If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!)

FAR 2.101 defines small business. Everything else is a large business.  Most companies, however, are not very small yet not really large.  

In this refresher of a early episode, Kevin and Paul discuss the many shades of “large small” businesses and “small large” businesses.  Learn some of the challenges that companies on the cusp face as they transition from small to large in the Government’s eyes.  

Find out how the Government can target different sized “large” businesses during the market research and RFP zones.  You’ll also gain an appreciation of the compliance burdens that large businesses face in the Government market. 
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If you enjoy this podcast, we invite you to check out Skyway Acquisition at skywaymember.com to begin your relationship with our team of contracting officers. The Skyway Community is the essential resource for anyone at any stage of starting, growing and running a government contracting business. We speak GovCon.

Whether you are brand new to GovCon, just got your first contract, or you are already a successful government contractor, the Skyway Community will guide you to the next level.

With our extensive tools and training, exclusive member discounts on consulting support, and a supportive and active community of peers to help you along the way, the Skyway Community is the perfect resource for anyone who is serious about winning more contracts.

Give us a call at 877-884-5280 or check it out at skywaymember.com. 
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Kevin Jans and Paul Schauer created the Contracting Officer Podcast to help government and industry acquisition professionals understand more about how the other side thinks. As former government Contracting Officers who have also walked in industry's shoes, Kevin and Paul share their perspectives in support of the podcast mission:  Make government contracts better, one contract at a time. 

Admittedly, the podcast’s name sounds very limiting.  It is not just for contracting officers or even just for those in the contracting profession.  Anyone with an interest in the Federal acquisition world can benefit from the insight and down-to-earth explanations of complicated topics provided by the hosts.  

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!)

Kevin and Paul discuss an acquisition strategy that can provide extra confidence in a contractor's ability to deliver - the down-select.  Learn how a down-select acquisition strategy helps the government separate the top contractor from the pack (for this job, anyway) and why top performing contractors should love the down-select process. 
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If you enjoy this podcast, we invite you to check out Skyway Acquisition at skywaymember.com to begin your relationship with our team of contracting officers. The Skyway Community is the essential resource for anyone at any stage of starting, growing and running a government contracting business. We speak GovCon.

Whether you are brand new to GovCon, just got your first contract, or you are already a successful government contractor, the Skyway Community will guide you to the next level.

With our extensive tools and training, exclusive member discounts on consulting support, and a supportive and active community of peers to help you along the way, the Skyway Community is the perfect resource for anyone who is serious about winning more contracts.

Give us a call at 877-884-5280 or check it out at skywaymember.com. 
___________

Kevin Jans and Paul Schauer created the Contracting Officer Podcast to help government and industry acquisition professionals understand more about how the other side thinks. As former government Contracting Officers who have also walked in industry's shoes, Kevin and Paul share their perspectives in support of the podcast mission:  Make government contracts better, one contract at a time. 

Admittedly, the podcast’s name sounds very limiting.  It is not just for contracting officers or even just for those in the contracting profession.  Anyone with an interest in the Federal acquisition world can benefit from the insight and down-to-earth explanations of complicated topics provided by the hosts.   

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!)
Paul welcomes special guest Steve Lucianetti to answer the question:  What is a National Stock Number? Steve is a former Government Contracting Officer, consultant, and Skyway Acquisition team member.  

Listen and learn as Paul and Steve explain what NSNs are, who manages them, and why they are important to the acquisition and maintenance of Government systems.   
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If you enjoy this podcast, we invite you to check out Skyway Acquisition at skywaymember.com to begin your relationship with our team of contracting officers. The Skyway Community is the essential resource for anyone at any stage of starting, growing and running a government contracting business. We speak GovCon.

Whether you are brand new to GovCon, just got your first contract, or you are already a successful government contractor, the Skyway Community will guide you to the next level.

With our extensive tools and training, exclusive member discounts on consulting support, and a supportive and active community of peers to help you along the way, the Skyway Community is the perfect resource for anyone who is serious about winning more contracts.

Give us a call at 877-884-5280 or check it out at skywaymember.com. 
___________

Kevin Jans and Paul Schauer created the Contracting Officer Podcast to help government and industry acquisition professionals understand more about how the other side thinks. As former government Contracting Officers who have also walked in industry's shoes, Kevin and Paul share their perspectives in support of the podcast mission:  Make government contracts better, one contract at a time. 

Admittedly, the podcast’s name sounds very limiting.  It is not just for contracting officers or even just for those in the contracting profession.  Anyone with an interest in the Federal acquisition world can benefit from the insight and down-to-earth explanations of complicated topics provided by the hosts.   

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!)

Kevin and Paul describe the first of the four Acquisition Time Zones.  (Episode 317 provides an overview of all the Acquisition Time Zones). Listen and learn why requirements definition sets the stage for acquisition (and mission) success, what the Government is doing (or should be doing) and what Industry is doing (or should be doing) during this phase of the acquisition process.   
   
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If you enjoy this podcast, we invite you to check out the Skyway Community at skywaymember.com. The Skyway Community is the essential resource for anyone at any stage of starting, growing and running a government contracting business. We speak GovCon.

Whether you are brand new to GovCon, just got your first contract, or you are already a successful government contractor, building a relationship with Skyway's team of former contracting officers will guide you to the next level.  

With our extensive tools and training, exclusive member discounts on consulting support, and a supportive and active community of peers to help you along the way, the Skyway Community is the perfect resource for anyone who is serious about winning more contracts.

Give us a call at 877-884-5280 or check it out at skywaymember.com. 
___________

Kevin Jans and Paul Schauer created the Contracting Officer Podcast to help government and industry acquisition professionals understand more about how the other side thinks. As former government Contracting Officers who have also walked in industry's shoes, Kevin and Paul share their perspectives in support of the podcast mission:  Make government contracts better, one contract at a time. 

Admittedly, the podcast’s name sounds very limiting.  It is not just for contracting officers or even just for those in the contracting profession.  Anyone with an interest in the Federal acquisition world can benefit from the insight and down-to-earth explanations of complicated topics provided by the hosts. 

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!)

What does Indefinite Delivery / Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) mean for my contract?  Did I really win any work?  Or for the Government, how much can I buy and for how long?

Kevin and Paul discuss the benefits and pitfalls of this common contract type.  Learn how to leverage IDIQ contracts to make acquisition easier for both Government and for Industry. You’ll also hear cautionary tales of how misunderstanding IDIQ contracts can be perilous for your program or company.

This is a refresher of a previously released episode.  
_________

If you enjoy this podcast, we invite you to check out the Skyway Community at skywaymember.com. The Skyway Community is the essential resource for anyone at any stage of starting, growing and running a government contracting business. We speak GovCon.

Whether you are brand new to GovCon, just got your first contract, or you are already a successful government contractor, the Skyway Community will guide you to the next level.

With our extensive tools and training, exclusive member discounts on consulting support, and a supportive and active community of peers to help you along the way, the Skyway Community is the perfect resource for anyone who is serious about winning more contracts.

Give us a call at 877-884-5280 or check it out at skywaymember.com. 
___________

Kevin Jans and Paul Schauer created the Contracting Officer Podcast to help government and industry acquisition professionals understand more about how the other side thinks. As former government Contracting Officers who have also walked in industry's shoes, Kevin and Paul share their perspectives in support of the podcast mission:  Make government contracts better, one contract at a time. 

Admittedly, the podcast’s name sounds very limiting.  It is not just for contracting officers or even just for those in the contracting profession.  Anyone with an interest in the Federal acquisition world can benefit from the insight and down-to-earth explanations of complicated topics provided by the hosts.   

This episode is part of The Contracting Officer Hall of Fame Playlist.

To listen to all other episodes of The Contracting Officer access your Podcast 2.0 license here: https://skywayacq.com/access/   

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!)

Kevin and Paul revisit the fundamentals of the podcast: the Acquisition and Execution Time Zones.  If you're a long time listener this overview is a quick refresher on the beginning and end points of each time zone.  For new(ish) listeners, this episode defines one of the key concepts used to illustrate "where we are in the process" in nearly every podcast episode.  

The Acquisition Time Zones:  Requirements Zone, Market Research Zone, RFP Zone, Selection Zone

The Execution Time Zones: Honeymoon Zone, Performance Zone, Re-Compete Zone, Wrap-up Zone.  

We've also used this opportunity to rename the Source Selection Zone to simply the Selection Zone.  After a couple hundred episodes we finally recognized that the "source selection" terminology is pretty much a major competition thing.  We've been inadvertently  giving offense to the vast majority of government buys where a formal source selection is not required.  Listen and learn! (I guess we finally listened and finally learned...)    
   
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If you enjoy this podcast, we invite you to check out the Skyway Community at skywaymember.com. The Skyway Community is the essential resource for anyone at any stage of starting, growing and running a government contracting business. We speak GovCon.

Whether you are brand new to GovCon, just got your first contract, or you are already a successful government contractor, the Skyway Community will guide you to the next level.

With our extensive tools and training, exclusive member discounts on consulting support, and a supportive and active community of peers to help you along the way, the Skyway Community is the perfect resource for anyone who is serious about winning more contracts.

Give us a call at 877-884-5280 or check it out at skywaymember.com. 
___________

Kevin Jans and Paul Schauer created the Contracting Officer Podcast to help government and industry acquisition professionals understand more about how the other side thinks. As former government Contracting Officers who have also walked in industry's shoes, Kevin and Paul share their perspectives in support of the podcast mission:  Make government contracts better, one contract at a time. 

Admittedly, the podcast’s name sounds very limiting.  It is not just for contracting officers or even just for those in the contracting profession.  Anyone with an interest in the Federal acquisition world can benefit from the insight and down-to-earth explanations of complicated topics provided by the hosts.

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!)

Kevin and Paul explain the differences between cost and pricing data and the all-important "Certified Cost or Pricing Data"  This has been a hot topic lately as the threshold that triggers the requirement for certified data took a big leap.  

This is an update to Episode 062, where we first discussed the topic.  The concepts there are still accurate but...due to the threshold change we thought it would be helpful to dig into this topic again.  If you'd like even more depth on certified cost or pricing data, check out Episode 313 where we covered the meaning of accurate, complete, and current.    
   
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If you enjoy this podcast, we invite you to check out the Skyway Community at skywaymember.com. The Skyway Community is the essential resource for anyone at any stage of starting, growing and running a government contracting business. We speak GovCon.

Whether you are brand new to GovCon, just got your first contract, or you are already a successful government contractor, the Skyway Community will guide you to the next level.

With our extensive tools and training, exclusive member discounts on consulting support, and a supportive and active community of peers to help you along the way, the Skyway Community is the perfect resource for anyone who is serious about winning more contracts.

Give us a call at 877-884-5280 or check it out at skywaymember.com. 
___________

Kevin Jans and Paul Schauer created the Contracting Officer Podcast to help government and industry acquisition professionals understand more about how the other side thinks. As former government Contracting Officers who have also walked in industry's shoes, Kevin and Paul share their perspectives in support of the podcast mission:  Make government contracts better, one contract at a time. 

Admittedly, the podcast’s name sounds very limiting.  It is not just for contracting officers or even just for those in the contracting profession.  Anyone with an interest in the Federal acquisition world can benefit from the insight and down-to-earth explanations of complicated topics provided by the hosts.   

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!)

Given the complexity of most Government Requests for Proposals (RFPs) questions are inevitable.  Paul discusses the sensitive nature of RFP questions with proposal expert (and Skyway team member) Wendy Frieman.  

When should you ask questions?  What should you ask?  It is easy to ask questions in a manner that is not helpful to bidders or government.  If you're on the government side, why should you encourage questions?  When and how should you answer them?  Listen and learn.   
   
_________

If you enjoy this podcast, we invite you to check out the Skyway Community at skywaymember.com. The Skyway Community is the essential resource for anyone at any stage of starting, growing and running a government contracting business. We speak GovCon.

Whether you are brand new to GovCon, just got your first contract, or you are already a successful government contractor, the Skyway Community will guide you to the next level.

With our extensive tools and training, exclusive member discounts on consulting support, and a supportive and active community of peers to help you along the way, the Skyway Community is the perfect resource for anyone who is serious about winning more contracts.

Give us a call at 877-884-5280 or check it out at skywaymember.com. 
___________

Kevin Jans and Paul Schauer created the Contracting Officer Podcast to help government and industry acquisition professionals understand more about how the other side thinks. As former government Contracting Officers who have also walked in industry's shoes, Kevin and Paul share their perspectives in support of the podcast mission:  Make government contracts better, one contract at a time. 

Admittedly, the podcast’s name sounds very limiting.  It is not just for contracting officers or even just for those in the contracting profession.  Anyone with an interest in the Federal acquisition world can benefit from the insight and down-to-earth explanations of complicated topics provided by the hosts.  

If you work in the Government acquisition world, this podcast is for you. (not just for Contracting Officers!)

Kevin and Paul discuss the differences between Firm Fixed Price (FFP) contracts and Cost  Reimbursable contract types, with a little Time and Materials (T&M) thrown in for good measure.     
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If you enjoy this podcast, we invite you to check out the Skyway Community at skywaymember.com. The Skyway Community is the essential resource for anyone at any stage of starting, growing and running a government contracting business. We speak GovCon.

Whether you are brand new to GovCon, just got your first contract, or you are already a successful government contractor, the Skyway Community will guide you to the next level.

With our extensive tools and training, exclusive member discounts on consulting support, and a supportive and active community of peers to help you along the way, the Skyway Community is the perfect resource for anyone who is serious about winning more contracts.

Give us a call at 877-884-5280 or check it out at skywaymember.com. 
___________

Kevin Jans and Paul Schauer created the Contracting Officer Podcast to help government and industry acquisition professionals understand more about how the other side thinks. As former government Contracting Officers who have also walked in industry's shoes, Kevin and Paul share their perspectives in support of the podcast mission:  Make government contracts better, one contract at a time. 

Admittedly, the podcast’s name sounds very limiting.  It is not just for contracting officers or even just for those in the contracting profession.  Anyone with an interest in the Federal acquisition world can benefit from the insight and down-to-earth explanations of complicated topics provided by the hosts.