The agenda for this presentation is to start with some comments about the importance of contract management, followed by some discussion about contract management ethics, and then to review the final paper topics. We will then close with a quote about contract management.
Contract management is important to many different groups. According to the CMBOK “contract management is a specialized competency within the procurement profession, but it has a very broad perspective in terms of the responsibilities assigned to a contract manager. The job scope ranges from administrative skills of managing, organizing and planning to the excitement and challenge of negotiating a major contract.” Contract management is of interest to government agencies, business,
the military, students as well as academics.
Contract managers are expected to uphold a stringent code of ethics that covers the highest professional standards, to bring credit to the profession, to avoid all conflicts of interest, to comply with all laws, to remain informed about the field, to share knowledge with other contract management professionals and to never be a negative influence upon others. The first point of the Contract Managers Code of Ethics outlines the overarching goal of the profession, which is to “Strive to attain the highest professional standards of job performance, to exercise diligence in carrying out one’s professional duties, and to serve the profession to the best of one’s ability.”
The first research paper option is to explain, define and defend one of the core competencies of contract managers. The three identified core competencies are: technical, conceptual and human relations.
The second research paper option is to explain, define, and defend why the contract managers code of ethics is important in the field of acquisition. If you chose this topic, consider the impact on the profession of those that have acted ethically and unethically.
