Traditional Government Contracting Program

Acquisition of Innovative Technology and Weapon Systems
Government contracting plays a critical role in the acquisition of innovative technology for different departments such as the Department of Defense (DoD). Over the past few years, DoD has enhanced its development and acquisition of innovative weapon systems to enhance its effectiveness and efficiency. However, the conventional government contracting process is characterized by challenges resulting in delays and significant costs for taxpayers. This issue has attracted the attention of various researchers and stakeholders such as the U.S. Government Accountability Office. These stakeholders have conducted various studies and researches on the government contracting process and provided recommendations that could help enhance it and improve efficiencies in the operations of government agencies. This paper compares and analyzes two publications conducted on this issue and discusses the significance of procurement law and the applicable government requirements.
Primary Goals of Each Reading
Complicated government procurement programs have generated significant attention among various stakeholders and necessitated changes to existing policies and practices. These complicated procurement programs are largely associated with the regulatory burden of conventional government contracting. As a result, numerous articles and studies have been carried out to help address the issue. Mlinarchik & Myers (2016) published an article about circumventing the regulatory burden of conventional government contracting in the process of acquiring innovative technology and research. The article was published on the premise that the involvement of the government in cutting-edge technology and research and development (R&D) is significantly hampered by regulatory challenges, slow timelines, lack of communication with industry, and limiting intellectual property (IP) schemes. These challenges continue to abound at a time when leveraging technological advancements is essential for the successful execution of the missions of many public and defense agencies. For example, the DoD needs to maintain technological supremacy to enhance its overall science and technology strategy. The purpose of this article was to demonstrate how government agencies like DoD can deal with the stereotype of slow-moving, inflexible bureaucracy brought by the regulatory burden of traditional government contracting. In this regard, the publication sought to demonstrate how such agencies can become more adaptive and agile in terms of innovation and R&D. The article sought to achieve these goals by introducing a flexible option with no regulatory baggage known as other transaction authority.
Sullivan et al. (2015) published an article on the need for acquisition reform for DoD to streamline and improve its decision-making process on the acquisition of weapon systems. The publication was based on the view that DoD faces significant schedule delays and high costs in the acquisition process despite delivering the most capable weapons across the globe. These challenges are brought by the fact that it relies on a bureaucratic, inefficient, and complex acquisition process. The purpose of the article was to assess the levels of review and information requirements incorporated in DoD’s acquisition processes and program. Through this, the article sought to highlight inefficiencies in this program and its impact on DoD’s operations. The article also sought to provide recommendations on how these processes can be streamlined for better decision-making and reduction of inefficiencies.
Importance of Procurement Law in DoD’s Purchase of Primary Weapons
The purchase of primary weapons system is one of the critical factors to the successful execution of DoD’s mission. This process is governed by existing procurement law that shape acquisition programs and processes developed and used by this agency. As shown in the two articles, DoD’s acquisition program and processes are currently affected by the drawbacks and regulatory burden of conventional government contracting. Currently, government procurement is governed by the Competition in Contracting Act (CICA) and the Contract Disputes Act. These two statutes and others form the basis of federal acquisition regulation (FAR), which is regarded as the primary regulatory framework for government procurement (Mlinarchik & Myers, 2016).
Procurement law plays an important role in DoD’s purchase of primary weapons since it the premise for FAR. It is significant in this process since it shapes the acquisition processes and programs adopted by this agency. In essence, DoD’s purchase of primary weapons entails the development of an acquisition program. The processes and practices adopted by DoD in this program are influenced by existing procurement law, particularly FAR. For example, based on the current regulatory framework, DoD’s purchase of primary weapons is characterized by significant time and effort needed to complete information requirements (Sullivan et al., 2015). Therefore, procurement law defines the series of steps carried out by DoD in its acquisition process of primary weapons.
Advantages and Disadvantages of FAR section 5 (5000.02)
One of the critical components of current procurement law and regulatory framework for government contracting is FAR section 5 (5000.02). This section identifies various information requirements that must be documented for the milestones of the DoD’s acquisition process. In addition, it identifies the source of each requirement in statute, a DoD instruction, regulation, directive, or manual. However, not all of the information requirements specified in this section are applicable to every milestone and compare to a different document. The application of this section to acquisition processes adopted for DoD’s purchase of primary weapons demonstrates the importance and impact of procurement law in government contracting. FAR section 5 (5000.02) is associated with several advantages and disadvantages as evident in its application by DoD in the purchase of primary weapons.
One of the advantages of this section is the creation of information requirements to shape government contracting or acquisition process. These information requirements help to ensure that acquisition processes by government agencies are carried out systematically and in line with existing procurement law. Secondly, the section enhances oversight of procurement processes by government agencies like DoD for better accountability. Program managers and contractors adhere to the information requirements resulting in improved oversight. The other advantage is that this section defines contract action as contracting professionals must use the right terminology and steps in the procurement process (Mlinarchik & Myers, 2016). However, one of the disadvantages of this section is creating a large, bureaucratic process due to the information requirements. The large, bureaucratic process has resulted in a complex decision-making process for DoD in the purchase of primary weapon systems (Sullivan et al., 2015). Secondly, the section contributes to reduced inefficiencies in the acquisition process because of the complex decision-making process. Third, the section does not apply to other transactions or other transaction agreements, which are non-traditional government contracts, cooperative agreements, or grants.
Applicable Government Requirements
Mlinarchik & Myers (2016) and Sullivan et al. (2015) provide different requirements on approaches that can be undertaken to regulations, laws, and policies for complicated government procurement programs. According to Sullivan et al. (2015), a suitable approach to address the complicated government procurement programs in DoD’s purchase of primary weapons is the identification and probable elimination of unnecessary reviews and information requirements. This would help streamline the decision-making process and reduce the time, effort, and cost of complex government procurement processes. Eliminating unnecessary reviews and information requirements would help remove the regulatory burdens of traditional government contracting. Secondly, government agencies like the DoD should select programs to pilot more streamlined approaches to provide only the most critical information to decision-makers. This would help lessen complexities in decision-making and inefficiencies in acquisition processes and program. Mlinarchik & Myers (2016) provides different recommendations for improving the involvement of the government in cutting-edge technology. They contend that other transaction agreements are suitable alternatives as they remove the rigidity and regulatory burden linked to conventional measures of government procurement. Other transaction agreements achieve this by enhancing the increased innovation of Silicon Valley firms, new technology start-ups, small businesses, and non-traditional contractors.
However, the selection of suitable approaches to address the complex government contracting program requires the identification of applicable government requirements. One of the applicable government requirements is the creation of an efficient documentation and oversight process. This would help enhance internal control and ensure procurement processes are carried out systematically and seamlessly. Secondly, compliance with relevant regulations, statutes, and policies is an applicable government requirement in contracting. Government agencies should ensure that their procurement processes comply with existing laws and policies in order to avoid complexities and inefficiencies. The third applicable government requirement is the completion of information requirements prior to the establishment of an acquisition program.
In conclusion, government contracting is a complex process involving different regulations and stakeholders. The contracting process plays an important role in the acquisition of innovative technology for different departments such as the Department of Defense (DoD). As evident in this discussion, current policies and regulations have generated challenges in the acquisition processes of government agencies like DoD. The agency experiences regulatory burdens associated with conventional government contracting. FAR section 5 (5000.02) is an example of a regulation that affects the acquisition processes of this agency as it generates burdensome information requirements. The application of this regulation in DoD’s acquisition demonstrates that procurement law is significant as it shapes acquisition processes and strategies adopted by government agencies. As technology advances, the government needs to enhance its involvement in science and technology and R&D through changes in current approaches to policies, regulations, and laws for procurement programs.
References
Mlinarchik, C., & Myers, J. (2016). Other transaction authority: Acquiring innovative technology and research by avoiding the regulatory burden of traditional government contracting. Contract Management, 56(10), 68-73.
Sullivan, M. J., et al. (2015). Acquisition reform: DOD should streamline Its decision-making process for weapon systems to reduce inefficiencies. (GAO-15-192). Washington, DC: Government Printing Office.