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Posted on October 12th, 2012 by Evan McDonnell
An interesting thing happened to me while making a recent personal software purchase. I recognized I was using the same acquisition approach the Federal government uses for software. Unfortunately, I got the same poor results they usually get.
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Posted on September 24th, 2012 by Evan McDonnell
Is the Federal Government trying to put round pegs in square holes? That certainly seems to be the case with the acquisition and contract writing systems they are buying. 
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Posted on August 22nd, 2012 by Ben Farrell
As reported recently in the Washington Business Journal, the U.S. Air Force (USAF) has awarded 12 small businesses with the right to bid on application services contracts worth up to nearly $1 billion. This was done through the Application Services Small Business Companion contract under USAF’s Network-Centric Solutions II (NETCENTS-2) contract. NETCENTS-2 is directly aimed at addressing many of the key issues in existing federal acquisition practices that have been discussed elsewhere on this blog.
Appian’s position is that BPM software is crucial for improving government procurement operations. Our partner SI Systems Technologies LLC (one of the 12 small business awardees) agrees, and will use the Appian BPM Suite as a strategic asset in its NETCENTS-2 bids.
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Posted on July 17th, 2012 by Evan McDonnell
An important factor in the buying decision for any large capital purchase is determining the “total cost of ownership.” For example, in purchasing a new car, you take into consideration not just the selling price, but the gas mileage, expected breakdown frequency, average cost of repairs, etc.
The same general approach also applies when evaluating multi-million dollar software investments that you hope will be the backbone of your operations for the next 10 or 15 years. But the factors for consideration are very different in technology-based purchases. It’s imperative to get this process right if you want to have a system that fits your needs, provides the highest benefit, and has the lowest lifecycle cost of ownership. There are two common mistake areas in TCO analysis that everyone should note and avoid.
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Posted on July 9th, 2012 by Evan McDonnell
We’ve all been there. It’s the end of a software company’s presentation showing you how their application will be able to solve all your problems. Life with them will be total bliss. You find yourself eager to sign up and put the pain of your current software application behind you.
What’s the antidote for the spell that good sales people put on you? Ask for a copy of their end user license agreement (EULA). Here you’ll find all the caveats and disclaimers that will bring you back down from Cloud 9 and let you see reality for what it is.
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Posted on June 1st, 2012 by Ben Farrell
Last week, the Obama Administration issued a new directive to federal agencies mandating an accelerated effort “to make new and useful services available to consumers on their mobile devices.” The directive, entitled “Digital Government: Building a 21st Century Platform to Better Serve the American People,” requires each major Federal agency make two key government services available on mobile phones within 12 months.
Meeting both the letter and spirit of this directive will be a tall order using traditional approaches to mobile application development. Using Appian’s BPM software, agencies could easily exceed that goal in significantly less time.
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Posted on May 23rd, 2012 by Evan McDonnell
Vivek Kundra, the first Federal Government CIO, was the keynote speaker at a trade show I attended last week. This was my first time hearing him tell his personal story of leading government IT transformation. Vivek recounted a number of specific government IT failures with dollars attached on a scale I’m not used to working with. It’s no wonder that every agency CIO now finds themselves on the hot seat.
Compounding the challenge for agency CIOs is a series of new initiatives from the Office of the Federal CIO. These initiatives provide important guidelines CIOs are required to follow in the quest for more effective and cost efficient applications. However, those guidelines do not lay out a specific approach likely to lead to success, leaving it up to CIOs and their staffs to find their own way.
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Posted on May 11th, 2012 by Evan McDonnell
The Federal Government’s poor IT performance is an old story, but it got renewed attention this week because of two new documents. The first was Federal CIO Steven VanRoekel’s release of his final “Shared First” strategy document which sets guidelines that should lead to better returns on IT investment. The other event was a memo from Lesley Field, Acting Administrator for Federal Procurement Policy. Ms. Field laid out steps to make it easier for vendors to provide input and education so government can make smarter technology buys.
So much positive news in the space of a week had me feeling optimistic that we are on a path to stop wasting tax payer money and bring effective IT systems to government. But my good mood ended when an e-mail hit my inbox with fresh evidence of some of the thinking and behaviors that have caused the Federal government’s IT investments to significantly underperform.
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Posted on April 24th, 2012 by Ben Allen
Two weeks ago I attended the Defense Procurement eBusiness Conference in Atlanta, GA. Like last year, Appian was a sponsor and exhibitor at the event, discussing and demonstrating the Acquisition Business Management solution built on our BPM software. The exhibit hall space was a little cramped this year, but I was happy to see so many people wade through our booth crowd to talk to us.
The particular conference presentation highlight for me was Richard Ginman’s presentation on Defense Procurement and Acquisition Policy (DPAP) Initiatives and Efficiencies Priorities. I was already a big fan of DPAP given their recent efforts on the Procurement Data Standard (PDS) and the DoD Clause Logic service. Hearing Mr. Ginman speak just solidified my view that DPAP really understands the problems facing acquisition and is providing excellent guidance, support, and services to the DoD acquisition community.
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Posted on March 21st, 2012 by Ben Farrell
Federal procurement practices continue to be a hot topic of discussion as government agencies look for new ways to comply with Obama Administration mandates to reduce waste, deliver projects more quickly, and increase the efficiency and transparency of operations. Many federal procurement teams are turning to BPM software and Appian’s Acquisition Business Management solution to eliminate mountains of paperwork and reach higher levels of performance faster.
Appian is participating in two important federal procurement events in the near future: ACT-IAC Acquisition Excellence 2012 (March 29 in Washington, DC) and the Defense Procurement eBusiness Conference (April 10-12 in Atlanta).
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