U.S. Military Program Management

CHAPTER15

The Evolution of Contracting in Iraq,March 2003—March 2005

By Jack L. Cunnane

Contracting support, like every other aspect of Operation Iraqi Freedom’s stabilization and reconstruction operations, had to evolve and adapt to meet the commander’s intent and support a mission that was underestimated in size, complexity, duration, and intensity. A retrospective look at the Coalition Joint Task Force’s (CJTF) path toward a sustainment-based contracting strategy reveals two distinct phases that were navigated, each with its own set of challenges. This article explains these stages, identifies their challenges and obstacles, and describes the actions taken to continuously improve contracting support to coalition forces. Documenting and analyzing ...