Establishing Effective Contractor Interfaces

DOE-HDBK-3027-99

history of poor performance or problems should normally dictate an assignment of an SME to the

team. Other disciplines that have a good record of performance would not necessarily require an

SME.

The question of how the team will be organized should also be considered by the Team Leader in

selecting the team. If the review is particularly complex and the size of the site, facility, or

activity is large, it may be important to identify sub-team leaders. Also, if team members are

inexperienced in ISMS verifications, it may be desirable to have an experienced sub-team leader

to act as a mentor and to provide assistance to the individual team members. These individuals

should be persons the Team Leader can count on to coordinate and administer the review to

lessen the burden on his/her duties. A Senior Advisor is recommended but not required as a

knowledgeable resource to the Team Leader for identification of Noteworthy Practices,

Opportunities for Improvement, and related summarization and conclusions during the

verification.

Considerations should be given to the need to train the team. If there are a number of team

members who have conducted ISMS verifications and have recent audit/assessment experience at

the site, then the training needs may be reduced. If it is not possible to get experienced persons,

then a more comprehensive training process will be required. The Team Leader needs to be

prepared to justify the technical competence of each individual member for his/her area of

expertise and the credentials of the team as a whole. Technical credentials and assessment

experience are appropriate considerations. Appendix 6 is a sample form used to document a team

member' training and qualification.

6.3.2.3 Establishing Effective Contractor Interfaces

The conduct of ISMS verifications requires a significant amount of coordination with the

contractor' and local DOE staffs. It is the contractor' responsibility to present and explain his

ISMS, and it has been found to be productive for the contractor to conduct formal presentations

to the team on the ISMS. For this presentation to be effective, the Team Leader should provide

the contractor with the type and scale of magnitude necessary. Examples of schedules of

presentations provided during Phase I and Phase II verifications are provided in Appendix 5,

Lessons Learned. A dedicated contractor point of contact (POC) for the ISMS verification has

been valuable. This POC has normally been a member of the contractor' management staff who

has been involved in developing the ISMS. As the ISMS verification preparations reach closure,

there are a multitude of details that will require close coordination between the Team Leader and

the POC. Details such as establishing the briefing schedule and format, developing the list of

personnel to be interviewed by the team, establishing a library of manuals of practice and records

available for the team, and selecting activities for observation are examples of some of the details

of the verification that will require close coordination to ensure these activities occur efficiently.

Since a portion of the verification will involve a review of DOE, it is also just as important to

have a DOE POC designated who performs similar functions.

6.3.2.4 Concepts for developing the Review Plan

The Team Leader must be able to present to the team his/her expectations on the format of the

final report. The reviewers must understand the format required in order to effectively plan their