A GovCon pat on the back
Foreboding tamps down the enthusiasm at an awards ceremony.
A kind of restrained rambunctious enthusiasm rippled through the 1,000 or so federal contractors gathered the night of Nov. 7 at the annual GovCon contracting industry awards in Tyson's Corner, Va. The enthusiasm, however, was tempered by the memory of recent government cutbacks and shutdowns and foreboding for those that may be still to come.
As the 11th Annual Greater Washington Government Contractor Awards were handed out, presenters had to repeatedly shush the crowd to be heard above the laughter and loud conversations. The din came from contractors who have been working amid one of the toughest federal acquisition environments in years and the relief/trepidation in the throng was hard to hide -- relief from having made it through so far, but unease about another shutdown and continuing tight budgets.
The Fairfax County Chamber of Commerce and the Professional Services Council sponsored the awards.
The evening's final winner -- Kymm McCabe, CEO at ASI Government, who accepted the Executive of the Year award companies with less than $75 million in sales — asked the crowd to stand, turn to the person on their right, and pat them on the back in congratulations for making it through a very tough year.