Assad mandates services acquisition workshops

The Defense Department is requiring multifunctional teams charged with supporting services acquisition contracts to begin attending workshops provided by Defense Acquisition University, according to a memo from Shay Assad, the director of defense pricing and defense procurement and acquisition policy.

“A [services acquisition workshop] is an interactive workshop built around a specific acquisition and its [multifunctional team],” the Oct. 20 memo states. “The SAW program has significantly improved the quality of requirements documents while reducing costs, increasing effective competition, and shortening lead times.”

The requirement applies to teams supporting services acquisition contracts with a total value of $500 million or an annual value of $250 million or more, according to the memo.

The workshops will be required before a services acquisition strategy will be approved, the memo states.

The directive also mandates contract officials tasked with overseeing services contracts provide Assad's office with a five-year forecast on the projected number of workshops for each fiscal year.