OEM Support
ServicesHomeOEM & Acquisition Initiatives
The ITVMO provides thought leadership, consulting, and research services in IT policy, acquisitions, technology adoption, and data analytics to increase acquisition efficiencies, strengthen procurement strategies, facilitate knowledge sharing, and deliver best practices and lessons learned across government.
OEM Assessments
Overview
To meet the growing demand for acquisition knowledge share including acquisition strategies, best practices, and governance approaches, the IT Vendor Management Office (ITVMO) developed and implemented the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) Assessment Initiative. The ITVMO engages directly with agency leadership and acquisition professionals, reviews reporting data, and analyzes annual IT spending trends to identify top OEMs being utilized across the federal government. OEM Assessments are completed following a seven (7) phase approach.
The focus of the OEM Assessment is to work with agency acquisition professionals and Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) to identify common challenges and opportunities for a specific OEM. Once identified, the ITVMO, as one voice for the federal government, engages directly with senior leadership at the OEM to develop and negotiate solutions to the common challenges which may include resources such as:
- Acquisition Strategy Guides
- Best Practices
- Buyers Guides
- Direct engagements with OEMs
- Office Hours Sessions
- Recorded Training
- Unique Terms and Conditions
- Webinars
Once resources are identified, the ITVMO documents and publishes the resources and reports back to both agency leadership, acquisition professionals, and SMEs informing all customers about the solutions that were developed and how to access all the available resources.
Below are the results of these ongoing efforts. Written materials are stored on OMB’s MAX portal which requires either a .gov or .mil email address for access. Webinar and Office Hours Session videos are stored on Acquisition Gateway.
To be included in discussions or help identify OEMs for future assessments, please complete our Point of Contact (PoC) Survey to ensure you stay up to date on all the work the ITVMO is completing for OEMs. You can also contact our OEM team at ITVMO@gsa.gov
Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM)
In 2021, the ITVMO began evaluating Adobe through the OEM Assessment Process. As a result of the Assessment, the ITVMO identified common challenges for Federal agencies focused on a perceived lack of support from Adobe in supporting Federal Agencies with sufficient explanations on how to leverage the Adobe products best suited for their unique environments.
The ITVMO plans to reengaged with Adobe in fiscal year 2024, and will continue to seek solutions and provide updates to previously identified challenges, as well as document and begin discussions on any new issues that the agency community identifies.
Information, resources, and trainings as a result of the Assessment and ongoing engagements can be found below.
Assessment Information
Agency Challenges & Proposed Solutions
In August 2021, the ITVMO began evaluating AWS through the OEM Assessment Process. As a result of the Assessment, the ITVMO identified common challenges for Federal agencies focused on monitoring and managing consumption and improved invoice management.
Information, resources, and trainings as a result of the Assessment and ongoing engagements can be found below.
Assessment Information
Resources
In August 2022, the ITVMO began evaluating Cisco through the OEM Assessment Process. As a result of the Assessment, the ITVMO identified common challenges for Federal agencies focused on price escalation and budget planning, license management, end user license agreement confusion, and extended lead times for hardware.
Information, resources, and trainings as a result of the Assessment and ongoing engagements can be found below.
Assessment Information
In July 2021, the ITVMO began a deep dive of Microsoft to support Agencies with specific procurement issues including transitioning from G3 to G5, negotiating terms and conditions, and contract lifecycle management.
In July 2022, the ITVMO began evaluating Microsoft through the OEM Assessment Process. As a result of the Assessment, the ITVMO identified common challenges for Federal agencies focused on standard terms and conditions, consumption management, extended audit logging concessions, and annual budget forecasting support.
Information, resources, and training as a result of the Assessment and ongoing engagements can be found below.
Assessment Information
Educational Videos
In May 2021, the ITVMO began evaluating Oracle through the OEM Assessment Process. As a result of the Assessment, the ITVMO identified common challenges for Federal agencies focused certification and audit clauses, price holds, maintenance and support caps, and virtualization.
The ITVMO plans to reengaged with Oracle in fiscal year 2024, and will continue to seek solutions and provide updates to previously identified challenges, as well as document and begin discussions on any new issues that the agency community identifies.
Information, resources, and training as a result of the Assessment and ongoing engagements can be found below.
Assessment Information
Educational Videos
Resources
In September 2022, the ITVMO began evaluating Salesforce through the OEM Assessment Process. As a result of the Assessment, the ITVMO identified common challenges for Federal agencies focused on inconsistent product codes, migrating licensing models, and lock-in pricing.
Information, resources, and trainings as a result of the Assessment and ongoing engagements can be found below.
Assessment Information
- OEM Assessment Summary - Coming Soon
- Executive Close Out Memo - Coming Soon
- Close Out Flyer - Coming Soon
Educational Videos
Videos Coming Soon…
In February 2022, the ITVMO began evaluating ServiceNow through the OEM Assessment Process. As a result of the Assessment, the ITVMO identified common challenges for Federal agencies focused on best practices and operations and maintenance.
Information, resources, and trainings as a result of the Assessment and ongoing engagements can be found below.
Assessment Information
Educational Videos
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Webinar 1: Introduction to ServiceNow, Strategy, and
Implementation Approaches
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Webinar 2: Operating and Maintaining the ServiceNow
Platform
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Webinar 3: Roadmap Part 1
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Webinar 4: Roadmap Part 2
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Webinar 5: Implementing a Citizen Development Program
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Webinar 6: Understanding the Licensing Model and Pricing
Framework
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Webinar 1: ServiceNow GenAI for Employee Experience
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Webinar 2: ServiceNow GenAI for Technology Workflows
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Webinar 3: ServiceNow Support for AI EO
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Webinar 4: ServiceNow GenAI and Customer Experience
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Webinar 5: ServiceNow GenAI and App Development
GenAI Educational Videos
In 2024, the ITVMO initiated efforts to explore options for optimizing VMware licensing and negotiation strategies in response to significant changes introduced by VMware’s acquisition by Broadcom. The resources below clarify the changes and impacts
Resources
Contract Review Services
Overview
Multi-year, enterprise-wide contracts to acquire software made by top Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) represent significant investments for all federal agencies. For the OEMs, these contracts represent some of the largest revenue commitments of their entire year. The OEMs and their Value Added Resellers (VARs) invest substantial resources in maximizing the value of these contracts through terms, conditions, pricing, and a thorough understanding of agencies IT infrastructure, maintaining a clear advantage over buyers that are often understaffed and uninformed as to what constitutes a “good deal”. The ITVMO, recognizing this information disadvantage, is offering a service to help agencies gain confidence in their software contract investments.
The ITVMO’s Contract Review Service (CRS) offers subject matter expertise and guidance via targeted, agency-specific software contract reviews to better prepare agencies for their next renewal.
CRS Process
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Let’s Get To Know Each Other
- Our questionnaire will establish the basic framework for the engagement, identifying important data points as well as priorities for the agency’s next contract.
- Kickoff meeting with identified POC(s) to discuss the engagement and questionnaire results.
- Sharing of data elements such as current contract documents, term sheets, and Statement of Work (depending on survey results and preliminary discussions).
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Our SMEs Go To Work
ITVMO will review the relevant shared documents and once complete, we'll convene to discuss preliminary findings, confirm our understanding, and ask relevant questions.
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Here’s What We Think…
ITVMO will deliver a recommendations report which summarizes our understanding and identifies our recommended areas of focus, pinpointing specific terms and concepts where appropriate. A final meeting will allow for questions or revised recommendations as necessary.
Benefits
- Improved Negotiating Position: you’ll be better equipped to achieve prioritized concessions after learning what’s possible.
- Heightened Buyer Confidence: begin your contract renewal process knowing you’ve taken steps to close the information gap.
- Help Your Federal Colleagues: every contract we review represents another data point from which to derive future recommendations.
At this time, the ITVMO’s Contract Review Services is a FREE service
being offered to all federal agencies.
Contact Us
to schedule an exploratory discussion
Integrated Data Collection (IDC)
Overview
The ITVMO has invested in enhancing the Federal Integrated Data Collection (IDC) for IT related categories (specifically Hardware and Software) to get clearer data from agencies to drive governmentwide procurement and acquisition strategies. The ITVMO uses the data provided by agencies through the IDC to drive decisions about Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM), Engagements, and government wide enterprise purchasing. The data is used to prioritize the chartering of interagency working groups, developmenting special studies, and promoting useful resources that can be used to drive efficiencies across the acquisition landscape
As part of the IDC improvements, the ITVMO has planned for added agency IDC contributor support throughout the reporting process lifecycle. Today the ITVMO offers:
- Quarterly Kick Off Meeting
- Current Submission Office Hours (during open reporting period)
- Information on what is required and guidance for responding
- Submission Reviews
- Personal Engagements for submission clarification
- Quarterly Debriefing
Want to be kept up to date on upcoming IDC resources and meetings?
Email us at
ITVMO@gsa.gov
Govwide Acquisition Strategies
Overview
The President Management Agenda (PMA) Priority 3 is focused on Managing the Business of Government, driving lasting improvements that impact how the Government buys products and services to increase efficiencies and drive down costs. Pending new legislation will help improve acquisition flexibility and eliminate barriers to cost savings. The ITVMO in support of these actions will seek out top acquisition actions to prioritize and facilitate the development and implementation of a multi-phased approach to standardize key components of select vendor agreements. The ITVMO does this with the intent to ensure all federal customers experience the same contractual benefits.
Strategic Approach
Achieving a centralized multi-agency BPA for select vendors will take time, resources, and WILLINGNESS by the agencies. The ITVMO in partnership with the Office of Management and Budget’s Office of Procurement Policy will use a phased approach to scale the solution to gain buy-in and adoption.
Strategic Approach-
Integrated Project Team (IPT)
- Identify 5 stakeholder agencies to participate in the IPT and gather federal agency contract artifacts.
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Terms and Conditions Addendum
- Develop a Best in Class set of Terms and Conditions to be incorporated into the GWACs Letter of Supply and agency contracts.
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Data Analysis and Pricing Negotiation
- Compare vendor pricing across the federal government and negotiate standard discount(s) for agencies.
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Contract Modifications
- Implement the Terms & Conditions Addendum contract modifications for the GWACs and agencies.
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Evaluate Govwide Procurement Solution Pilot
- Evaluate success from the Terms and Conditions Addendum to determine the feasibility to initiate a consolidated multi-agency BPA pilot and, if feasible develop a roadmap for a phased implementation.
Govwide Microsoft Acquisition Strategy
The Governmentwide Microsoft Acquisition Strategy (GMAS) is a
strategic initiative led by the
Information Technology Vendor Management Office
(ITVMO) in partnership with the
Office of Federal Procurement Policy
at the
Office and Management and Budget
(OMB/OFPP) and the Microsoft Corporation to standardize contract
elements for Microsoft buyers across government.
The ITVMO engaged in extensive discussions with Microsoft and collaborated with the 24 Chief Financial Officers (CFO) Act Agencies to identify government-wide priorities with the greatest potential for transformative impact. Key elements of the GMAS initiative include:
- Efforts to establish and improve standard terms and conditions that best align with the government’s mission.
- Enhanced cybersecurity measures addressing critical risks in government IT systems.
- Commitments to develop enhanced govwide support and education capabilities.
These discussions culminated in a landmark Agreement in Principle with Microsoft, representing a bilateral commitment to implement a series of agreed-upon contractual and operational enhancements, governmentwide.
To support implementation, the IT Vendor Management Office (ITVMO) will release guides and training materials to help agencies integrate these terms into their contracts.
Governmentwide Acquisition Strategies, Data, and Tools
Coming soon.......
For more information about the ITVMO’s Governmentwide Acquisition Strategy efforts Contact Us, or email us at ITVMO@gsa.gov
Acquisition Intelligence
Overview
The ITVMO works across acquisition and data partners to unify information from a variety of sources (obligations, transactions, etc.) to create an integrated, enhanced view of federal spend to inform agency acquisition planning. This capability assesses federal spend and contracting in the IT space to determine drivers of trends and changes over time
Approach
The analysis covers major spend features as listed below in the approach overview
| Analysis | Description |
|---|---|
| WHAT was procured? | Category Overview Market Analysis |
| WHO was involved? | Customer Analysis Vendor Analysis |
| WHERE was it procured? | Vehicle Analysis |
| Obligations vs Budget Delta | Analysis of the delta between obligated dollars and resolved budget metrics |
Acquisition Intelligence Reporting is a FREE service being
offered to federal agencies.
Contact Us
to request an IT spend and landscape report for your respective
agency.
