Ensure Agencies Have the Capacity to Effectively Manage and Appropriately Use Contractors

The government needs a fully capable acquisition workforce to ensure that it obtains best value on all its contracts. But several factors make this extremely challenging:

• The acquisition workforce’s workload and complexity of responsibilities have been increasing without adequate agency attention to the workforce’s size, skills and knowledge, and succession planning.

  Highlights of GAO-07-1098T (PDF), Highlights of GAO-09-271 (PDF), Highlights of GAO-09-30 (PDF)

• Many agencies lack good data on their workforces, but it is clear that the size of the workforce has declined, while the size of government expenditures for goods and services has risen significantly.

  Highlights of GAO-09-616T (PDF), Highlights of GAO-09-342 (PDF), Highlights of GAO-09-30 (PDF)

• Agencies face a potentially large loss of retirement-eligible personnel and increased competition for a limited pool of highly­skilled talent.
• Some agencies have come to rely extensively on contractor support to carry out the acquisition function.

  Highlights of GAO-08-360 (PDF), Highlights of GAO-07-990 (PDF), Highlights of GAO-09-271 (PDF)

• Agencies have recently initiated efforts to identify contracted out functions that could be performed by government employees, but some have indicated they need additional guidance regarding when and how to make and implement such decisions.

  Full report GAO-10-58R (PDF)

^ Back to topWhat Needs to Be Done

To ensure agencies have the capacity to effectively manage and appropriately use contractors, agency officials and organizations such as the Office of Management and Budget and its Office of Federal Procurement Policy must work together to

• ensure agencies have retained sufficient workforce capacity to plan and manage acquisitions; and

  Highlights of GAO-08-572T (PDF), Highlights of GAO-07-1098T (PDF), Highlights of GAO-09-271 (PDF), Highlights of GAO-09-342 (PDF), Highlights of GAO-09-30 (PDF)

• reexamine how the federal government manages increasingly blended workforces of federal and contractor employees, including when and to what extent it is appropriate to rely on contractor personnel to perform certain functions.

  Highlights of GAO-08-572T (PDF), Highlights of GAO-07-1098T (PDF), Highlights of GAO-09-271 (PDF), Highlights of GAO-09-342 (PDF), Highlights of GAO-09-30 (PDF)

• assess what data on current acquisition workforce members, such as attrition data, would help inform workforce planning efforts and then developing a strategy to collect that information; collect data on the use of acquisition support contractors to inform the strategic acquisition workforce planning process.

  Highlights of GAO-09-342 (PDF), Highlights of GAO-09-30 (PDF)

^ Back to topKey Reports

Defense Contracting

Defense Management

Defense Acquisitions

Department of Homeland Security

Federal Acquisitions and Contracting

Defense Acquisitions

Defense Acquisitions

More Reports