Online Training

User-Centered Procurement: How to Design Your Contracts for Real People and Delivery, Not A List of Requirements 

Rethink Procurement—Transform IT From an Operational Necessity to a Strategic Driver of Government Innovation

June 10 & 12, 2025

11:00 AM to 3:00 PM ET

Next intake: June 10 & 12, 2025 | 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM ET

Overview

The traditional procurement process in government agencies is often bogged down by rigid structures, outdated methodologies, and inefficiencies that lead to poor post-award outcomes. This course redefines procurement as a strategic function, aligning acquisition strategies with agency missions, technology modernization efforts, and—most importantly—end-user needs. By incorporating human-centered procurement methodologies, participants will learn how to enhance efficiency, transparency, and compliance while significantly improving vendor engagement and contract success rates.

 

Why Attend?

  • Procurement Delays are Costly: On average, federal procurement lead times stretch to 280 days, delaying mission-critical initiatives and wasting taxpayer dollars.
  • High Failure Rates: Studies indicate that 80% of IT government projects fail due to misalignment between technical requirements and real-world user needs.
  • Regulatory Compliance Challenges: Adhering to OMB, FAR, and agency-specific acquisition policies while maintaining agility requires a new procurement approach.
  • Risk Mitigation: Failed procurements cost agencies billions annually. Agile procurement methods have been shown to reduce post-award disputes by 50%.

Who Should Attend?

Procurement is no longer just about compliance—it’s about enabling mission success. If you’re responsible for acquisition decisions that impact your agency’s efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and ability to deliver on public service goals, this course is for you. This course is designed to provide invaluable insights and practical strategies for professionals in the following roles:
Federal, state, and local procurement professionals
Contracting officers and contract officer representatives (CORs)
Government product owners & tech leads
Program managers & policy advisors
Acquisition specialists & decision-makers

Learning Outcomes

Apply Agile Methods: Adapt procurement processes using iterative, user-driven approaches.
Develop Clear Procurement Problem Statements: Reduce ambiguity and ensure strategic alignment with agency missions.
Create Efficient Acquisition Strategies: Design procurement strategies that minimize delays and enhance vendor engagement.
Improve Solicitation & Evaluation Practices: Learn techniques to drive vendor competition and improve contract outcomes.
Enhance Contract Administration: Use real-time feedback loops to optimize post-award performance.

Online Training

User-Centered Procurement: How to Design Your Contracts for Real People and Delivery, Not A List of Requirements 

Session details

  • Learn how to design procurement strategies that align with agency missions and user needs. 
  • Develop skills to apply agile techniques to reduce procurement risk. 
  • Improve solicitation and evaluation strategies to enhance vendor engagement. 
  • Strengthen contract administration with iterative development practices. 
  • Gain hands-on experience through case studies and interactive exercises. 
View course modules

Level: Fundamentals

No previous experience necessary

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Key Sessions

Introduction to User-Centered Procurement

Understanding the shift from traditional procurement to human-centered acquisition.

Aligning Procurement with Agency Missions

Strategies for ensuring acquisitions support broader government objectives.

Agile Procurement Methodologies

Practical approaches to incorporating iterative and flexible procurement strategies.

Developing Effective Problem Statements & Product Visions

How to clearly define procurement needs to drive better outcomes.

Market Research & User Engagement

Using user research and market insights to inform procurement decisions.

Solicitation & Evaluation Best Practices

Improving RFPs, vendor selection, and contract structures for better results.

Risk Mitigation Throughout the Contract Lifecycle

Strategies to reduce failures and ensure successful project completion.

Stakeholder Collaboration & Vendor Management

Building effective partnerships between agencies, procurement teams, and vendors.

Optimizing Post-Award Contract Administration

Implementing continuous feedback loops to enhance contract performance.

9:00 am Procurement Foundations & Pre-Solicitation Strategy

• Overview of user-centered procurement
• Aligning procurement with your organization’s technology vision
• Key prerequisites to executing user-centered procurement and challenges in traditional procurement

9:30 am Break

9:40 am Requirements Definition


• Product Framing: Developing a problem statement and defining product vision
• Techniques for engaging stakeholders to gather requirements
• Hands-on Exercise: Writing a problem statement and aligning it with the product vision

10:25 am Market Research & Technical Discovery

• Conducting user research and technical discovery
• Agile methods for early industry engagement
• Case Study: Using market research to shape acquisition strategy

11:10 am Break

11:20 am Developing an Acquisition Strategy

• Build, Buy, or Blend? Decision-making frameworks
• Risk assessment in acquisition approaches
• Hands-on Exercise/Case study: Choosing the right acquisition strategy for a given scenario

12:20 am Wrap-Up & Q&A

  • Recap of key concepts
  • Open discussion and Q&A session

13:00 am End of Day 1

9:00 am Solicitation Development

• Drafting RFx (RFI, RFP, etc.) with a user-focused approach
• Structuring your work statement with the selected acquisition strategy
• Hands on Activity: Drafting sample user stories
• Group Activity: Reviewing and refining sample RFx language

9:50 am Vendor Submission & Evaluation Strategies

• Managing vendor submissions efficiently
• Aligning evaluation with acquisition strategy:Incorporating code reviews, SME/usability testing and oral interviews into evaluation
• Case Study: Evaluating to optimize vendor outcomes

10:40 am Break

10:50 am Contract Kickoff & Contract Administration

• Ensuring a smooth contract kickoff aligned with procurement goals
• Iterative design and development in contract administration
• Case Study & Hands-on Exercise: Drafting a sprint zero (administrative)

11:50 am Break

12:00pm Closeout & Continuous Improvement

• Importance of contract closeout and capturing lessons learned
• Process improvements for future procurements
• Debriefing session: retrospectives and post mortems

12:35 pm Course Wrap-Up & Q&A

• Recap of key takeaways
• Open discussion on real-world procurement challenges: Ask Me Anything (AMA)
• Resources for continued learning

13:00 pm End of Day 2

Meet Your Facilitator

Ashley Owens, Director of Acquisition, and 18F, GSA Service Delivery

Ashley Owens

​Procurement Expert

Ashley Owens is a nationally recognized government technology acquisition strategist with extensive experience in public sector procurement transformation. With a deep understanding of how procurement impacts mission success, she has spent over a decade revolutionizing how agencies approach acquisition to maximize efficiency, mitigate risk, and enhance stakeholder engagement.

She has served as:

  • Senior Digital Acquisition Strategist under the Chief Technology Officer of a major federal agency, where she led initiatives to modernize procurement frameworks.
  • Acting Executive Director of 18F, spearheading innovative procurement practices that helped agencies deliver better services.
  • Assistant Commissioner of Acquisition at a major technology organization within the U.S. government, overseeing multimillion-dollar procurement strategies and compliance initiatives.

Ashley is a sought-after speaker at industry-leading procurement and government innovation conferences, including:

  • ACT-IAC Imagine Nation ELC – The Future of Contracting
  • Federal Acquisition Service: Acquisition Training for the Real World
  • Public Sector Network Government Innovation Show
  • ATARC (Advanced Technology Academic Research Center)
  • Digital.gov Spring Community Summit

Her expertise has influenced procurement policies that have reduced acquisition timelines, increased competition, and improved post-award outcomes.

Her philosophy? “Everything in government is acquisition adjacent—let’s design contracts for real people”

What your peers had to say

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“Your talk was one of the most useful at the conference! It is so refreshing to hear a new approach to the government procurement model. Lots of food for thought!”

“Your talk was so damn good! Never expected to be fascinated by procurement. Thank you for sharing your knowledge”

“Personality plus!!! Loved hearing your passion. You make procurement interesting.”

Register Today

Join this training for professionals working within the Public Sector

Pay for individual courses

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Ends 25 Apr

$895 USD

per person + tax $200 saving
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Ends 9 Jun

$1095 USD

per person + tax

Additional discounts are available for group registrations of 10 or more. For group or payment enquiries or custom training solutions, please contact training@publicsector.academy

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