Cybersecurity enhancement, customer experience improvement, secure supply chain implementation.  All of these are goals that the Department of Homeland Security, to name one agency, is working on right now.  All are worthy goals, and all have a tie to government acquisition.  Not all of them, however, can be successfully implemented at the same time.  There simply aren’t enough resources at DHS, or most other federal agencies, to make every wish list item a priority.  This is an issue that government contractors must consider as well, especially as we enter the fourth quarter of the federal fiscal year.  No matter how large the organization, the simple fact is that prioritization is imperative if any one project is to be done and done well.  Both contractors and government agencies need strong leadership to help decide which initiatives absolutely need to be done now and which, while important, can wait.  Absent leadership, any organization risks becoming a “loose confederation of warring factions,” a term actually used by a former federal Senior Procurement Executive to describe her agency.  That outcome serves no one well.  Simply put, not everything can be a priority.  Companies must choose which business opportunities to pursue now and dedicate the resources needed to win. Federal agencies must decide which policy objective takes precedence over the others and do the same thing.  Without proper commitment resources become spread too thin for any single project to be successful, increasing the chances that none of the business prospects or policy objectives will be met.  It’s not easy to tell an innovative manager or business unit “no”, or at least “not yet”, but that is exactly the type of leadership and discipline that is needed to ensure that desired outcomes are achieved.  This reality is important to keep in mind for both the fourth quarter and beyond.