Rapid Lorna – Agile Acquisition Blog
"I wasn't built for comfort—I was built for speed." — "Bad for Good"
Serialized from The Trifecta of Effectiveness: How a Badass Cubicle Dweller Optimizes Tools, Mindset, and Relationships and from Contracting for Rapid Acquisition: A Practical and Personal Guide to Disrupting the Status Quo for a More Responsive Future by Lorna E. Tedder Throughout this series, I’ve explored how tools and mindset form two critical legs of the acquisition effectiveness trifecta. […]
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Serialized from The Trifecta of Effectiveness: How a Badass Cubicle Dweller Optimizes Tools, Mindset, and Relationships, by Lorna E. Tedder The Trifecta of Effectiveness is a powerful conceptual framework applicable in all facets of life, not any particular professional discipline, although it fits the Acquisition career field perfectly. Envision it as a three-legged stool, with […]
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Multiple small businesses with recently terminated contracts are telling me today they’re getting stiffed by the U.S. Government for work these small businesses have already done. Smalls are being told they cannot get any relief—the usual final negotiated costs (for costs not yet invoiced, for example) or equitable adjustments, etc. A few months ago, I […]
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I’m hard-pressed to find anyone who thinks that “deferred resignations” or anything from the new OPM’s “Fork in the Road” initiative for civil servants is well-thought out—unless the plan was for utter chaos with a side of cruelty. I say this as a swing voter who was a public servant under 10 administrations and saw reductions […]
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If you and I have never had a Life-Death-and-the-Universe discussion all night about Acquisition, ethics, and/or the law, consider this article a taste. There are a few things in life and business that really bother me, and I wish they bothered more people. It’s about principles, and the key to knowing whether you or someone else follows the principles […]
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I’m all for leaning into your strengths and doing what you do best in Contracting and Acquisition. I don’t believe you have to be “well-rounded” and work in areas that aren’t suited to your work personality or strengths, but you do need to be open to the very real fact that there may be other […]
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I’ve taken for granted how incredibly lucky I was when I was a Contracting intern and brand new Unlimited Contracting Officer as a GS 12 with barely 4 years’ experience. Eons ago. Back when dirt was new and fire was an emerging technology. I’m stopping to think about it only now when I’ve left the […]
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I see a lot of Government organizations who don’t understand that they need Acquisition expertise, let alone Contracting expertise. It’s funny how often I hear them say later that they didn’t realize how much they needed to consider Acquisition/Contracting in their planning. I also often see people who’ve merely touched a contract in some capacity, […]
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For my Govvies, you’re probably not even aware of this bc people won’t say it out loud to you. Small businesses, consultants, board members, employees, etc, have to mind their tongues or maybe suffer financial consequences. That’s why I haven’t really talked much about this in the last 5 years–bc I might hurt organizations I […]
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