The Defense Department and General Services Administration are taking steps to carry out President Barack Obama's contracting reform agenda by reducing their reliance on risky contracts, increasing the number of contracts subjected to competition, and hiring more acquisition professionals.

The Defense Department has recently started requiring all contracts worth more than $1 billion to undergo high-level approvals before award and throughout the life of the project, said Shay Assad, the department's procurement policy director. This should ensure that programs meet department's needs, costs are reasonable, technology is feasible and alternatives are considered before money is spent, Assad told the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on Tuesday.

The department has canceled and will continue to cancel weapons programs and other projects that are not on track or are no longer needed by the troops, Assad said. It has taken steps to tie contract fees with contractor performance and to use fixed-price contracts where requirements can be clearly defined.

Defense agencies and the military services also are sharing information about the deals they get from the same contractors. The Defense Contract Management Agency will facilitate this information sharing through a central database that captures prices Defense agencies paid for goods or services and other terms, and conditions negotiated with contractors, Assad said.

Sharing information on business deals will help improve pricing and results, he said.

To improve the use of competition when federal agencies use General Services Administration contracts, the agency is promoting use of E-Buy, a Web-based tool that allows agencies to notify all GSA supply schedule contractors qualified to perform a specific task that an opportunity is at hand, said David Drabkin, GSA's acting chief acquisition officer. When agencies use this tool, they typically get between three and six responses, resulting in better prices for the taxpayer and government, Drabkin said.

In addition, GSA and the Defense Department plan aggressive hiring and training efforts for procurement staffs.

GSA is drafting an acquisition workforce plan to guide recruitment, retention and training, Drabkin said. It's also adopted social networking tools and other cutting-edge information technology to attract and retain younger workers by allowing them to conduct business in media they're comfortable with, Drabkin said. In addition, because of workforce shortages, younger employees are advancing quickly through the ranks, aiding retention, he said.

Defense next year will begin hiring 20,000 new acquisition employees to fill gaps in program management, engineering, cost analysis, contract administration and other short-staffed acquisition areas, Assad said.

Many positions will be filled by interns, but retaining them will be a challenge, Assad said. Interns leave at a rate of about 35 percent, usually lured away by other federal agencies or companies, he said.

OMB has said it plans to issue guidance in September to take further steps to implement Obama's contract reform proposal, which was announced March 4. Obama said he plans to reduce the government's use of cost-reimbursement contracts, increase competition, and re-evaluate work that has been contracted out.

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