Opinion
Snowden case launches open season on contractors
Washington turns the Edward Snowden scandal into another opportunity to attack contractors instead of entering a serious debate about national security policy.
Opinion
Don't skimp on your knowledge base
Careers today will stretch out over decades and no matter how young or how old, cultivating a broad knowledge-base is critical to fruitful path forward.
Opinion
Is management to blame when projects fail?
Projects that falter usually have a common root cause - a failure of management. Do you know the four critical elements that all good managers must juggle?
Opinion
Is the government starting to hate LPTA too?
Signs are emerging that government evaluators are starting to fell hamstrung by lowest price, technically acceptable contracting because it limits their judgement. Bob Lohfeld reviews two recent examples.
Opinion
5 end-of-year tactics you must follow
In this strangest of strange years, there are five tactics you must embrace as the calendar hurries toward the end of the fiscal year. They could mean the difference between success and defeat.
Opinion
Cyber getting baked into more procurements
Work is underway on increasing cybersecurity requirements on many of the IT products and services government agencies buy. Procurement expert Steve Charles explores the critical steps you must take to prepare for this change in the market.
Opinion
The lifesaving imperative of adopting new technologies
With the rapid rise of new mobile and geospatial technologies hold the promising of reducing costs while increasing capabilities and above all, saving soldiers lives.
Opinion
Market conditions drive changing corporate strategies
Today's market is driving companies to change strategies to compete and remain profitable. In part two of this exclusive analysis, industry expert Jim Kane explores these strategic choices and how companies are adjusting to the competitive environment.
Opinion
The noise surrounding LPTA, sequestration masks a deeper shift in the market
In this exclusive analysis, Washington Technology explores how the noise surrounding lowest price contracting and budget cuts are disguising a profound shift in the market. In part one of a two-part series, industry expert Jim Kane explores how this shift impacts contractors and the risks they take on in their government projects.
Opinion
When tech support goes global, are federal networks compromised?
Moving tech support overseas has lowered costs for manufacturers and customers, but creates several security questions for government agencies. Force 3's CTO Chris Knotts offers his take and a possible solution.
Opinion
Is it time to revamp your software testing strategies?
Today's market demands efficiencies and cost savings, so why are labor intensive software testing still the norm? Bernie Gauf argues that automated software testing offers the advantages of lower costs and higher quality. Here's what you need to know.
Opinion
4 critical questions to guide your career
Careers last longer and involve multiple employers, so you need to know the critical questions to ask yourself as you take responsibility for your professional development. Remember, no one is going to do it for you.
Opinion
Can you afford to chase premium price? Maybe.
In this era of lowest price contracting, a price premium might seem to be a pipe dream but Robert Lohfeld's analysis shows that if the opportunity presents itself, it can be well-worth the pursuit.
Opinion
Time to bury GOTS technology
Known as GOTS, government-off-the-shelf technology has seen its day come and go. It's wasteful and just can't keep up with rapidly changing times.
Opinion
Can an Agile mindset save you from the LPTA trap?
The Agile methodology can create a closer partnership with customers and increase the likelihood of success but it can also help your solutions stand out as exceptional in a low-price, technically acceptable world.
Opinion
2014 budget request points to new opportunities
Future opportunities will be split between areas the Office of Management and Budget can bring savings such as shared, services, consolidation and cloud computing and areas where more investment is needed such as mobility and cybersecurity. The challenge is knowing where to look for those opportunities.
Opinion
Forging a public-private partnership for cybersecurity
The government and the private sector have an opportunity to build a forward-looking collaboration on security that relies on sharing information and mitigating risk.
Opinion
Time to embrace Agile and beyond
The benefits of Agile development are immediate and obvious but to reap its real value contractors and customers have to embrace flexible architectures and processes including procurement and program management.
Opinion
Washington, we have a procurement problem
In a tight, highly competitive market, the role that acquisition and procurement officials play is critical, which is why the shortage of people with these skills is going to take a bad situation and make it worse.
Opinion