GSA 101

Feeling like you don’t have the time to keep up with all the changes going on inside GSA? We’ve got you covered. Each episode will cover the latest GSA news so you can stay up to date and listen whenever works for you. Whether that’s while showering, driving to work, or searching for your kids toothbrush (check under the couch), each episode will get you up to speed and feeling downright savvy.

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GSA 101

What's Going on Inside GSA

February 16, 2025 • Elevate GSA • Season 1 • Episode 62

I am sure you have heard that the current administration is making pretty big changes inside GSA. It can feel scary and overwhelming - but we aren't going anywhere. We will be here to support you through this and get to the other side.

Hop into the episode to get our take and hear our strategy for moving forward.

As always if you have any questions, or if you’d like direct support from a GSA consultant to help with a specific project please feel free to reach out to us at podcast@elevategsa.com

For more episodes: www.elevategsa.com/podcast

What is Going on Inside GSA

Welcome to GSA 101 brought to you by Elevate GSA: where we turn GOVSPEAK into a language YOU speak. My name is Hannah Struss and I have Collin Hartsell here with me and we are going to be chatting about the recent changes inside GSA.

We spoke to a point of contact at GSA a few days ago to find out more, and here is what we know: Contracting Officers are ranked on a scale from 1-5 based on their performance. All lower performing CO's will be let go. They are only allowing GSA to hire 1 new CO for every 4 let go. The intention is to cut GSA’s 64 million dollar budget in half, which is interesting given that they are entirely self funded through the IFF.

They also intend to bring AI in, the so called GSAI. This will be a chatbot used to streamline modification reviews, and hopefully a real CO will oversee the AI's activity. You may have noticed that even before the current administration’s involvement, there has been a push for automation and less CO involvement with the roll out of the FAS Catalog Platform or FCP.

The layoffs have already begun at GSA and we know that the Department of Government Efficiency staff interviews have been underway for over a week. For the time being, CO’s are working hard to get their numbers up and hopefully avoid the downsizing, so contracts and modifications are still being processed. As employees depart, this will likely mean slow downs in proposal and modification reviews for a time, so now is the time to submit any modifications that you’ve got standing by.

The government still intends to utilize the GSA for purchasing, and the government will always have work that needs to be accomplished. The administration’s current goal is to minimize GSA operating costs.

GSA is supposed to keep rolling out news alerts, and we will aim to get our hands on that information as soon as we can to share with you all.

Our recommendation to those who currently hold a GSA contact is to get any mods you need to your contract submitted asap. As well as vendors who are considering getting on GSA for the first time- let’s get your proposal submitted as soon as we can before staffing is cut.

While we wait on new proposals and modifications to be reviewed and awarded, we suggest pursuing state government contracting vehicles specific to your area. If you want help navigating these processes, please reach out to us.

Being agile and able to pivot quickly in the face of these changes will be to all our benefit and we are right there with you.

As always if you have any questions of if you’d like direct support with your contract please feel free to reach out at podcast@elevategsa.com.

Thanks for listening!