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Guardian

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I was reviewing what our agency's COR manual states that CORs must document in their files, which are subject to random audit.  I get the sense that most of our CORs are very much confused as to what they should be including in their files after reading the manual.  Of course many agencies do not include COR duties in the employees' PDs.  Therefore, the CORs are not assessed by their management on how they perform their COR duties.  Yet, the acquisition policy office prescribes an exhausting list of what the COR must include in their files.  I referred to FAR 4.803(b), which seems to present a practical and much different set of standards than what policy has issued as guidance.  The language reads as if they are somehow expected to be all places at once.  Here is an excerpt:

"Thorough and complete documentation of contract activities throughout the life of the contract is essential to the success of the contract. The documentation maintained by the COR provides a complete history of the actions taken by the government as well as the contractor....The COR should maintain all types of documentation such as memorandums to the file, records of telephone conversations, e-mails, formal reports, trip reports, meeting minutes, technical analysis reports, and activity logs. The COR should not rely on memory and should document inperson [sic] or telephone conversations as soon as possible to ensure key information is recorded, and include these memos in the COR file. Sometimes the information may seem trivial, but if a pattern of behavior or occurrences ensues [I have no idea what this means], it is ideal to have the complete history documented. If direction is provided orally in meetings, phone conversations, or video conferences, a written record of direction must be created to support the communication and technical direction given."

This section of the COR manual (which is close to 100 pages, not including the innumerable links therein) goes on to state:

"CORs should also include the following statement in any correspondence:  'In my capacity as the delegated COR, if I provide any direction which your company believes exceeds my authority, you are to immediately notify the CO and request clarification prior to complying with the direction.'"

Is it just me, or does this come off as a Sisyphean task that goes far beyond what the FAR envisions?  I am not sure I would ever want to be a COR reading this list of requirements and expectations.

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1. It’s the policy of the organization that you work for.

2. 

2 hours ago, Guardian said:

The COR should maintain all types of documentation such as memorandums to the file, records of telephone conversations, e-mails, formal reports, trip reports, meeting minutes, technical analysis reports, and activity logs.

Looks reasonable and essential. Are these all in some formal electronic formats ? Paper? Notes?

3.  

2 hours ago, Guardian said:

If direction is provided orally in meetings, phone conversations, or video conferences, a written record of direction must be created to support the communication and technical direction given."

Reasonable and quite possibly essential.

4. 

2 hours ago, Guardian said:

"CORs should also include the following statement in any correspondence:  'In my capacity as the delegated COR, if I provide any direction which your company believes exceeds my authority, you are to immediately notify the CO and request clarification prior to complying with the direction.'"

With today’s word processors, copy, paste, etc. (and paperless contracting software systems) what is the big deal?

5. What types of contracts do the agency and COR(s) award and administer?

6. If you ever have to deal with claims, changes, terminations, or many routine contract actions, precede or take over for another (personnel turnover), you should appreciate having the data to  maintain continuity and/or reconstruct facts and circumstances, support the government’s (or the contractor’s) position.

7. Don’t know if your organization has multiple contract admin personnel, don’t know magnitudes or lengths of your contracts. 

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@joel hoffman, the COR requirements seem to be in-line with the demands placed on contract specialists. None of this is particularly difficult provided the personnel are given adequate training and resources (e.g., time, tools, discretion). Admittedly, the volume and lack of centralized location for rules is not ideal. 

Edited to add that many CORs do not have the time or tools for this additional duty.

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5 hours ago, Guardian said:

The documentation maintained by the COR provides a complete history of the actions taken by the government as well as the contractor....

@joel hoffman Our CORs serve primarily as liaisons between the acquisitions office and the project managers running the programs that use the tools and contractor personnel we acquire of their behalf.  They act by their limited authority delegated by the contracting officer.  Some of my contracts have tens of contractor personnel spread about numerous offices.  I have one COR for such a contract.  He may also be COR on many other contracts, in addition to his regular workload under his PD.  Again, the COR manual states "The documentation maintained by the COR provides a complete [emphasis added] history of the actions taken by the government as well as the contractor...."  As we have said many times before on this forum, words matter.  When that COR comes to me in earnest and asks, "what does complete history mean," what do I tell him?  What is meant by "the Government"?  What is meant by "the Contractor"?  The contract identifies a primary representative for the contractor.  I'm addition to this person, there may be many other contractor employees regularly emailing and communicating in relation to the responsibilities set forth by the contract.  I administer contracts for help desks that operate 24/7/365.  They use large staffs and generate countless communications between the Government and the contractor.  This is a singular example.  Generally speaking, when my COR asks me if he needs to go to his project manager and others to obtain all those communications to construct a dossier that forms the complete history to which the manual refers, what should I tell him?  FAR 4.803(a), (b) and (c) enumerate the general types of files to be maintained by the contracting office, the contract administration office, and the paying office, respectively.  It makes a distinction between each.  Concerning the specific instructions I quoted from our COR manual, what specifically is meant by "the Government"?  Are we to interpret that to mean communications on which the COR is included as well as the potentially hundreds of communications that transpire over the course of a contract in a year's time?  Again, FAR 4.803(b), which addresses files that should be maintained as part of contract administration, is both specific and practical.  The language I quoted from the COR manual is not.  It is unclear and all encompassing at best.

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6 hours ago, Guardian said:

Is it just me, or does this come off as a Sisyphean task that goes far beyond what the FAR envisions?  I am not sure I would ever want to be a COR reading this list of requirements and expectations.

It's just you.

If you're not sure you want to be a COR, don't be a COR.

Anything else?

Hiking where?

What kind of animals?

What kind of knowledge?

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18 hours ago, Guardian said:

Of course many agencies do not include COR duties in the employees' PDs.  Therefore, the CORs are not assessed by their management on how they perform their COR duties. 

Not sure of your agency, but in DoD the Contracting Officer is supposed to provide the COR's supervisor with feedback regarding the COR's performance.  This is from DoDI 5000.72, Enclosure 3, paragraph 1.i.

"Provides feedback on COR performance to the COR’s supervisor. If the COR’s reports and performance are inadequate, discuss performance with the COR. If the reports and the COR’s performance continue to be inadequate, discuss the COR’s performance with the requiring activity or the COR’s management. If reports or performance continue to be inadequate, notify both the COR and requiring activity or COR management that the COR designation is (will be) terminated and request nominations for a replacement COR."

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@jtolli, interestingly, I recently spoke to HR and they said that being a COR is not in most position descriptions. Therefore, there isn’t much that can be done besides removing the COR delegation. Many CORs don’t want to be a COR and terminating them is a blessing in their eyes.

Much of our government is contracted out. We should look at creating a COR job classification or at least adding it into position descriptions.

This article explains some limitations with additional duties as assigned:

https://www.army.mil/article/223515/need_to_know_other_duties_as_assigned

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Just now, Jamaal Valentine said:

Therefore, there isn’t much that can be done besides removing the COR delegation.

Interesting.  Having waded in the waters COR a long time back I am rusty.  So the recollection comes slowly.   Another interesting read is to do an internet search on "OPM Classification Appeals + Contracting Officer Representative"   Will it settle anything?  NO!  However, doing so might give further insight. 

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This is from the 1943 edition of the Army Ordnance Procurement Instructions. It addresses the role of the COR for an Army contract to operate a production plant.

The concept of the COR dates back at least as far as World War II. The following is an excerpt from a 1943 Army ordnance procurement instruction:

Quote

 

OPI 50,002.4. The contracting officer's representative is appointed by the Contracting Officer to perform certain functions which in general are outlined in a particular contract. Certain duties and responsibilities, however, remain with the Contracting Officer. The primary interest of the contracting officer's representative is to be present and give his personal attention to the administrative problems which arise during operation of the contract so as to protect the interests of the Government under any and all circumstances. He must interpret the contract and directives pertaining thereto, and must maintain close liaison with the contractor. A contracting officer's representative is charged with the responsibility of performance, where applicable, or supervision of performance, in connection with the following functions in order to insure that the interest of the Government is being adequately protected: (a) protection of the plant or depot and of other Government property; (b) preservation and proper use of property, including maintenance of proper records; (c) production or operations at the plant, works, or depot, as the case may be...

*     *     *

50,002.12. The relationship between the contracting officer's representative and the contractor's personnel is most delicate. The contracting officer's representative at all times should deal with the top representative of the contractor at the particular plant, works or depot, in so far as the formulation of policies are concerned. Within the framework of the policies adopted as mutually agreed upon by the contracting officer's representative and the senior officer representing the contractor, it would be expected that key personnel on the staff of both maintain direct liaison with each other respectively in so far as the day to day problems of the plant or depot arise. The contracting officer's representative is the only Government official on the project who has any authority to criticize the contractor or any of his personnel and this he should do by direct contact, either verbally with, or in official written communication addressed to, the chief resident official of the contractor's organization. No restrictions should be placed by the staff of the contracting officer's representative upon the personnel of the contractor without the full knowledge and consent of the contracting officer's representative and then only in his name. Care is to be exercised by the staff of the contracting officer's representative in making suggestions lest they be considered as instructions except in those matters as occur in connection with day to day problems and which as a matter of policy have been agreed upon by the contracting officer's representative and the senior representative of the contractor at the particular plant, works, or depots. In case of differing opinions, the businesslike conference method should be employed. It is preferred that the contracting officer's representative achieve the desired results not by peremptory orders, but by guidance and suggestions. It is highly important that the contracting officer's representative exercise the greatest care in seeing that neither he nor his staff assumes the responsibility of the contractor by making decisions which should be made by the contractor. The Storage Branch, Field Service Office, Chief of Ordnance-Detroit, products centers, the materiel branches, and the suboffices are equipped to be of special assistance in matters arising out of the foregoing relationship.

That was published in 1943. It's probably older than that.

Questions about the role of the COR arose in the late 1980s as the government became increasingly dependent on service contractors to do the government's work. Before that, CORs were mainly professionals working in specialized organizations like the Defense Contract Administration Services (DCAS). But now, with service contractors everywhere, it became an other duty as assigned to someone in the offices of the requiring activity. Professional education and training for CORs was, and has continued to be poor, like all acquisition education and training.

The duties of a COR and the records that they must keep depend on the nature of the contract. Their principal responsibility is quality assurance, but they also serve as liaison between the agency and the contractor. A competent contracting officer should be able to explain in detail what they want a COR to do and what records they want a COR to keep.

But COs receive poor education and training, too. It's the story of our times.

DAU and FAI should be abolished. Congress should establish a national contracting academy with a campus at a university on the west coast, in the midwest, and on the east coast.

The Office of Federal Procurement Policy should award 20-year contracts to three state or private colleges to establish and maintain a masters degree program in government contracting. Why? Because we have a contracted out government and we now obligate more than one-half trillion dollars each year. The work requires special education and training of high quality. DAU and FAI are dead institutions.

Graduates should qualify for a GS-13 position. Every year, the Government should hire at least 100 graduates and assign them to the Office of Federal Procurement Policy for a six-month general orientation. They should then be made available to agencies for hire as contracting officers to work under specially-appointed managers for two years. Large agencies (e.g., Army, Navy, Air Force, DHS, NASA) should be required to first provide them with a two-month mission field orientation before assigning them to an office. After two successful years they should assume supervisory responsibility. After two more successful years they should assume office management responsibility.

Those are half-baked ideas. I made them up as I typed. It's a fantasy. 

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2 hours ago, Jamaal Valentine said:

@jtolli, interestingly, I recently spoke to HR and they said that being a COR is not in most position descriptions.

In a previous job I had, COR was part of my position description.  A new boss come on-board and said that COR can't be part of the position description as a COR can only be appointed by a Contracting Officer, and can't be "assigned" as a duty.  So she had the position description changed to remove COR. Either way, it didn't change my actual job. I was a COR before and after the position description changed.

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4 hours ago, jtolli said:

In a previous job I had, COR was part of my position description.  A new boss come on-board and said that COR can't be part of the position description as a COR can only be appointed by a Contracting Officer, and can't be "assigned" as a duty.  

That’s true and that is the reason some agencies don’t have COR delegations mentioned in PDs.  It’s an appointment also subject to complying with educational requirements which also must be periodically renewed.  But that doesn’t keep from including contract and program management duties in a PD without designating a COR appointment.

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Flawed thinking.   HCA's, Head of Agency and others could appoint COR's, correct?   COR's have positive position requirements do they not?

I have always wondered why not something like this.....

1102 - Contracting Officers Representatives

All applicants must meet the following basic requirements for all grade levels:

  • Graduation from an associate or full degree program that is accredited by an accrediting body or organization recognized by the U.S. Department of Education at the time the degree was obtained.
  • Successful completion and certification that meets either all DoD COR training and experience requirements or Federal Acquisition Certification-COR training and certification requirements.

 

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COR’s don’t  necessarily have to be 1102’s. 

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4 hours ago, formerfed said:

From my experiences which have covered a large share of the government over the past several years, very few CORs are 1102s.

I agree, but in the sense that “few” means percentage, not necessarily a small number. May depend upon the agency. In my agency, COR’s for construction contracts traditionally were engineers, architects (and now construction management degreed graduates) with considerable amount of contract admin training. 

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2 hours ago, joel hoffman said:

COR’s don’t  necessarily have to be 1102’s. 

 

54 minutes ago, formerfed said:

From my experiences which have covered a large share of the government over the past several years, very few CORs are 1102s.

I understand but my comments were made in the light of establishing a position classification series within the appropriate OPM series that was specifically for COR's.   In my view the series fits.   Lots of examples of similar within the OPM Series system - 0600 - Medical, Hospital, Dental and Public Health Group - Medical Officers 0602, Physicians Assistant 0603.    Series 1100 Business and Industry Group - 1102 Contract Specialist, 1106 Procurement Assistant, why not 11XX Contracting Officers Representative especially in this new world where the COR is expected and this thread opened to do a lot of heavy lifting?  

think of a new paradigm.   Would it make things easier who the heck knows but worth a shot.

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What series a COR works under should depend upon the type and complexity of the products or services being contracted for.

See again, the link that Carl Culham provided. https://www.mspb.gov/studies/studies/Contracting_Officer_Representatives_Managing_the_Governments_Technical_Experts_to_Achieve_Positive_Contract_Outcomes_224103.pdf. 

See also the link that  Jamaal Valentine  cited: https://www.army.mil/article/223515/need_to_know_other_duties_as_assigned

 

 

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We’re getting a little off track.  

11 hours ago, C Culham said:

Flawed thinking.  COR's have positive position requirements do they not?

No, not necessarily related to specific COR duties.  Generally COR appointments have responsibilities delegated by COs.  Their position descriptions duties are likely are tied into their regular generic job duties like being a program manager or an IT systems analyst and probably don’t mention COR responsibilities.  COR specific PDs would be very rare.  As mentioned earlier, COR responsibilities are viewed as collateral duties and based upon CO appointments.  A COR could be appointed for a month or several years but they usually are contract specific.

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1 hour ago, formerfed said:

We’re getting a little off track.  

11 hours ago,  C Culham said:

“Flawed thinking.  COR's have positive position requirements do they not?“

No, not necessarily related to specific COR duties.  Generally COR appointments have responsibilities delegated by COs.  Their position descriptions duties are likely are tied into their regular generic job duties like being a program manager or an IT systems analyst and probably don’t mention COR responsibilities.  COR specific PDs would be very rare.  As mentioned earlier, COR responsibilities are viewed as collateral duties and based upon CO appointments.  A COR could be appointed for a month or several years but they usually are contract specific.

While COR’s are appointed for each contract, it isn’t always true that the job descriptions don’t align with the duties of the COR.

In the Corps of Engineers, construction field ACO offices are staffed to perform contract administration, quality assurance duties and often certain technical engineering duties for construction projects. An office might be established for single projects, single programs (multiple contracts) or permanently for geographical areas or Installations. There may be ACO(s) and/or COR(s) for construction contracts assigned to their office. To be a COR, the person assigned must meet the criteria and have the applicable required training for a COR.

Resident and/or Area Engineers generally are the ACO’s in most field offices. The professional staff are primarily 0800 series. 

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I don’t disagree Joel.  But you’re talking about a very small proportion of CORs across the government.  I saw an attempt to profile typical CORs a few years ago and you would be surprised what it came up with.  What you described isn’t at all typical.

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35 minutes ago, formerfed said:

I don’t disagree Joel.  But you’re talking about a very small proportion of CORs across the government.  I saw an attempt to profile typical CORs a few years ago and you would be surprised what it came up with.  What you described isn’t at all typical.

Correct. But be careful when making generalized statements about COR’s. I don’t know how NAVFAC works these days, either.

When I started with the USACE in 1980, NAVFAC resident officers in charge of construction had no contracting authority - I was told that all mods went to the Washington  NAVY Yard for a Contracting Officer to sign. Obviously, someone had to have authority to administer their contracts, probably the ROICC’s.

USACE service contracts sometimes work similar to how you described.  

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I might be making generalized statements but I don’t think I’m wrong.  GAO said in 2018 that DoD had 90,000 CORs.  There probably are close to double that across the government.  I seriously doubt even a small fraction of those have PDs that contain specific typical COR duties like monitoring contractor performance, inspecting work products, reviewing invoices/vouchers, tracking GFE, etc.

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I don't think it makes sense to create a job series for COR. It is not a generalist position. A COR's primary responsibility is quality assurance. A COR must have specialized technical knowledge about whatever is being procured.

The best source for a COR is the staff of the requiring activity. COR should be an other duty as assigned. Persons assigned to be CORs should receive special training. It could be provided by the appointing contracting office.

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On 4/18/2022 at 9:32 PM, Vern Edwards said:

Hiking where?

What kind of animals?

What kind of knowledge?

My hiking club has been tackling many of the Piedmont trails within the Shenandoah.  Our organizer is hiking in France right now, so then he cancelled our Earth Day hike.  My wife wants to do the C&O Canal Trail in Georgetown that day instead.  Our last hike was the sister mountain to Old Rag, Robertson Mountain, which gives excellent photographic views of the summit, particularly before the foliage.  We gained about 2,500 feet and then back down in about five hours.  It keeps my stress level in check. Where do you like to go out on the west coast?

Animals--I started vermiculture composting.  That of course attracts a lot of robins and other birds.  I have placed brown paper bags over the raised compost bed to give my red wigglers some cover.  I am building a frame this weekend to hold up some cheesecloth.

Knowledge--pretty much everything.  I am interested in quantum mechanics.  I have always enjoyed your book recommendations.  Can you suggest anything you have read recently or think might be worth a read?

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