Selling cyber now means understanding FITARA

May 16, 2023 Leave a comment

Feds update FITARA metrics to include agency performance in critical cyber needs.

By Tara Franzonello, Program Development Manager

The U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Reform (COR) released its 15th  Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA) scorecard in December 2022. This latest scorecard introduced a new category for cyber security. 

Agencies’ protests against enacting this key IT legislation have high visibility from agency chief information officers (CIOs) to the General Accounting Office (GAO) to Congress. Technology vendors have an advantage over their competition if they can help agency customers show progress in measured categories. This is now particularly important for FITARA because agency self-assessment for compliance happens every spring.

Why FITARA matters for federal cyber security sales

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Understanding the GSA Ascend BPA

January 12, 2023 Leave a comment

By Tara Franzonello, Program Development Manager, immixGroup

The General Services Administration’s FAS ITC (Federal Acquisition Service, Information Technology Center) is standardizing cloud acquisition with the “Ascend” blanket purchase agreement (BPA). Here’s what you need to know:

Ascend is a multiple-award blanket purchase agreement against the Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) Special Item Numbers 518210C cloud and cloud-related IT professional services and 54151S IT professional services. It is intended to help agencies simplify cloud acquisition and meet cybersecurity requirements.

BPA task orders can be placed under any of three independent primary pools identified by the government: 

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FITARA Scorecard changes: What you need to know

June 1, 2022 Leave a comment

By Tara Franzonello, Program Development Manager

How will changes to the Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act affect government agencies and OEMs?

On Jan. 20, 2022, the Subcommittee on Government Operations discussed FITARA, the Modernizing Government Technology Act, and the Federal Information Security Modernization Act of 2014. The purpose was to consider how to modernize the FITARA Scorecard, since many agency grades have remained stagnant. 

Rep. Gerald E. Connolly, chairman of the Subcommittee, suggested that lack of progress was because of the methodology used to calculate metrics. Connolly believes there should be new ways to hold agencies accountable for IT modernization, including moving to the cloud.

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How TMF helps agencies fund IT Modernization

March 10, 2022 Leave a comment

By Tara Franzonello, Program Development Manager

Improved cyber security is a priority for government agencies, which is why IT Modernization products and services are becoming so important. Unfortunately, agencies may not have sufficient funds for mission-critical IT.

That’s where the Technology Modernization Fund (TMF) comes in.

TMF bridges the gap in IT Modernization between what agencies want and Congress expects. In the last several months alone, the TMF has approved seven new projects totaling over $300M in new funding.

To help address immediate security and capability gaps, suppliers must have a better understanding of the TMF. Agency customers will be better positioned for TMF money if you can explain how products and services map to TMF priorities, and how they provide solutions to pressing IT issues. 

Shaping the TMF proposal

TMF is an “innovative funding vehicle” authorized by the Modernizing Government Technology Act of 2017. It provides agencies with resources to secure systems and data, and to deliver services to citizens.

The Technology Modernization Board of TMF evaluates project proposals, provides funding recommendations, and monitors progress and performance of approved projects. Project proposals are submitted through a two-phased approval process – an Initial Project Proposal (IPP) and a Full Project Proposal (FPP). 

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Make it easier for your Army customers: How the ITES-SW2 helps you sell into this market

August 25, 2021 Leave a comment

By Tara Franzonello, GSA Programs Consultant

Are you selling or planning to sell to the Army? Then you need to add your company and its products to the Information Technology Enterprise Solutions – Software 2 contract.

Nearly 3% of DoD IT contract spending in FY 2020 flowed through an ITES contract – that’s $1.64 billion. The Army believes that number will increase over the next couple of years.  

The ITES-SW2 contract is part of the Army’s Computer Hardware, Enterprise Software and Solutions (CHESS) program. It is a mandatory source for commercial IT hardware and software purchases. Here’s how the two connect:

The CHESS program’s mission is to be the primary source to “support the Warfighter’s Information Dominance Objectives” by developing, implementing and managing commercial IT contracts that provide “enterprise-wide net-centric hardware, software and supporting services to the Army.” 

CHESS contracts provide IT products and services that comply with U.S. Army Network Enterprise Technology Command, Army and DoD policy and standards. Army commercial hardware and software buyers must use CHESS contracts first, no matter the dollar value.

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Changes in FITARA 11.0: How You Can Help Agencies Improve Their Scorecards

March 15, 2021 Leave a comment

This past December, GAO made changes to the FITARA scorecard. By tracking these changes, you can help your agency customers improve their FITARA grades and meet mission goals. (Click here to review the latest scorecard.)

The next agency self-reporting period comes in April, with scorecards due in May. Agencies are being pushed to better use IT to meet FITARA objectives, such as cybersecurity and modernizing government technology.

So what does that mean for FITARA compliance? From a flyover perspective, first, the new administration is likely to look more closely at transformation in its policy priorities. Next, the FITARA scorecards will retire categories that have had across-the-board success, and shift focus to the next area that needs improvement.

Here are some of the expected shifts.

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GSA’s VPP: Why You Should Care

September 23, 2020 Leave a comment

By Tara Franzonello, GSA Programs Consultant

GSA is beginning Phase I of its Verified Products Portal (VPP), targeting OEMs and wholesalers, with a goal to have the portal up and running in 2021. Why should OEMs, distributors or resellers care? Simple: If you don’t do VPP right, you could cause problems both for you and your supply chain.

The VPP is intended to host authoritative product content — standardized manufacturer names and part numbers, for example – to improve GSA’s supply chain risk management, as well as the customer experience. This information ideally would be provided directly by OEMs, although resellers and distributors can also create VPP profiles.

Besides product specifications, the VPP will accommodate other information such as photos and pricing data. OEMs will be able to use the portal to authorize and deauthorize products and resellers in real-time, which could eliminate the need for resellers to provide letters of supply.  Read more of this post

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GSA and Consumption-Based Cloud Pricing … Stay Tuned!

February 12, 2020 Leave a comment

By Tara Franzonello, GSA Programs Consultant

The consumption-based approach is already widely used in the private sector and GSA hopes to leverage a similar model to recognize the same efficiencies, increase cyber security, foster competition and provide cost savings and transparency — benefits that are being realized today by commercial companies.

Cloud computing is offered in various models (i.e. consumption-based with not to exceed ceiling, subscription based, on-demand, per-use-based, tier-based) as well as pay-as-you go and fixed price combinations in the private sector. Each has its own advantages based on the customer’s specific needs (environment, consumption usage, usage term, etc.). The ideal procurement path for consumption-based cloud computing would provide agencies with a flexibility across both funding and consumption models that promotes cost efficiency and private sector best practices.  Read more of this post

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5 Years Later and FITARA Remains Relevant

August 22, 2019 Leave a comment

By Tara Franzonello, Contracts Manager

FITARA, also known as the Federal IT Acquisition Reform Act, was enacted by Congress in December 2014 with an aim to reform government’s management and acquisition of IT. Although agencies have made progress over the last 5 years, there remain significant challenges in working toward FITARA compliance.

What does this mean for technology providers? Opportunity! Read more of this post

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