Washington Technology reports that the DHS is planning an EAGLE II take-off. According to the article, the Homeland Security Department has plans to issue a draft solicitation for its $45 billion Eagle II procurement by the end of March, with the request for proposals coming in the third quarter of fiscal 2010.
Federal spending for vendors, services and products in 2009 targeted many areas. The largest two areas were Government Contracts and Federal Grants, comprising approximately 70% of the total spent. However, in 2009, 46% of the total spending went into grants, overshadowing contract dollars by almost 20%.
With an overall rise in grant popularity and spending and a federal goal of decreasing in the percentage of overall contract expenditures, the Government is clearly showing the direction of spending trends likely to occur in 2010. As contract companies prepare proposals for Government contract opportunities, the Government is actually working on shifting more funds to Federal Grants and Government Civilians Acquisition Programs, as mentioned in one of our previous blogs.
As contract centric companies target government contract opportunities, they need to be acutely aware that targeting grants, preparing grant proposals and applying for Federal Gants may be as successful, and as profitable, as traditional contract opportunities.
In addition, knowing current trends on how Federal Contract spending is executed can lead to winning profitable contracts while providing the foresight to pass by potentially unfunded, or poorly funded, unprofitable contracts.
Specifically, 2008 and 2009 saw an increase in multi-year contracts awarded using “excess” or “leftover” funds from other contract and spending programs. While this has created additional contract opportunities, it has also created many contracts that have premature funding shortfalls when next year’s “excess” funding is not as large as the previous years. With the new Government Executive Administration, new contracts solicitations are being scrutinized based on necessity, causing a trend of existing contracts to be “expanded” by adding funds into existing programs, instead of trying to justify new contracts.
These trends indicate that existing contracts, specifically multi-award Indefinite Quantity contracts are likely to see an increase in funding, while smaller contracts utilizing excess funding from previous years are likely to be unfunded, or underfunded. Companies providing services to the Federal Government cannot propose all solicitations and grants. As such, understanding which opportunity is likely to be successful and profitable in the coming years is critical in choosing which contract, grant, or opportunity to target, pursue and expend effort on.
About the author: Jason Wilson, the SGIS Division Manager of the Intelligence and Training Division, is a recently retired US Army Warrant Officer with 21 years of military experience. Wilson has strong relevant operational and institutional credentials and subject matter expertise as well as 19 years of experience in leadership and contract supervision positions.
Specific accolades for Jason Wilson include:
Certified Project Manager (CPM)
5 years supporting DoD and US Army level acquisition programs
6 years supporting and participating in Advanced Concept Technology Demonstrations and Joint Capability Technology Demonstrations
6 years supervising a theater wide contract for Oracle and MS SharePoint development
If you are interested in reaching out to the author via discussion, visit SGIS on LinkedIn.
This year marks our Fourth Annual Charity Golf Tournament in support of Susan G. Komen for the Cure, taking place on October 16 at The Courses at Andrews Air Force Base. We recently held a contest for our employees asking who could raise the most money to benefit Susan G. Komen. The prize for the winners would be an all expenses paid trip to Washington D.C. along with spots to play in the actual tournament. SGIS employees at our Indianapolis office enthusiastically contributed their time and efforts by seeking out sponsorships, collecting raffle items and hosting a local Charity Night, altogether collecting around $2,000. Luke Bosso, a Resource Manager at SGIS, shares his experience putting together a Charity Night for the cause. Bosso is one of the winners for the contest and will be attending the golf tournament on October 16: We’ve all been affected by cancer in some way, whether through a friend, relative or co-worker. When SGIS announced the fundraising challenge for employees, it was a nice compliment to the real prize; contributing to the fight against breast cancer. It’s not everyday that you get a chance to make a real difference in life. Here was our chance.
SGIS supports Susan G. Komen
We came up with the idea of hosting a Charity Night to raise money for the cause. I didn’t realize how easy getting prizes would be when we explained why we were raising the money. From professional baseball players to golf pros, we started making calls and donations came pouring in. Everyone wanted to be involved in some way or another. We had a great setup for the event; we took over two pool tables and had pink EVERYWHERE. I was shocked when people started coming in and giving the amounts of money they did. I thought we would really have to work to sell raffle tickets, but all we had to do was explain that we were raising money for Susan G. Komen. The great thing about it is that every dollar counts and you never know what your dollar can do. The bar, the attendees and all of my co-workers were great. We couldn’t have had a better turn out than we did. So many people were willing to give so much and it was just fantastic.
Bosso & SGIS Employees Celebrate
After we found out we raised over $1,200, that’s when it sank in that we had made a difference. I played football in college and we won some big games, but the rush I got after the event and the fact we raised so much was amazing. It is a satisfying feeling to know we worked hard and all the money is going to a great cause. I am happy to say that on October 1, we made a difference!
About the Author: Luke Bosso a Resource manager that has been with SGIS for over a year. Bosso is an alumnus of Franklin College, where he played Division III football while earning a degree in Broadcast.
The Department of Defense Website recently underwent a huge transformation. Formerly known as “DefenseLINK.mil,” the DoD page has now become a new-and-improved “Defense.gov.” The reason for the change? A strategy to emphasize two-way, personal communication with the American public, according to Price Floyd, principal deputy assistant secretary of public affairs. The launch is targeted specifically towards the 18- to 24-year-old age group. Defense officials at the Pentagon are hoping to reach and engage these users in a number of ways by allowing them to post questions, provide feedback and participate in other interactive features.
If you haven’t been to the page yet, you’ll definitely want to take a look.
New DoD Homepage
Have you visited the new DoD Website? What security risks do you think should be addressed?
SGIS has joined with Rally for the Cure for our
4th Annual Charity Golf Tournament in support of Susan G. Komen for the Cure.
Time & Location
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2009
The Courses at Andrews Air Force Base, MD
Registration at 8:30 a.m.
Golf shotgun start at 9:30 a.m.
Lunch and awards at 3 p.m.
The Mission of Susan G. Komen for the Cure:
To spread awareness in the fight to eradicate breast cancer as a life-threatening disease and to help women realize that education and reinforcement of early detection is the best defense, until there is a cure.
Calling All Golfers!
Friends, colleagues, and community: You are invited to join us in supporting this event. We welcome individual players to be paired with a team, but encourage you to bring your own WINNING team! Come out and help support a cause that is so dear to SGIS. Can’t play in the tournament? Become a sponsor, donate to the prize pool or volunteer your time. No effort is too small! All proceeds will benefit Susan G. Komen for the Cure.
