A traditional military change of command ceremony at the U.S. Central Command Joint Theater Support Contracting Command headquarters at Camp As Sayliyah, Qatar, was much more than it seemed. It was a harbinger of much greater change to come for contracting support in Afghanistan.
Army Col. Dennis McGowan assumed command of the C-JTSCC April 28 from Air Force Brig. Gen. Brett McMullen. With the change of command McGowan became the senior Department of Defense contracting official currently deployed in the Afghanistan area of responsibility. He also became responsible for direct operational contracted support for operations in Afghanistan.
The change of command was also the forerunner of further contracting changes in Afghanistan. As U.S. and NATO forces withdraw from Afghanistan, the need for contracting support diminishes.
According to McGowan, "The theater contracting support provider in Afghanistan is transitioning from C-JTSCC to the Lead Service for Contracting construct because the scope of the mission has reduced as U.S. and NATO forces depart theater and the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces take the lead in securing Afghanistan.
"Practically, and doctrinally, a large organization like a JTSCC is required in Phase IV, stability operations, but not during Phase V when civil authority is enabled," he continued. "That is where C-JTSCC finds itself today, in the middle of supporting the buildup of Afghan civil capacity.
The C-JTSCC's mission in Afghanistan is to plan, coordinate, and deliver agile effects-based contracting for coalition forces during Operation Freedom's Sentinel and beyond to enable long term Afghan security, stability, and prosperity, while maintaining the public's trust, said McGowan.
"We purchase the supplies, services and construction support necessary to enable U.S. mission accomplishment," he said. "Through contracts, we provide necessary life support and security such as food service contracts and private security forces at base perimeters and along flight lines."
He expanded on the complexity of the contracting mission in Afghanistan.
"Our largest and most complex requirements come from the Combined Security and Transition Command- Afghanistan," he said. "They work with the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces of the Ministries of Defense and Interior to develop Afghan national capacity. In support of CSTC-A, we have purchased everything from jet fuel to the IT infrastructure at the MOD headquarters. The CSTC-A mission pushes the capabilities and capacities of the command. At times, we must encourage C-STCA to use a U.S. based contracting office due to the tremendous complexity and scope of their contracts."
Another change is the makeup of the contracting command. Prior to the change of command the manning document included service members and civilians from all services.
"We are not joint" McGowan said about his organization. "Our military positions are filled by Army service members. This comes with inherent advantages and disadvantages. Generally, Army 51C contingency contracting officers are less experienced than their Air Force counterparts who previously populated the C-JTSCC Joint Manning Document. On the positive side, Army 51Cs are now deploying as units: contracting teams, battalions and support brigades. There is great inherent benefit in being a well-formed team before and during a deployment."
As the joint manning document for the C-JTSCC sunsets, the recently deployed Soldiers will continue their deployment in Afghanistan as part of a Request for Forces. According to McGowan, the RFF reflects the current structure of C-JTSCC and provides the same capabilities through more than 96 Army civilians and Soldiers supporting the mission.
"The only real challenge we face today is the civilian hiring actions underway to replace our civilians," said McGowan. "The C-JTSCC JMD is no longer valid after June. Therefore, if a civilian isn't hired by ECC by then, they must leave theater.
"The civilian contracting officers are our continuity. When we lose people like Ms. Dona Alexander, who has six years of deployed contracting experience, we lose an incredible knowledge base and resource," he said.
According to McGowan, Alexander is teaching a weekly class to share her knowledge and lessons-learned.
"Folks have said this is the Army's big chance to show they can do it;" McGowan said, "to show that the Gansler Report recommendations and all the changes that happened thereafter worked. Well, if that is the case, and when we are successful, it should not be seen as an Army success alone. It should be seen as an Army, Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps success. We could not have done this without the joint team's patience, assistance, mentorship, partnering and examples."
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