So, you have decided to hire a consultant to get you through all the hoops the Defense Contract Auditing Agency (DCAA) has setup. These hoops usually involve rules, regulations, policy, and procedures that can seem and often are overwhelming. You know a DCAA consulting may be costly, but you also know a DCAA consultant will make your life easier when dealing with your contract. You still have one major question, “what do you look for in a DCAA consultant?” This too may seem overwhelming, but the following tips should help.
Make sure the DCAA consultant is equally good as a researcher as they are in there specialty area. Research is a major component in dealing with contracts, so make sure your DCAA consultant has researching abilities.
Make sure they have adequate experience. If you are not comfortable with the amount of experience your DCAA consultant has you will feel shaky throughout the life of the contract. You do not want to continuously question if you made the right choice in hiring a consultant or if that consultant is providing proper and correct information.
Question what areas the DCAA consultant feels come natural to them. Do they do best with procurement advice? Are the great at negotiation? Are they especially good at re-pricing and settlement? Whatever you need, see that they comfortably perform that function.
Question how well the consultant knows the DCAA Accountant System Review and the process. This will come into hand when the DCAA comes to ensure your company is able to meet the demands of DCAA regulation, policy, standards, and expectations.
One area of major importance is whether the consultant is not only aware of what is DCAA accounting but if they are thoroughly knowledgeable with the DCAA compliant software you have chosen. If you have not chosen software yet, and this is why you have opted for a consultant, question how knowledgeable they are about all the different options from which there is to choose.
Choose a DCAA consultant that can talk to you from the head. That is, can speak without queue cards or notes; what they know is ingrained and answers are as correct as they are spontaneous.
Ask a potential DCAA consultant what function they believe consultants play. It is important that there is an agreeance between what they believe and what you need. Write a list that address your expectations and discuss the matters with the potential consultant.
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