Report Urges Caution on Insourcing Contractor Jobs As the Obama administration moves to reduce the government’s dependence on contractors, one group of industry and government contracting professionals is urging that the new policy “proceed with caution.” “Rushing to undo what has been in the making for years, perhaps decades, will be counterproductive,” the Federal Acquisition Innovation and Reform Institute, or FAIR, warned in a report. The group said the government’s slow and cumbersome hiring procedures, as well as the difficulty in attracting and retaining skilled professionals in federal service, will put the brakes on the insourcing push. It also said the “tsunami” of retiring baby boomers in the next few years presents an additional challenge to federal recruiters. The report says insourcing is justified in three general categories: inherently governmental jobs; core competencies; and long-term requirements, such as clerical work. President Obama has identified inherently governmental functions as the first target for insourcing and has tasked the Office of Management and Budget to redefine that term. “Agencies should approach insourcing with a clear plan of action, focusing in the short-term on inherently governmental positions and key mission critical roles,” the report said. “Simultaneously, they should develop long-term plans that address other roles as well as systemic HR issues, working in collaboration with OPM and their HR functions to address hiring processes, compensation, and professional development.” “However, a rush to insource thousands of positions, while trying to take on ever more government programs, can end in disaster.” FAIR stressed the need for careful agency-by-agency analysis to decide which functions are mission-critical and to define core competencies. The report was written by the institute’s president, Raj Sharma, CEO of Censeo Consulting Group. It is available at http://thefairinstitute.org/downloads/The%20Move%20to%20Innsourcing_June%202009.pdf.