Contract Administration: Understanding and Implementing Contractual Obligation

OVERVIEW

Contract administration or contract management involves the drafting, reviewing, revising, and analyzing contracts, as well as implementing systems and using software designed to ensure accurate tracking and recordkeeping regarding the fulfillment of contractual obligations.  Those who work in this area must be well-versed in contract law and office practices and procedures applicable to contract law practice. The overall aim of this course is to provide participants with the knowledge, concepts, skills, and tools necessary to manage and administer contracts post-award. Participants in this interactive course will learn all the processes and activities required to implement contractual obligations. The course will also cover contract administration best practices.

OBJECTIVES

By the end of this training course, participants will be able to:

• Apply and gain in-depth knowledge on contract administration understanding and implementing contracting obligations.
• Identify the major activities and steps of contract administration.
• Identify administration tools and the roles of the contract administrator.
• Recognize the main contractual provisions and analyze their effects on the implementation.
• Establish an evaluation system for the contractors to determine their strengths and weaknesses.
• Explain the different types of claims, damages, and liabilities.
• Demonstrate the importance of partnership and negotiation in contract administration.
• Prepare for negotiating the scope of work and the terms and conditions of the contract.

TARGET PARTICIPANTS

All those involved in any aspect of implementing, managing, or administering contracts in the post-award phase of the contracting process to learn about the best practices in contract administration.

COURSE CONTENTS

1. PRINCIPLES OF CONTRACTS

• Elements of a contract
• Difficulties encountered in contract administration
• Contract administration major steps

2. CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION TOOLS

• Contract provisions affecting implementation
• Tools and techniques for contract administration

3. CONTRACTOR EVALUATION

• Evaluating the contractor’s performance
• Key performance indicators
• Targets and benchmarks

4. CLAIMS AND DISPUTES

• Claims and disputes
• Breach of contract
• Alternative dispute resolution
• Contract termination
• Contract closeout

5. PARTNERSHIP WITH CONTRACTOR

• Strategic alliance
• Elements of partnership
• Partnering issues

6. NEGOTIATION

• Negotiation preparation
• Negotiation objectives
• Negotiation guidelines