Upfront the month that was

The Homeland Security Department is moving ahead with the recompete of its FirstSource contract. The second generation of the IT hardware and services contract has a $3 billion ceiling and DHS is making it a small business contract that fits all the various set-aside categories: 8(a), HUBzone, Service Disabled Veteran-Owned, Economically Disadvantaged Woman-Owned, and general small business. DHS will use the contract to buy computers, desktops, laptops, network cards, routers and related software and services. “We really believe FirstSource II is going to become a very important piece of our portfolio both for IT and strategic sourcing,” said William Thoreen, director of the acquisition division in the DHS Office of Procurement Operations. The new contract would address four DHS priorities: infrastructure rationalization, overall IT improvement, elimination of duplication and balancing the CIO workforce. The final request for proposals is expected no later than Dec. 31. The Navy will likely pick a single winner for the Next Generation Enterprise Network despite having two separate solicitations for the project. The service is asking for a combined response to the two solicitations, said Brian Haney, Deltek’s vice president of client services. The huge contract is the follow on to the Navy/Marine Corps Intranet contract held by Hewlett-Packard Co. to operate the service’s IT infrastructure. The Navy has estimated that the value of NGEN is more than $14 billion, but Deltek estimates the value is likely closer to $10 billion over five years, Haney said at the firm’s FedFocus event. “They are only asking for $1.7 billion for the contract in the first year,” he said. In addition to HP, other teams bidding on the contract are being led by Harris Corp. and Computer Sciences Corp. The request for proposals is expected to be released by the end of the year with awards expected by December 2012. Air Force officials suspended three IT companies after they left their work unfinished on two buildings at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland and have been unwilling to provide information on source-code data so officials can fix their work, according to a government document. The suspended companies are Advanced C4 Solutions Inc., a Florida-based company, which was the prime contractor, and two subcontractors, Superior Communications Solutions Inc., based on Georgia, and Iron Bow Technologies, based in Virginia. None of the companies returned calls and emails for comment. However, representatives from Iron Bow Technologies have acknowledged that they are working to resolve the problems. The suspensions stem largely from unfinished work. In June 2010, the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command Systems Center Atlantic awarded Advanced C4 Solutions a task order for a major IT and furnishing project for the Jones and Smart Buildings, which are at Andrews, according the document. The team was supposed to provide mission-critical IT to more than 2,200 personnel within the first two months after the buildings reopened. They failed to meet the requirements of the task order, according to the Air Force. The IT that was installed didn’t work well. During a review, an unaffiliated contractor discovered 14 critical findings, 19 major findings and seven minor findings that affected the overall security and access to the technology systems. There were also more than 145 customer-generated trouble tickets, the Air Force said. Science Applications International Corp. fired three key executives for alleged failures of proper management because of the CityTime kickback scheme in New York City. In an Oct. 24 memo to all employees, SAIC CEO Walt Havenstein said, “The kind of behavior we have seen in CityTime is criminal and is an affront to everything SAIC stands for as a company.” “That's why the actions of those involved are so appalling to me and to all of us at the company,” he added. The company fired Deborah Alderson, Defense Solutions Group president; John Lord, deputy group president; and Peter Dube, general manager of the Enterprise and Mission Solutions business unit. The CityTime project, launched in 1998, was designed to update and streamline municipal employee records. But investigations by prosecutors, following a whistleblower’s tip, showed CityTime to be an international conspiracy with contractors earning kickbacks for inflated hours billed to the city. Two of those indicted have fled the country. A comprehensive review of the CityTime program, including a review of management performance, concluded there were failures of management with respect to the program and that certain management changes are essential, Havenstein said. Hewlett-Packard Co. decided not to sell its personal computer unit after all. After flirting with the idea of spinning it out, the company’s new CEO, Meg Whitman, decided that keeping the Personal Systems Group “is right for our customers and partners, right for shareholders, and right for employees,” she said. The company said the group is well integrated into the rest of the company and contributes to HP’s portfolio of products and its brand value. Virginia “Ginni” Rometty will succed Sam Palmisano as IBM's CEO when retires at the end of the year. He will stay on board as chairman. Rometty currently is the senior vice president and group executive for sales, marketing and strategy. She goes by Ginni and has led several important business moves at IBM, including the formation of IBM Global Business Services and the acquisition of PricewaterhouseCoopers. “She is more than a superb operational executive. With every leadership role, she has strengthened our ability to integrate IBM's capabilities for our clients,” Palmisano said in the announcement. Rometty had nothing but praise for Palmisano, crediting him with transforming the company since he became CEO in 2002. “Sam taught us, above all, that we must never stop reinventing IBM,” she said. The Northern Virginia Technology Council and Washington Technology named the finalists of the 2011 Government Contractor CTO Innovator Awards. The award recognizes CTOs within the government contracting community for their contributions to their customers and their leadership within their own companies. The winners will be announced at TechCelebration, NVTC's annual banquet on Nov. 14, 2011, at The Ritz-Carlton in Tysons Corner, Va. The finalists and winners in small, midsize and large business categories were selected by an independent panel from the government contracting community. The small company finalists (less than $100 million in revenue) are: Tim Hoechst – Agilex Technologies Geoff Howard – Evolvent Technologies Inc. Jay Kalath – ARRAY Information Technology Dov Levy – Dovel Technologies Greg Parchment – Buchanan & Edwards The midsize company finalists ($100 million to $500 million in revenue) are: David Bettinger – iDirect Chris Chroniger – Acentia Gary Davis – National Government Services Dr. H. Gilbert Miller – Noblis The large company finalists (more than $500 million in revenue) are: Jeff Bergeron – Hewlett-Packard Deborah Dunie – CACI Neil Siegel – Northrop Grumman Information Systems Mark White – Deloitte Consulting LLP