A Professional Services Council survey has found that 67 percent of federal acquisition leaders said they believe collaboration and communication with industry has improved in the past two years and 70 percent of respondents said they think their organizations’ collaboration with vendors will get better in the next two years.
PSC said Thursday the Biennial Acquisition Policy Survey is based on nearly 200 detailed discussions and 22 post-discussion data responses from acquisition professionals across 13 federal agencies.
Requests for information landed the top spot when it comes to the most effective modes of communication with industry, followed by one-on-ones and reverse industry days.
The study showed that 50 percent of respondents said they prefer a hybrid work environment and only 5 percent said they prefer in-office work.
Sixty percent of respondents said departing employees leave for another federal agency and 77 percent of officials said their agencies find it difficult to employ or train personnel with the needed skills.
Apart from workforce and industry collaboration, acquisition strategies and budget challenges emerged as the other two major themes of the PSC survey.
“The key themes from the survey highlight that the government can and should demonstrate clear leadership to address federal marketplace challenges,” said Sebastian Beau Herrick, senior associate for public policy at PSC and primary researcher for the survey.
“Ultimately, there’s ample opportunity in government to collaborate with industry for smarter contracting, better communication, and more seamless acquisition processes,” Herrick added.
