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GTSC Welcomes New Members FROM USCG, USCIS, TSA, & INTEL to Board of Advisors
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GTSC Welcomes New Members FROM USCG, USCIS, TSA, & INTEL to Board of Advisors

The Government Technology & Services Coalition (GTSC), the premier organization for small and mid-sized companies in homeland and national security, today announced several new appointments to add more expertise to their prestigious Board of Advisors.

“GTSC’s has grown by leaps and bounds in the last several months as companies and federal partners realize the true potential of active, mission-oriented collaboration. Achieving the homeland security mission requires the expertise of both mission experts and those who execute to achieve top performance. Our recent Board of Advisor additions add tremendous vision and capabilities to our engagements,” said Kristina Tanasichuk, Founder & CEO of GTSC. GTSC welcomes:

Rear Admiral John Acton, Former Rear Admiral, U.S. Coast Guard and Special Advisor to the Presidential Transition who will work with the Coalition on initiatives with the U.S. Coast Guard and continued White House transition. “It’s an honor for me to continue my support of GTSC. As we enter a period of budget tightening and evolving policy challenges, the role of medium and small companies in supporting our homeland security missions remains as essential as ever. With a security threat stream that continues to broaden and morph, these smaller companies can fill vital roles and often react quicker than larger, more bureaucratic firms. And GTSC plays an important role helping these smaller firms increase their effectiveness and efficiency, to the benefit of us all,” said Rear Admiral Acton at the announcement.

Joshua Seckel, Chief Engineer at WhiteHawk and former Chief of the Applied Technology Division at U.S. Customs & Immigration Services joins the Coalition to assist our federal partners to understand and implement agile development projects, agile thinking, and strategic development of projects and initiatives that includes an agile framework. At the release, Seckel said, “I’m looking forward to working with the GTSC community to bring modern development practices into both government agencies and contractors supporting them.”

Jill Vaughan, Senior Advisor at GSIS and former Assistant Administrator for the Office of Security Capabilities and the Chief Technology Officer at the Transportation Security Administration joins GTSC to contribute to, and continue the strategic development of, “Smashing the Box” events and the challenge of bringing new security technology to our federal government partners.

Caryn A. Wagner, Former Undersecretary for Intelligence & Analysis at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security joins the Coalition to further the quality of the threat and risk information collected by our federal partners and the data analytics that support it. “I am committed to working the seams between national and domestic security and look forward to my association with GTSC.”

Profiles of these and all GTSC Board of Advisors are available at: https://www.gtscoalition.com/about-us/strategic-advisors/

Members of the Board of Advisors provide input to GTSC’s programming, identify areas of collaboration and increase the awareness and understanding of the Federal homeland and national security mission.  GTSC works on behalf of its members with the U.S. Departments of Homeland Security, Defense, State, Justice and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. Since its inception, GTSC has worked with these agencies to achieve mission in an increasingly challenging budget environment, advocate for the value of small businesses, increase understanding of mid-tier companies, improve market research and increase collaboration between the public and private sector.

READ THE RELEASE:  Press release Advisors May 17 2017

The GSA-DHS OASIS MOU: A Game-Changer at DHS
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The GSA-DHS OASIS MOU: A Game-Changer at DHS

In July, DHS and GSA signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) enabling greater use of GSA’s OASIS contract vehicle across all of DHS. DHS expects to increase its contract awards under OASIS from $11 million in 2015 to $250 million in 2016. This agreement is a game-changer for the DHS contracting community.

Under terms of the MOU, GSA agreed to lower the contract access fee for DHS from 0.75% to 0.25%, and DHS in turn agreed to include OASIS as one of its “Strategic Sourcing” contract vehicles covered under its “Mandatory for Use” Management Directive. This means that current DHS contractors, particularly those under TABSS and EAGLE II, will need to work harder to shape opportunities onto their respective contract vehicles, and OASIS contractors (at least many of them), will have to figure out how to navigate the world of DHS acquisitions.

This sets up a new contracting environment at DHS that could have broad ramifications for industry. GSA’s OASIS is being promoted at DHS as the replacement for TABSS, and the Program Management contract vehicle of choice. This is a body blow to TABSS contract holders and an immediate opportunity for OASIS contractors. With TABSS sun-setting in two years, DHS contracting officers will immediately see OASIS as a preferred contract vehicle, fully endorsed by acquisition leadership. With its wide variety of available NAICS Codes, 21 in Pool 1 alone, this is a huge boon for OASIS contract holders.

Many OASIS contract holders focus on DoD and have less experience at DHS. This may be a partnering opportunity for experienced DHS firms with complementary skills. Small businesses in disadvantaged socio-economic categories with DHS experience are in especially good position to take advantage of partnering.

EAGLE II contract holders should also take notice of the OASIS MOU, even with more than five years remaining in EAGLE II’s full period of performance. IT-focused Program Management requirements are still supposed to be released under EAGLE II. Because of the decentralized acquisition model used by DHS, exactly what constitutes “IT Services” under EAGLE II may be interpreted in a variety of ways by different Components. EAGLE II contract holders must continue to educate Component contracting officers and demonstrate how upcoming requirements fit on the NAICS codes in EAGLE II while being aware of the new latitude offered for Program Management services under OASIS.

The net result: Understanding the unique terms of these contract vehicles, as well as the tendencies of contracting officers in each DHS Component will be more important than ever in 2016.

Dennis Murphy President Applied Social Media

About Dennis Murphy, President, ASM Concepts
Dennis Murphy is a former senior executive with DHS and U.S. Customs Service and was a principal with Booz Allen Hamilton. He also served as Assistant Commissioner for Public Affairs and as the first Communications Director for DHS Border and Transportation Security. He is now president of ASM Concepts, a management consulting company offering clients unique ways to merge marketing with business development to differentiate them from their competitors to both grow and scale their business.
Read the full ASM Concepts analysis of the OASIS MOU on the ASM Concepts website . For questions or further information, contact Dennis Murphy at [email protected].