Contracting Officers - Essay Example

Contracting Officers (COs), usually referred to as KOs in the Department of Defense for differentiation with Military Commanding Officers, are warranted by a government official, in the cabinet, to enter into contracts for the government accordingly for expenditure that goes beyond the micro-purchase threshold of $2,000 for construction, $2,500 for services, and $3,000 for goods. There are four types of contracting officers. The first one is the Principal Contracting Officer (PCO), also known as the Procuring Contracting Officer, whose responsibilities include solicitations issuing, bids and proposals acceptance, and contract award.

A PCOs value comes from identifying the best contractor for the job in consideration and ensuring that their compensation matches the work that they will provide. The second is the Administrative Contracting Officer. The third is the Contracting Officer’s Representatives (COR), also known as Contracting Officer’s Technical Representatives, whose responsibilities include assisting the contracting officer in ensuring that the performance of contractors reflects the terms and conditions of the contract.

The value of the COR (or COTR) comes from providing guidance, as well as, technical advice with regard to the contract specifications, especially when dealing with service contractors. The fourth is the Termination Contracting Officer (TCO) whose responsibilities include ensuring that the termination of a government contract benefits the government or minimizes losses regardless of whether it is because of the contractor’s default or for government convenience. The value of a TCO comes from ensuring that the losses to the government from the termination are minimal (Stanberry, 2012).