We're about 1 year into a experiment to do just this. A year ago we founded Ad Hoc LLC, after working on HealthCare.gov; our idea was to bring the very best in

We're about 1 year into a experiment to do just this. A year ago we founded Ad Hoc LLC, after working on HealthCare.gov; our idea was to bring the very best in private-sector engineering to government projects. Based on what we've learned over the past year, I do think creating a top-notch engineering organization is incredibly important. But, the problem of getting work is not to be ignored. The procurement process is absolutely the biggest problem we face. The idea that the government puts bids out to an open market and therefore gets the best quality and price is a fable. Most contracts go out to a pre-selected group of companies, are are shaped to fit into the models these companies provide. There are some positive changes happening both at individual agencies and at the broader federal level as to procurement reform that look positive, but by and large this is still the biggest obstacle to getting in the game. Subcontracting is a better option to start. We absolutely need more companies in this space, both in the product and services arena. The more companies, the more agencies will feel comfortable adopting contracting practices that are geared towards these companies rather than classic contractors. If you're a senior level developer or UI/UX designer interested in helping people get health care and Veterans get benefits, please be in touch with me; we're hiring and have a lot of really interesting work. Experience with Go, Rails and AWS are a plus, but any significant experience in web development or design/UX will do.