News for the Federal Acquisition Workforce

January 20, 2021

Five OLT Courses Retired, Effective Immediately! FAI has urgent news regarding Adobe Flash issues impacting five (5) online training (OLT) courses that had to be retired, effective immediately. Please read this FAI.gov announcement for more information on the specific courses that have been retired as well as recommendations for alternative courses that you may consider taking.

Professional Services Category Spotlight Webinar- February 9 The All Small Business Mentor Protégé Program (ASMPP) was created in 2016 to streamline access for small businesses to access the federal marketplace, enhance the small business’s business capabilities, and increase protégé wealth and create jobs through government contracts. The ASMPP also assists mentor firms in developing and increasing their supply chains through capable small business subcontractors. The ASMPP also assists federal contracting officers to meet the congressionally mandated set-aside goals. Earn 1 CLP, register here.

Are you New to the Contracting Field? If you are new to the Contracting field, you should check out  the Contracting Professional’s Career Roadmap which is a guide to getting started in the career field. It provides a framework for the career, including gaining a basic understanding of the acquisition process, the competencies and mandatory training required, guidelines for selecting and working with a mentor, guidelines for goal setting, and best practices for documenting experiences on the job. New Contracting Professionals should work through the steps and the “to-do lists” early in their professional career with the guidance of their supervisor and/or mentor. Check it out today on FAI.

Professional Service Office Hours- February 11 GSA's Professional Services Category monthly Office Hours are designed to address federal customer agency questions about professional services acquisition. Join GSA on February 11, from 1 p.m to 2 p.m. ET for this month’s webinar where you will learn how GSA's Market Research As a Service (MRAS) team can help your agency find GSA contract holders capable of meeting your procurement needs. GSA's MRAS team can help you identify suppliers, summarize their capabilities and socio-economics, and provide you with a comprehensive market place, all at no cost! Register now and earn 1 CLP!

Get Your Free Acquisition Training! FAI’s incredible array of FY21 FAC-C, FAC-COR, FAC-P/PM, and continuous learning instructor-led training offerings are now open for enrollment. Book a seat now to take advantage of this free training. Visit FAI’s training page for a list of all the class offerings that have seats available. All the courses necessary for certification can be found there as well as course offerings for the following new subjects: Understanding Industry (Business Acumen), Cybersecurity—Supply Chain Risk Management, Information Technology Acquisition, Acquisition of Agile Services, Applying Agile Scrum Master—Practices in the Federal Environment, Developing Agile Requirements and User Stories in the Federal Environment, Conducting Acquisitions for Cloud Services, The Integrated Project Team, Government Product Owner, Procurement Innovation—FAR Flexibility, Other Transaction Authority, Robotic Process Automation (RPA), and the Critical Decision-Making Capstone.

Register Today for Acquisition Training for the Real World and Earn CLPs! Acquisition Training for the Real World is a two-week program of daily virtual training sessions exclusively available to federal agency personnel. Participants will learn how to use the Acquisition Gateway to improve their agency's acquisitions, acquire skills to improve their agency's buying power, and hear the latest information on Federal Marketplace initiatives. Training begins January 25. Register today, and earn up to 11 CLPs!

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Any reference to, or information discussing, a specific commercial training organization, or its products, processes, or services within this Acquisition Today newsletter does not constitute or imply an endorsement by FAI, GSA, or the United States Government of the commercial training organization, or its products, processes, services, producers, or providers. The views and opinions expressed in any referenced document, website, linked information, or any other information, contained in the newsletter regarding a commercial training organization do not necessarily state or reflect those of FAI, GSA, or the United States Government. All references to commercial training organizations are for information purposes only.  Neither the FAI, GSA, or the United States Government, nor any of their employees, assumes any legal liability for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information from a commercial training organization's referenced information, linked information, services, products, producers, or providers.