DC Chapter Excellence Award at GCMS 2019

The NCMA DC Chapter was recognized with a Chapter Excellence Award at the Government Contract Management Symposium (GCMS) in December 2019. This award is designed to recognize the most outstanding chapters based on a set of criteria for determination. As a Chapter of NCMA, we are part of a national organization and are accountable as such. NCMA requires several annual performance assessments to ensure the health and viability of each Chapter community. Required annual reports include: Executive summary; Chapter financial report; Chapter annual audit checklist; Current Chapter bylaws; Chapter volunteer rosters.  

Annual reporting helps us prepare our Chapter Excellence Award application. The out-going and in-coming Secretary and Treasurer work hard on the reports and award application, in collaboration with the rest of the leadership. Thank you to everyone that supported these efforts! Special thanks go to Todd Schwartz (out-going/in-coming Treasurer), Gerry Zaffos (out-going Secretary), Lindsey Tharp (in-coming Secretary), and Darryl Scott (out-going/in-coming President).

A number of our DC Chapter members enjoyed the 38th annual GCMS, a training event held in the Washington, DC metro area and attended by more than 1,000 contracting professionals in both government and industry. The two-day symposium was hosted by Major General Cameron Holt (USAF), with the theme, “Focus on What Works” in acquisition. The symposium opened Monday, December 9, with a keynote speech by Palmer Luckey, founder of Anduril Industries, on why it’s important for the acquisition and contracting community to drastically improve the speed and agility of the acquisition process to advance our national needs in these challenging times. Throughout the event, top leaders from government agencies and industry shared short success stories highlighting what works when facing professional challenges during main stage "What Works" discussions. Topics include resolving intellectual property issues, building innovative contract managers, and contracting with nontraditional contractors. Following the Main Stage sessions each day, we engaged with Main Stage speakers and their teams during "What Works" breakout sessions during which they answered questions and shared details on how they handle professional challenges.