DoD stands to improve the management and oversight of its acquisition workforce by tracking data on contractor personnel, GAO told a House armed services subcommitee recently.
Since 2001, DoD spending on goods and services has more than doubled to $388 billion in 2008, while the number of civilian and military acquisition personnel has remained relatively stable.
However, although contractor personnel are a key segment of its total acquisition workforce, DoD lacks critical department-wide information on the use and skill sets of these personnel, according to GAO-09-616T.
It said DoD also lacks information on why contractor personnel are used, which limits its ability to determine whether decisions to use contractors to supplement the in-house acquisition workforce are appropriate.
DoD is also planning to increase its in-house acquisition workforce by converting 11,000 contractor personnel to government positions and hiring an additional 9,000 government personnel by 2015.
The success of its efforts to improve the management and oversight of its acquisition workforce, however, may be limited without comprehensive information on the acquisition workforce it has and needs, GAO said.
Acting deputy under secretary of defense for acquisition and technology, Shay Assad, told the subcommittee that the department plans to bolster acquisition program management by hiring more program managers and systems engineers.
Assad also said that hiring has already begun and that DoD is investing in hiring interns, journeymen and experts and will expand its hiring programs.
