSA staff that planned
and executed this outstanding exhibit opportunity. If you have questions
about NIB or the JWOD Program's partnership with GSA, please visit
[www.nib.org](http://www.nib.org/) or contact Dan Carson at
<dcarson@nib.org> or 703-310-0509. If you have other questions regarding
the JWOD Program, please visit [www.jwod.gov](http://www.jwod.gov/) or
contact Stephanie Lesko at <slesko@jwod.gov> or 703-603-2146.

**CHECK IT OUT!**

"Check It Out!" highlights upcoming conferences and events of interest
to the GSA acquisition community. If you'd like to have your conference
or event listed in this column, please send an e-mail to the Editor,
<judy.steele@gsa.gov> with the pertinent information including a point
of contact.

**4^th^ Annual Program Management Summit 2006**

October 12-13, 2006

Ronald Reagan Building

Washington, DC

<http://events.fcw.com/event/PM06>

800-746-0099

**25^th^ Annual Government Contract Management Conference**

December 4-5, 2006

Sheraton Premiere at Tyson's Corner

Vienna, VA

[www.ncmahq.org](http://www.ncmahq.org/)

\*\*\*\*\*

We thank our guest authors for their contributions to this newsletter.
Guest authors express their own views, which are provided for the
information of our newsletter readers. We welcome any comments,
suggestions, and articles. We also welcome any individually authored
articles on acquisition issues that would be of interest to the GSA
acquisition audience. Please contact the Editor, Judy Steele at
<judy.steele@gsa.gov> with comments or suggestions.

*Office of the Chief Acquisition Officer*

*1800 F Street, NW*

*Washington, DC 20405*

*Editor*

*Judy Steele*

*Policy Editors*

*The FAR Staff*