060702-F-5964B-111In most industries, the process of hiring qualified technical staff is tied closely [if not solely] to an individual’s technical qualifications and past performance. But, not completely so within U.S. Defense contracting.

A large portion of information technology positions inside U.S. Defense (DOD) rely on security clearances — a must-have requirement to ensure personnel are properly cleared for positions that need access to sensitive information. For potential employees without clearance, establishing one can come with a high price tag.

Where members of the military and civil service see their clearances paid for by the U.S. government — this is not so with a defense contractor — who could see costs spiral upwards of $20K per clearance. The savvy contractor however could turn this $20K into profit; shaving months off human resource and in-processing time. How? By planned hiring of staff who already hold clearances.

Problematic. This type of hiring practice holds the hidden snag of placing an additional [and unexpected] cost on U.S. government. Why-

Permitting the contractor to adjust per-position cost for security clearances — together with having to provide staff with a set of qualifications and past experience — may dilute contractor performance. And as a domino effect may generate a need for additional staff to compensate for any deficiencies. How-

As the life cycle of a service contract progresses from start-up — through staffing adjustments — and then through option renewals — a growing tendency exists to add staff in an effort to counteract failures in meeting tasks or metrics. ‘This is‘ where the dilution of performance and additional cost to government may be incurred.

Is this a risk the government should be prepared to take -or- could they hedge their contract investments by mandating all security clearances be funded and handled in-house — awarding defense contractors only for technical qualifications and past performance.