Staff assistance visit: Bridging the gap between headquarters and the operational contracting officer

The Staff Assistance Visit Program (SAV) is an important tool used by the Department of State’s Procurement Executive since 1995 to support the Department’s overseas contracting operations. The program is structured much differently from a formal contract compliance review. The SAV’s purpose is to improve relationships between the field and headquarters. Also, the program provides hands-on expertise to improve operations. During the visit, the SAV team works to reinforce existing training, solve real problems, and improve communications with the contracting office and its clients. The program consistently demonstrates its value of assisting geographically dispersed contracting officers overcome the numerous contracting challenges that they encounter around the world.