This Should Have Been My First Post

I'm doing this backwards, but b*tches gotta make... repeatable products and education tools for their consulting clients and Linkedin audience.

I started this Substack because I wanted a space of my own—something separate from my company blog. But there may be some crossover. So here’s what probably should have been the first post on Written Direction.

After almost ten years as an Air Force Contracting Officer, the only thing I really knew was what I didn’t want to do. I didn’t want to follow the standard career path the Air Force had planned for me (my husband didn’t either, it turns out—but we learned that later). I didn’t want to go work for a major defense prime.

This led to several years wandering the desert (with the occasional oasis) of small and non-traditional defense contractor consulting, as well as a stockpile of experiences, anecdotes, and hard-won lessons learned that, in this (snowflaked and safe) space, I’m not going to optimize or productize for the standard LinkedIn crowd.

Things like the funny, infuriating, and ridiculous conversations I have with my clients; or the maddening arguments I get into with my former contracting brethren; or the truly Disney-villain-level escapades of defense primes, OEMs, and FSIs—the ones that somehow always end with a small business tied to the proverbial train tracks; and, of course, the moments where I realize, with full-body cringe (as my fourteen-year-old stepdaughter would say), what a complete asshat I was when I worked in Government... or, you know, like a week ago.

Government Contracting Officers (often abbreviated “KO” to avoid confusion with “CO,” aka Commanding Officer) are a uniquely constructed class of federal employee. That’s because the US Government is not like a normal party to a contract. It isn’t bound by the unauthorized actions of its representatives. If someone who doesn’t have proper authority signs a contract on behalf of the Government—even if they use a Government email, have a title, or act like they’re in charge—that contract or direction is void. Not voidable. Just void. This is wildly different from how contract law works in the private sector.

Because of this, the Government has to specifically delegate contracting authority to certain individuals. But hiring 30,000 attorneys to handle every procurement action is neither feasible nor desirable (even by Government standards), so they created Contracting Officers: civilians or sometimes military members, with the legal authority to obligate the Government. These folks go through training, sit through a board, are issued warrants, and are eventually empowered to sign contracts and make determinations that bind the United States. Which is… kind of a big deal (just ask them).

One of the KO’s many authorities is the ability to issue written determinations and findings: a power so broad and routinely abused, it’s almost poetic… or sexy, if you’re into that kind of thing. This, of course, makes it one of my favorites. It’s also one of the few powers equally abused by both sides of the table. Nothing annoys a KO more than being asked (usually by a Prime) “And when can we expect written direction to that effect?” Especially when the ‘effect’ is some controversial matter the KO would really rather not memorialize in writing. (Note: A truly seasoned, sea-salty KO shows their deep, stubborn reluctance by refusing to write anything down. Write that down, kids.)

I was once told there’s a Contracting Officer somewhere, kept awake at night, muttering, “Megan is going to ask me for written direction.”

This delights me. No one should have unlimited, phenomenal cosmic powers… no matter what dollar value is printed in itty-bitty typeset/living space on their warrant.

So for the current KOs, former KOs, and their victims, ahem customers… these are their stories.
dun dun