In This Issue:

• FromtheAssistantCommissioner

• IAEAgileTip• IAEParticipatedinFASBlogSeries

• IAEGovernance• TheFederalServiceDesk

• QuarterlySystemUpdates

• Transition.SAM.gov• IAEGathersInputonFPDS-NG

• FerraroEngageswithVeterans

• IAEKicksOffFY2016atKeyEvents

• IAETeamMemberSpotlight

From the Assistant Commissioner

2

IAE’sAssistantCommissioner. NowthatI’vebeenheresixmonths,I’mhappytoreportthatinnowayhaseithertheIAEprogramorthepeoplewhomakeitworkdisappointed! TheworkthatwentintoputtingtheIAEintothepositionwe’reinnow–setting us up for future success – was monumental. Like any goodprogram,buildingasolid foundationiscritical; thesameholdstruehereat the IAE. For roughly two years, the IAE staff built the foundation tobegintotransitionour10systems intoonestreamlinedenvironment–ataskwithascopeandbreadththataren’tcommonly foundorattemptedwithin federal agencies. They laid down the vision, plotted a path, andbeganthetaskofbuildingtheroadwhilewalkingonitatthesametime,ofteninunchartedareas. OfspecificnotewastheinternaltransitionfromtraditionalwaterfallITmethodstowhatweusetoday:amodifiedversionofagilemethodology.Layingthegroundworkforthatmovewasamonumentalachievementthatispayinggreatdividendstodayineverythingwedo.

1

A Six Month Check-Up When I first came to the Integrated AwardEnvironmentinJulyoflastyear,Iwasawarethatthereboth hadbeen substantial achievements inthemodernizationworkunderwayandsignificantwork to be done to transition the ten disparateIAE systems into one, unified environment. TheIAE’srecent trackrecordandthe challengesthatlayaheadwerethetworeasonsIcouldn’twaittohit the ground running in my new role as the

Harnessing the hard work andpreparationthatwentintosettingtheIAEup for great things – and coincidentallycoincidingwithmyarrivalonthescene–thepastsixmonthshavebeenwitnesstosome truly amazing accomplishmentshereinthisprogrammanagementoffice. Using the agile method and completingReleases 1 and 2, in September of 2015,we delivered the Common ServicesPlatform (CSP) infrastructure: a majorachievement that is essentially thebackbone of the entire newenvironment. In Release 3, we receivedGSA’s first-ever Authority to Operate(ATO) for a cloud-based Platform-as-a-Service product. As I wrote in an articleright after learning about the approval,the IAE achieving ATO speaks to thetechnical prowess of our developmentand operations teams. It alsomeans thatour security team and infrastructure ispreparedtocounterthecyberthreatstheplatformcouldbefacinginthefuture.AsIwritethistoday,wearecoming

TheIAEDigest,Volume3,Issue1:FallFY2016 1

The IAE Digest News and Program Updates from the Integrated Award Environment

Volume 3, Issue 1

Fall FY2016

closetotheendofRelease4andarebeginningtheplanningstagesforRelease5.ThetwoReleasesaremonumentalintheirownrightinthat and operations teams. It also means that our security team and

stakeholdersandIAEsystemuserswillstart toseevarious functionstransitionedtothenewenvironmentforthefirsttime;asignthatweare,infact,wellonourway. Atthesix-monthmark,asI lookbackoverall thathasbeenachievedbytheIAEintherecentpastandasIlookattheroadmapofwhat’stocome, I’m mindful of the myriad day-to-day operations within theofficethatmakeitallpossible. Our goal remains, as always, to share our progress and tocommunicate in an open dialoguewith you. Many of youmay haveattendedtherecentIndustryDayeventhostedbytheIAE(whichyoucan readmoreabout in thisnewsletter)wherewedemonstrated theCommonServicesPlatformMarketplace.IknowthatmanythousandsofyouareactivewithusonourInteractcommunity site. And I know that countless numbers of you areengagedwithusthroughfocusgroupsandsimilarefforts. Iencourageyoutokeeptheconversationgoingandtostayinvolved.Ifyou think the past six months have been exciting, wait ‘till you seewhatwehaveinstorefor2016! As always, please feel free to get in touch with me and share yourthoughts at any time through the IAE Interact community or byemailingmeatIAEOutreach@gsa.gov. EricFerraroAssistantCommissionerIntegratedAwardEnvironment

From the Ass’t Commissioner (continued)

TheIAEDigest,Volume3,Issue1:FallFY2016

2

In Case You Missed It: Industry Day 9 • HeldonDecember9,2015• FeaturedIAEITDirectorNavinVembar,whoconductedalive

demonstration of the Common Services Platform (CSP)Marketplace. The CSP will support functions common to allIAE applications, including identity and access management,datamanagement,search,applicationprogramming interface(API)management,developertools,andcloudmanagement.

• Participants learned how the CSP Marketplace will enabledevelopers to use APIs and other tools to build and deployapplicationsrapidly.

• Event materials and an archived recording (for this andprevious Industry Day presentations) can be accessed arehousedontheIAEInteractsitehere

Don’tmissIndustryDay10!PleasejoinIAE’sInteractcommunitytoreceiveinformationaboutournextevent.

The IAE Digest Volume 3, Issue 1 Fall FY2016

IAE Participates in FAS Blog Series TheFederalAcquisitionService(FAS)withinGSAhas launchedaserieson the GSABlog to highlight various innovations throughout theService. The IAE is happy to be contributing content to the InnovationBlogSeries,includingarecententryaboutourrecentATO. In October of 2015, the Common Services Platform (CSP) achievedAuthority to Operate (ATO). This was a major milestone for the IAE,signifyingourcloudplatformissecureandreadytodobusinesswiththefederalawardmanagementcommunity. Youcanreadallaboutit in theGSABlog. PleasecontinuetocheckouttheGSABlogforkeyupdatesabouttheIAE.

• Functionalregressiontestiscomplete(automatedwherepractical).

• Non-FunctionalRequirementsaremet.• Therearenomust-fixdefects.• Documentationrelatedtothefeaturehasbeenupdated.• Featureisdemonstratedinthesystem.• Featureisincludedinthebuilddefinitionanddeployment

process.• FeatureisacceptedbytheProductOwner/ProgramManagers.

TheIAEdefinesDoneforauserstorywhen:

• Storiessatisfytheacceptancecriteria.• Acceptancetestsandunittestshavepassed(automatedwhere

practical).• Cumulativeunittestshavepassed.• Non-functionalrequirements(508,FISMA,AgileFramework,EA

Framework,APIstandards,Codingstandards,UXstandards)havebeenmet.

• Codecheckedin,mergedintomainline,andpublishedtocoderepository

• CodingStandardshavebeenfollowed.• Codepeerhasbeenreviewed.• Codeisdeployabletoaproductionenvironment• Documentationrelatedtotheuserstoryhasbeenupdated.• Therearenomust-fixdefects.• StoryhasbeenacceptedbytheProductOwner.

TheIAEDigest,Volume3,Issue1:FallFY2016

3

The IAE Digest Volume 3, Issue 1 Fall FY2016

IAE Agile Tip: The IAE’s Definition of Done AsignificantpartofthecomprehensivetransitionoccurringwithintheIAE includes the change from traditional waterfall development to amodifiedversionofAgilemethodology. InAgiledevelopment there is a concern that inconsistencies canarisefromcommon termsusedwithin teams. Aprimeexample is the term“done,” which can mean many different things to various teammembers. Having an agreed-upon Definition of Done is critical for softwarereleases, features, and user stories - all components within our agiledevelopmentframework.TheIAEisusingthefollowingcharacteristicstodefineDoneforRelease5,andforupcomingreleases,asappropriate. TheIAEdefinesDoneforareleasewhen:

• Allfeaturesforthereleasablesetaredoneandmeetacceptancecriteria.

• End-to-endsystemintegrationandsystem/performancetestingaredone.

• Fullregressiontestingisdone(automatedwherepractical).• Therearenomust-fixdefects.• User,release,andinstallationdocumentationarecomplete.• 100% of the features are developedwith an Infrastructure-as-

Codeimplementation.• 100%ofthecodeisopensourceable.• FeaturesetisacceptedbyProductManagement.

TheIAEdefinesDoneforafeaturewhen:

• Featuresmeetacceptancecriteria.• Allstoriesforthefeaturesaredone.• CodedeployedtoQA/Stagingandintegrationhavebeentested.

TheIAEDigest,Volume3,Issue1:FallFY2016

IAE Governance Financial Assistance Committee for E-Government

(FACE) Several bodies provide governance and guidance to the IAE program.The Financial Assistance Committee for E-Government (FACE),formerlyknownastheGrantsandLoanscommitteeforE-Government(GLCE), was established to represent the functional needs of thefinancialassistancecommunity. TheFACEservesasthevoice fordatacollection, reporting, and analysis outcomes expected from the IAE’ssuite of systems. The FACE facilitates decision-making regardingproposed requirements and changes that affect the grant, loans, andfinancialassistancecommunities. The responsibility of the FACE is to make timely decisions to (1)integrate common functional areas across agencies, (2) ensurecompliance with statutory and regulatory requirements, and (3)improvetheawardsmanagementprocesses forgrants, loans,and life-cycleperformanceacrossthefederalspace. TheFACEhastwoco-chairsandatleastonerepresentativefromeachofthe26grant-makingfederalagencies.Together,theyareresponsiblefor coordination with the Procurement Committee for E-Government(PCE)andtheAwardCommitteeforE-Government(ACE)co-chairsformaking decisions on behalf of the federal financial assistancecommunity as they pertain to collecting, using, disseminating, anddisplayingfederalfinancialassistance. “With more than $600 billion in fiscal year 2015 reported so far onfederalfinancialassistance,wearedeeplycommittedtoensurethatIAEsystems,andeventuallythefutureenvironment,canabsorbandhandleincreasinglevelsofuserloadsandactivity,“saidIAEAssistant

Did You Know? UX Stats

TheaveragefocusgroupgivestheIAEUserExperience(UX)team60user stories documenting user requested enhancements. The UXteam files these stories into modernization planning for ourapplications.

4

The IAE Digest Volume 3, Issue 1 Fall FY2016

Commissioner Eric Ferraro. “Our continued collaboration andcooperation with FACE representatives are critical to help us designandbuildsuchanagile,flexible,anduser-centricenvironment.” TheFACEmeetingsaretypicallyheldon the thirdWednesdayofeachmonth,with additionalmeetings scheduled as needed. To learnmoreinformationabouttheFACE,pleasecontactIAEOutreach@gsa.gov.

TheIAEDigest,Volume3,Issue1:FallFY2016

The Federal Service Desk The Integrated Award Environment is a multi-disciplinary programoffice with all manner of highly skilled staff who work on myriadprogram aspects. Of the many responsibilities within the IAE -includingbuildingthenewenvironmentandconcurrentlymaintainingthe current systems - managing the Federal Service Desk (FSD) isparamount. The Federal Service Desk (FSD) is the customer support center formany of the IAE’s systems. It is a multi-tiered service center thathandles more than 1,800 calls a day, varying from inquiries aboutsystempasswordresets to federalacquisitionpolicies.TheFSDworkswithindustrypartnerstomakesurethatusersreceivethehighestlevelofcustomersupportandbestanswerstoquestions. TheprimarygoaloftheFSDistoprovidemultiplelevelsofsupporttoIAEsystemusersthroughcustomersupportagents.Currently,theFSDisstaffedwith114Tier1agents.Lastquarter,theTier1agentshandled23,000callswithanaveragespeedtoanswerof38secondsandaTier1resolutionrateof95percent.Customer support agents receive training and cross training for theIAE’smultiplesystems.Thisisparticularlyusefulwhencoverageneedsto be ramped up to address an influx of calls to the FSD. Customersupportagentsalsoreceivesystemrefreshersandknowledgeupdateswheneverthereisasystemupdate. Tobetterserve customerneedswith theappropriate levelof support,FSDsupportissplitintofourtiers. The first is self-help.Users can reference FrequentlyAskedQuestions(FAQs) and user manuals on fsd.gov anytime they want to resolveinquiries.

The IAE Digest Volume 3, Issue 1 Fall FY2016

5

The second tier involves assistance from customer support agents.Users cancontactFSDagentsbyphoneor chat from8AMuntil8PMEastern time during the workweek. Agents can help users with avariety of topics ranging from resetting passwords to providinginformationaboutsystemoutagesorproblems. Thethirdtierinvolvestheescalationofcallstoupperlevelsofsupportfor more in-depth analysis. Third tier customer support agents helpcustomerswithbothtechnicalissuesandfunctionalissues. The fourth tier of support at the FSD is for customers who havequestionsorinquiriespertainingtofederalpolicyandgovernance.TierfourinquiriesgetroutedtotheIAEpolicyteaminWashington,DC.forresponse. The FSD maintains a continuous level of support at two locations:Montgomery, Alabama and London, Kentucky. These locations cansupporteachother ifonecannotoperate foranyreason.Forexample,theLondonlocationhandledcallvolumefromtheMontgomerylocationafter it closed down because of inclement weather conditions lastwinter. Althoughthecall centersare invarious locations, theFSD ismanagedby staff within IAE inWashington, DC. You can readmore about theFSDmanagerinthisnewsletterinthe“StaffSpotlight”section. Formore informationabout theFSDor toobtainsupport,pleasevisitwww.fsd.govorcall866-606-8220MondaytoFridayfrom8a.m.to8p.m.ET.

TheIAEDigest,Volume3,Issue1:FallFY2016

6

The IAE Digest Volume 3, Issue 1 Fall FY2016

System for Award Management Witheachsoftwarerelease,weworktoimprovetheSystemforAwardManagement(SAM)userexperience,improvethequalityofinformationavailable from SAM, and reduce the burden for those wishing to dobusinesswiththeU.S.government.Wedothisthroughacombinationofminor enhancements and fixing known issues. In the October 31stquarterlyrelease,wemadeimprovementsthatincluded:

• Reducinguserconfusion throughemail notifications aboutDelinquent Federal Debt (DFD). We created an emailnotificationtoalertuserswhentheirentityis flaggedashavingDFD subject to the Treasury Offset Program, what the DFDindicator means, and what action to take. We also createdanother notification to inform users when the debt flag isremoved.

• Increasing the relevance of search results in the DisasterResponse Registry Search page. We added a LocationaccordiontotheDisasterResponseRegistrySearchpage.Userswillbeable tosearch forentitiesable toprovidedisasterreliefby entities' physical address, in addition to the other availablesearchcriteria.

• OptimizingusabilityintheRepresentations&CertificationswithEntityRegistration.Weinsertedon-screenSAMAssistanttextfortheRepsandCertssectionwithinanEntityRegistration.

Quarterly System Updates • ImprovingCoreEntity data quality.Wechangedthedefault

settingforCountryofIncorporationontheGeneralInformationpageto"Pleaseselectavalue."Allregistrantswillhavetoselectacountry fromthedrop-down.ThosewhoselectUnitedStateswillthenhavetheoptionofselectingaStateofIncorporation.

• ImprovedCAGE/NCAGECodedataquality.Weimplementedavalidationrule topreventusers fromprovidingtheirentity'sCAGE/NCAGE Code for their Immediate and/or Highest-LevelOwner or providing the same CAGE/NCAGE Code for bothowners. In either scenario, the user will receive a mandatoryerrormessageontheCAGEOwnershipDetailspage.

• Removedthe90-daygraceperiodtoprovideinternational

owners'CAGE/NCAGECodeinaccordancewithFARSubpart4.18.Alluserswhostate thattheirentityhasanImmediateorHighest-Level Owner will need to provide the parent'sCAGE/NCAGECodepriortosubmittingtheirregistration.

• Added Firm exclusion record to the D&B Monitoring

process.IfaDUNSNumberassociatedwithanexclusionrecordisflaggedbyD&BashavingachangetoitsLegalBusinessNameor Physical Address, SAM will send the appropriate users anemailnotificationinvitingthemtoreviewtheinformationfromD&Bandupdatetheexclusionrecordifneeded.

For additional details, you may find and read the October 31st SAMrelease notes posted to SAM.gov > General Info > News > ReleaseNotes.

TheIAEDigest,Volume3,Issue1:FallFY2016

Quarterly System Updates

7

The IAE Digest Volume 3, Issue 1 Fall FY2016

IAE By the Numbers Federal Service Desk 1st Quarter FY 2016

Ø Callvolumewasatanaverageof23,945permonth

Ø Average speed to answer was 38 seconds, compared to theindustrystandardof30seconds

Ø Average handle/talk time was at approximately 14 minutes (upslightlyfrom13.5minutesinQ4FY2015)

Ø First call resolution rate increased slightly to 95 percent,exceedingtheindustrystandardof80percent

System for Award Management 1st Quarter FY 2016

Ø Averagenumberofregistrationsactivatedpermonth:o Newregistrations:5,938o Updatedregistrations:40,011

Ø Averagecycletimein1QFY2016was2.02days

Ø Averagenumberofsitevisitspermonthwas905,579

Ø Averagenumberofsearchesperformedpermonthwas5,028,418

Common Services Platform: Release 4 Using a modified version of agile methodology to build the newenvironment, the IAE has planned for 10 individual “releases” duringwhichwewillcompletevarioustasksandmigrationsofsystems.Inthefirstquarterof2016,wewereimmersedinRelease4. DuringRelease4,theIAEaddednewfeaturesintheCommonServicesPlatform (CSP) and matured its ability to support a DevOps-drivenworkflow. The CSP Marketplace was further enhanced during this release todemonstratethatapplicationscanbebuiltanddeployedintodeveloperandtestenvironmentsthatsupporttheIAE.TheincreasingmaturityoftheDevOpsmodelensuresthatdeploymenttoproductionisasmooth,repeatable,andheavilyautomatedprocess. The IAE also enhanced identity and access management to allow forintegrationwithconnect.gov.AdditionallyinRelease4,webeganthedevelopmentofthefirstcentralbusiness capability supporting the Federal Hierarchy for applicationrolemanagement. TheFederalHierarchy is anapplicationwithin IAEthatallowsfederalorganizationstocreateandmanageahierarchyfortheir organization. The hierarchy shares that information with otherapplicationswithintheIAE.

TheIAEDigest,Volume3,Issue1:FallFY2016

Transition.SAM.gov: Introducing the Common Landing Page Aswork continues throughout the IAE to modernize the ten disparatesystemswemanage into one streamlined environment, the centerpiece(and certainly most public-facing aspect) of the effort is the commonlandingpage. Thehomepagewherealluserswillstarttheirexperiencewith the new environment is currently in development, and users willhaveaccesstothebetaversionofTransition.SAM.Govinthenearfuture. TheIAE’sUserExperienceandUserinterface(UX/UI)teamisleadingthecharge in building the “common landing page” forTransition.SAM.gov. And the groundwork to-date (plus recentaccomplishments) is beginning to bear fruit as the landing page isstartingtotakeshape. TheUX/UIteamhavebeenverybusyorganizingandconductingnumerous,ongoingfocusgroupswithgovernmentandindustrypartnerstolearnwhatfunctionsandaspectsvarioususerswantandrequireinthenewenvironment. What’smore, in the first quarter of 2016, the UX/UI teamwas able toachievetwoadditionalsignificantaccomplishments.First,theyintegratedtheGSA18FUSWebStandardswithIAE’sSAM.govWebStandards-animportant step in creating the look-and-feel of the site itself. The teamalsomade those standardspubliclyavailable throughopenIAE’sGitHubsite. Similar to the relationship between the Federal AcquisitionRegulation (FAR) and Agency FAR supplements, the SAM.gov WebStandardswillbuildupontheUSWebStandardstocreateauniformandcohesiveuserexperienceforthenewTransition.SAM.gov. Thesecondmajoradvancementthisquarterwasthetransitionoflegacysystem service names to user friendly names that describe theinformation/actionofeachapplication.

8

The IAE Digest Volume 3, Issue 1 Fall FY2016

For example, instead of Federal BusinessOpportunities (FBO), the newenvironment will process “Business Opportunities;” instead of WageDetermination Online (WDOL), the new environment will process“Wages;”andinsteadofContractor'sPerformanceAssessmentReportingSystem(CPARS),thenewenvironmentwillprocess“PastPerformance.” This process also includes the registering of domain names/URLs foreachapplication.AftermonthsoftestingandgovernancereviewthenewURLsarebeingregistered!Staytunedforthefulllisting!

TheIAEDigest,Volume3,Issue1:FallFY2016

The IAE Gathers Input about FPDS-NG In November 2015, IAE began soliciting feedback from users andstakeholders about the Federal Procurement Data System - NextGeneration (FPDS-NG) through a series of eight focus groups. The 175attendeesincludedawiderangeofstakeholders,includingCongressionalstaff, agency acquisition representatives, the federal policy community,applicationintegrators,andindustryusers.

Duringthesesessions,userswereaskedtosharetheirexperiences,painpoints, and needs in the areas of user interface, search, reports, dataquality,dashboard,support,androlesandaccess.

Overall, user input centered on five key user experience improvementthemes:

• Clear,complete,standardized,andunderstandabledata• Errordetection,correction,anddatavalidation• Dashboardvisibility• Flexible,intuitivecontroloversearchandreporting• Reduceddataentryburdenandimprovequalityatentrypoint

Ourusersprovidedmuch-neededperspective,pointingoutdifficultiesinunderstandingterminology,preferredreportingformats,andintegrationwithother IAEsystems.Aswemodernizeour systems, this insightwillhelp us ensurewe are building a solution thatmeets the needs of ourusers. Inthesecondquarteroffiscalyear2016,theIAEwillconductafollow-upsurveywith userswhowere unable to participate in focus groups. WewillworkwiththeChangeControlBoardtoprioritizetherequesteduserexperienceimprovementsfortherebuildofFPDS.IfyouwouldliketovolunteertoparticipateinIAEfocusgroups,pleasee-mailIAEOutreach@gsa.gov.

9

The IAE Digest Volume 3, Issue 1 Fall FY2016

The IAE’s assistant commissioner Eric Ferraro serves as the chair ofGSA’sVeteransSmallBusinessForum.Ferraro’sroleaschairhasallowedtheIAEtoregularlyengagewithveteran-ownedbusinessesstakeholders.Inthefirstquarterof2016,Ferrarohadtheopportunitytospeakattwoveteransevents. ThefirstwasonNovember5atacontractingofficersymposiumheldatGSAheadquartersinWashington. FerrarospokeaboutcontractingwithService-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses (SDVOSB’s). HedeliveredopeningremarksthatincludedstatisticsaboutSDVOSB’susageoftheSystemforAwardManagement(SAM). GSA also launched an upgraded website for SDVOSB’s this quarter,providingvaluableresourcestothiscommunity. Later inNovember,Ferraroparticipated in theNational VeteransSmallBusiness Engagement event in Pittsburgh. During the event, FerrarosharedimportantupdatesabouttheIAE’smodernizationeffortandhowsystemimprovementswillmakeiteasierforU.S.militaryveteranstodobusiness the U.S. government. The IAE looks forward to continuedengagementwithourU.S.militaryveteranusersinthecomingyear.

AC Ferraro Engages with Veterans

TheIAEDigest,Volume3,Issue1:FallFY2016

The IAE Kicks Off FY2016 by Detailing Modernization at Key Events Inthefirstquarteroffiscalyear2016,theIAEsharedbestpracticesandkey program updates with industry stakeholders and governmentpartnersatthefollowingevents:

FedScoop Digital Innovation Summit

TheIAE’s ITDirectorNavinVembarwas invitedtospeakatFedScoop’sDigitalInnovationSummitonOctober14thinWashington,D.C. VembarspokeabouthowtheIAE’splatformandcodewillbeopensourceand how the modernized environment will allow the IAE to deliverservicestousersmoreefficiently.

ACT-IAC Executive Leadership Conference Innovation Zone

OnOctober26th,IAE’sDirectorofOutreachandStakeholderManagementJudith Zawatsky presented the topic “Can Regulations and ComplianceReally Be User Friendly” at the ACT-IAC Executive LeadershipConference’sInnovationZoneinWilliamsburg,VA.Inherpresentation,ZawatskysharedtheIAE’sexperiencewithgatheringextensive user input to inform the development of the modernizedenvironment. Attracting hundreds of attendees from both governmentand industry, the conference focused on how advancements intechnologyareenablingtransformationsingovernment.

10

The IAE Digest Volume 3, Issue 1 Fall FY2016

AgileDC 2015

On October 26th, IAE’s Christy Hermansen delivered a presentation atAgileDC inWashington,D.C. about how the IAEhasuseduser-centeredagile development to transform the way applications are built.HermansendetailedhowuservoicesandinputareintegratedintheIAE’slarge-scale agile development to influence the future environment in ameaningfulway.

ACT-IAC Panel on Acquiring Agile Digital Services

On November 5th, Vembar participated in a panel hosted by ACT-IACabouthowtheacquisitionprocesscanbestructuredtomakeiteasiertoacquireagileserviceswhilemaintainingcompliancewiththeFAR.InadditiontoVembar,thepanelfeaturedexpertsfromtheDepartmentofHomeland Security, and the U.S. Digital Service. The topic was at theeventwassopopularthatitwillbepresentedagaininJanuary21,2016!

Gregory Sizemore Gregory Sizemore manages the FederalService Desk (FSD) for the IAE. As amember of the IAE’s Outreach andStakeholderManagementteam,Sizemoreis responsible for the call centers thathandleincominginquiriesfor: SystemforAwardManagement(SAM) CatalogofFederalDomesticAssistance(CFDA) Electronic Subcontracting ReportingSystem(eSRS)

TheIAEDigest,Volume3,Issue1:FallFY2016

IAE Team Member Spotlight

FederalBusinessOpportunities(FBO) FederalProcurementDataSystem(FPDS-NG) FFATASubawardReportingSystem(FSRS) WageDeterminationsOnLine(WDOL)

Sizemore began his career at GSA in 2012when heworked as a projectmanager for the Federal Systems Integration and Management Center(FEDSIM), which offers end-to-end, value-added solutions to large scaleinitiatives including project, acquisition, and financial managementsupport.SoonafterassuminghisroleinFEDSIM,Gregwasaskedtocometo IAE to helpmanage the FSD based on his extensive prior experiencewithhelpdesks.“OneofmyproudestaccomplishmentsatGSAsofarhasbeenourabilitytotrulyturntheexperienceattheFederalServiceDeskaroundforuserswhocallinlookingforhelp,”saidSizemore.“IwaschallengedtomakesignificantimprovementsforourcallerswhenIfirstgothere.Now,I’mchallengedbytheconstantchangeandmotionattheFSD;everydaybrings

Connect with IAE:

ü JoinourInteractcommunitybyvisitinginteract.gsa.gov

ü EmailIAEOutreach@gsa.govü SuggestcontentforTheIAEDigestusingthisformü ForinformationandassistancewiththesystemsservicedbytheFederalServiceDesk,pleasevisitwww.fsd.gov

11

The IAE Digest Volume 3, Issue 1 Fall FY2016

somethingnew.Itdefinitelykeepsyouonyourtoes.”PriortocomingtoGSA as a federal employee, Sizemore served as a support contractor atGSA for 15 years. During that time, he had the responsibilities of asupport manager working directly with users and agents alike. Hemovedaroundtovariousofficesandateachstop,waschargedwithfixingandimprovingsupportissues. “It has been an amazing journey during the past few years here at theIAE,”saidSizemore.“NotonlyhaveIwatchedimprovementsattheFSD,but I’vealsobeen luckytowitnessamazing changesand improvementswithinthe10systemsthataremanagedbyIAE. Nowthateverything isbeginningtomigratetoacommon,unifiedenvironment,theroadaheadisexcitinganditisbright.” WhennothelpingIAEsystemusersattheFederalServiceDesk,SizemorespendstimewithhiswifeandchildreninVirginia.Hisboysareinvolvedinmultiplehighschoolsportsthroughouttheyear,andtherefore,soisGreg!