Can a supervisor and employee both serve on the same SSEB and/or SSAC?

[govt2310]

Is ok for a supervisor and his/her subordinate employee to serve on the same Source Selection Evaluation Board (SSEB) and/or Source Selection Advisory Council (SSAC)? So far I have not found any such prohibition, but others in my agency's contracting office are concerned that it does. They contend that an employee might feel pressure to agree with the findings of his/her supervisor. Does anyone have experience with this issue? How was it handled?

[Guest Vern Edwards]

Yes, it's okay, in the sense that I do not know of any statute or regulation that prohibits it. The concerns you mentioned might be valid, but that is another matter. In any case, I suspect that it is common. We're talking about an evaluation board, not a jury.

[Desparado]

I agree with Vern, as I know of no reasons why this would not be permissible. I also see it as an opportunity. I have been on many SSEBs where this situation existed with other members. In every case, the employees were able to provide intelligent input into the conversations and I would imagine they impressed their supervisors with their active participation. Personally, I never saw any situations where the supervisor attempted to influence the employee during the board meetings (of course what happened, if anything, before/after the board meetings is unknown to me).

[joel hoffman]

Does anyone have experience with this issue? How was it handled?

It is common. I never found it to be an issue. Participants are there to provide their input and expertise.

If someone susupects a problem, they should discuss it privately with the prospective subordinate and find out if it might pose a problem. If so, they shouldn't be required to serve.