CPCM Certified Professional Contract Manager: Professional Ethics in Contract Management 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A contract manager discovers that a subcontractor has submitted invoices with inflated labor hours. What is the FIRST ethical obligation?
- Ignore it to preserve the subcontractor relationship
- Report the discrepancy through proper internal channels immediately (Correct answer)
- Negotiate a private settlement with the subcontractor
- Approve the invoices and adjust future payments
Correct answer: Report the discrepancy through proper internal channels immediately
Ethical contract managers must report suspected fraud or billing irregularities through proper internal channels without delay.
Question 2: Under NCMA's Code of Ethics, what does the principle of 'loyalty' primarily require of a contract manager?
- Loyalty to the contracting officer above all others
- Advancing the interests of the employer within the bounds of ethical conduct (Correct answer)
- Prioritizing supplier relationships over organizational goals
- Following personal values even when they conflict with employer directives
Correct answer: Advancing the interests of the employer within the bounds of ethical conduct
Loyalty in NCMA's Code requires advancing the employer's legitimate interests while staying within ethical and legal boundaries.
Question 3: A government contract manager is offered a job by a contractor whose bid she is currently evaluating. What should she do?
- Accept the offer since she has not yet made a final decision
- Recuse herself from the evaluation and report the contact per agency rules (Correct answer)
- Decline the offer verbally and continue the evaluation
- Ask a colleague to review her work without disclosing the conflict
Correct answer: Recuse herself from the evaluation and report the contact per agency rules
Federal ethics rules require recusal and disclosure when a procurement official has employment discussions with an offeror.
Question 4: Which scenario BEST illustrates an organizational conflict of interest (OCI) in contract management?
- A contractor employs staff who once worked for a competitor
- A firm that helped write a solicitation later bids on the same contract (Correct answer)
- A prime contractor uses multiple subcontractors on a large project
- A contract manager requests an extension of performance period
Correct answer: A firm that helped write a solicitation later bids on the same contract
An OCI occurs when a firm's role in developing requirements gives it an unfair competitive advantage or impairs its objectivity.
Question 5: A contract manager learns a colleague is sharing source selection pricing data with a preferred vendor. This is BEST described as:
- An acceptable practice if the vendor is incumbent
- A violation of procurement integrity and potentially criminal (Correct answer)
- A minor administrative irregularity requiring a memo
- Permissible if a non-disclosure agreement is signed
Correct answer: A violation of procurement integrity and potentially criminal
Sharing source selection information violates the Procurement Integrity Act and can result in criminal penalties.
Question 6: What is the ethical significance of 'full and open competition' in government contracting?
- It maximizes paperwork and slows procurement
- It ensures fairness, best value, and public trust in the procurement process (Correct answer)
- It is only required for contracts over $10 million
- It benefits large businesses at the expense of small ones
Correct answer: It ensures fairness, best value, and public trust in the procurement process
Full and open competition is a foundational ethical principle that promotes fairness, transparency, and accountability in government spending.
Question 7: A contract manager is pressured by a supervisor to waive a required compliance check to meet a schedule deadline. The ethical response is to:
- Comply with the supervisor's request to support the team
- Document the pressure, explain the risk, and escalate if the waiver is improper (Correct answer)
- Anonymously complete the waiver to avoid confrontation
- Resign immediately rather than participate
Correct answer: Document the pressure, explain the risk, and escalate if the waiver is improper
Ethical professionals document inappropriate pressure, communicate risks clearly, and escalate through proper channels when required.
CPCM Certified Professional Contract Manager: Professional Ethics in Contract Management 2
A contract manager discovers that a subcontractor has submitted invoices with inflated labor hours.
What is the FIRST ethical obligation?