The contracting workforce not only requires the skills and education to use prudence in obligating taxpayer funds, but also needs to stay abreast of industrial norms and technological advances, which create complex contracting actions. Today’s contracting reforms seem to target contracting professionals’ inadequacies related to negotiating skills, cost and/or price analysis skills, requisite knowledge on information technology, and knowledge of major weapon systems support (GAO, 2005a). Shortfalls in these critical skill sets are only exacerbated by an aging workforce, where over 50% of the current contracting workforce was eligible for full retirement by 2012 (USD[AT&L],
2007). Loss of this knowledge base has the potential of stagnating some
2007). Loss of this knowledge base has the potential of stagnating some