The Government Acquisition Process is Broken Is Your Requirement Really That Complex?

** This post is part of our series on how we can improve government/industry engagement to deliver better mission outcomes. In case you missed it, see our initial post! When requirements are laden with excessive or overly technical details, it creates unnecessary complexity for industry partners responding to solicitations. To be comprehensive, government acquisition teams […]

The Government Acquisition Process is Broken: You Can’t Write Good Requirements In A Bubble!

Crafting High Quality Requirements ** This post is part of our series on how we can improve government/industry engagement to deliver better mission outcomes. In case you missed it, see our initial post! Poorly crafted requirements pose significant challenges for contractors attempting to bid on government procurements. Requirements are the foundation for industry to understand […]

The Government Acquisition Process is Broken: Requirements Consistency Across Time

Why Isn’t There Consistency Between RFI and RFP ** This post is part of our series on how we can improve government / industry engagement to deliver better mission outcomes. In case you missed it, see our initial post! Poorly crafted requirements pose significant challenges for contractors attempting to bid on government procurements. Requirements are […]

The Government Acquisition Process is Broken: BAP vs. GAP

Industry Business Acquisition Process vs. Government Acquisition Process ** This post is part of our series on how we can improve government/industry engagement to deliver better mission outcomes. In case you missed it, see our initial post! Most of industry follows a standard Business Acquisition Process (BAP) for engaging with government customers on potential procurements.  […]

The Government Acquisition Process is Broken: The FAR Says So!

The FAR Encourages Communication with Industry ** This post is part of our series on how we can improve government/industry engagement to deliver better mission outcomes. In case you missed it, see our initial post! Improving The Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 15.201 encourages information exchanges between the government and industry from the earliest identification of […]

The Government Procurement Process is Stuck in the Past – And It’s Hurting All of Us

In the coming weeks, we’ll be posting a series of articles derived from a whitepaper I wrote for one of our government customers. I wrote “Contracting for Excellence: Cost, Risk, and Performance” to help our government stakeholders (Program Leaders, Acquisition Executives, Contracting Officers, and others) to understand better the challenges they introduce to the industry […]

Celebrating Women in Government Contracting

As we mark International Women’s Day, it’s crucial to remember at ICS, we’re not just about celebrating our incredible women on this special day; we celebrate them every day. This global day of recognition offers a perfect moment to reflect on the strides women have made in various fields, including the dynamic and challenging world […]

Annual Performance Reviews Are A Waste Of Time: What To Do Instead

Dreading annual performance review season at your company? You’re not alone. The dreaded annual review is outdated, demotivating, and a waste of time. Yet so many companies stubbornly cling to them. Why is that? We’ve tried them all: The Rating Scale method, the 360-degree feedback, Management by Objectives (MBOs) and the Essay Method. They all […]

Master Efficiency with the Dollarization Discipline

In the quest for efficiency, understanding the true value of our actions in dollar terms, as advocated by The Dollarization Discipline, has revolutionized the way businesses operate. At ICS, we’ve embraced this concept, refining it to better suit our delegation and productivity strategies. ICS’s Custom Approach We begin by assigning a monetary value to each […]

Focus to Flourish: The Art of Perfecting Your Business Niche

In the fast-paced world of Government Contracting (GovCon), finding, and evolving your niche is not just a strategy – it’s a necessity. As an entrepreneur who transitioned from an Information Security Specialist in the Air Force to founding ICS in the ’90s, I’ve navigated this journey firsthand. Let me share the pivotal steps that can […]