Robert Eldridge and Michael Steen, Director and Senior Director of Redstone Government Consulting, have been selected to speak at the prestigious National Contract Management Association’s World Congress (NCMAWC). This annual training event for contract management, procurement and acquisition professionals is the largest training event of its kind and will be held at the Gaylord National Hotel and Convention Center in Washington D.C., from July 27-30.
Eldridge and Steen, who will each be speaking July 29 on the subject of new and continuing challenges and risks involving pro-active risk management, will be participating in this year’s event, entitled “The Contract Management Journey: Seizing New Opportunities for Success,” with other representatives from various government agencies, government contractors, legal firms, and fellow consulting firms. There will be numerous keynote presentations, executive panel discussions, and concurrent breakout sessions at the NCMAWC, which will cover topics including business ethics, government contract audits and administration, and the impact of anticipated declines in government spending.
Eldridge will be discussing the topic “Business Systems Rules Change Under DAR Council Consideration,” which will cover the various anticipated changes that could potentially shift more responsibilities to government contractors. This shift would stem from the lack of government resources available to review or audit contractor compliance with the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) Business System Rules, which were implemented in May of 2011. The effects of contractors being required to obtain and pay for independent reviews and audits, similar to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 in regard to financial statement audits, will also be discussed.
Steen’s topic of “Executive Compensation Under Continuous Assault” will discuss how the compensation of contractor executives has continuously been challenged politically and via audits by the Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA) over the past five years. The effects of DCAA after-the-fact audits, which continue to challenge compensation reasonableness with a highly prescriptive analysis that has been deemed statistically flawed in two high-profile contract disputes, as well as the 2014 decision to adjust the compensation statutory cap from $952,308 for 2012 and 2013 to nearly half at $487,000, will be discussed.
Eldridge and Steen each will speak for 75 minutes on their specific topic. The event is expected to have more than 1,500 in attendance.
Scott is the Chairman of the Board with Redstone Government Consulting, Inc. and has more than 25 years of government contracting experience. He specializes in all aspects of cost accounting and compliance relating to DCAA, FAR, CAS and US GAAP. Scott also specializes in revenue recognition, complex disclosure issues and consulting services to our government contractors. Professional Experience Scott was responsible for the SEC, US GAAP, DCAA compliance and external audit oversight, and financial statement for a large publicly-held government contractor before becoming a shareholder with Redstone Government Consulting, Inc. He has focused his career on assisting contractors with achieving their goals and objectives along with mitigating risk and maximizing cost recovery. Scott serves in an advisory board capacity with many of our clients, and consults with them on strategic issues such as executive compensation, mergers and acquisitions exit strategies and long-term strategic initiatives. Scott has conducted numerous training seminars, has published several articles and is a frequent instructor for Federal Publication Seminars on topics such as “FAR Cost Principles,” “DCAA audits,” “Government Contract Accounting Systems Compliance” and “Business System Internal Controls.” Scott also has been involved with numerous complex accounting system implementations in a Deltek® Costpoint environment. He sources, manages and leads these implementations, as well as large compliance engagements for our customers. Education Scott earned a Bachelor of Science Degree from Jacksonville State University with a major in Accounting and a minor in Computer Science. Certifications State of Alabama Certified Public Accountant Alabama Society of Certified Public Accountants Affiliations American Institute of Certified Public Accountants National Contract Management Association Professional Services Council Board of Directors - Wells Fargo Bank-Huntsville Board of Directors - Kids to Love Foundation (Founding Member)