Friday, November 03, 2006

The Troubling Trends of Federal Procurement

ll R. Aitoro , VARBusiness

"The Troubling Trends of Federal Procurement." That title for the procurement policy survey published by the trade association Professional Services Council (PSC) and accounting firm Grant Thornton says it all. Thanks to conflicting strategic procurement initiatives, an insufficient workforce and skepticism from government agencies about collaboration with the private sector, federal procurement faces challenging times.

For the third time since 2002, PSC and Grant Thornton surveyed federal officials about their views on procurement policies and practices. Respondents included 37 representatives from myriad civilian and defense agencies. ...

... According to the Federal Procurement Data System, government purchased more than $374 million in goods and services in 2005, which equals about 45 percent of the annual discretionary budget. That's compared to $200 billion five years earlier. Such a market swell has left the acquisition community scrambling to adjust, often without necessary resources or support from those on Capitol Hill. The number of acquisition professionals in 2005 was 125,779, a 10 percent decrease from 1996, despite a 108 percent increase in dollars spent on purchases and 2 million more transactions completed.


This is an execellent article which explains how one goal can conflict with another.

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