Federal Contract Cycles Nearly Double Global Benchmark, Report Finds
Reston, Va. – September 15, 2026 -- Federal acquisition organizations report contract cycle times nearly twice the global benchmark for lower-complexity acquisitions, according to the 2026 US Government Benchmark Report released by the Commerce & Contract Management Institute (CCM Institute).
Federal workers report higher resilience despite structural delays
The study, based on responses from more than 500 federal acquisition professionals and industry suppliers, found federal respondents scoring 5.0 on workforce resilience and 4.6 on adaptability, outperforming global benchmarks of 4.8 and 4.2 respectively. Yet 66 percent of respondents cited ongoing uncertainty and 64 percent cited operational workload as major barriers to organizational agility.