The Evolving Contingency Contracting Market PKSOI Papers | Page 14

Private sector support in complex environments
has become an increasingly essential part of the model for success, particularly given the requirements of
the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan for comprehensive,
large-scale, ground war troop’s support. Although
the private security industry has faced intense scrutiny from the public and press in the past decade, clients continue to find that the services performed by
the stability operations industry are both essential and
viable alternatives to many of the services once provided by governments themselves.
Capability Specialization and Service
Modularization
There are many facets of the contingency contracting industry that illustrate the ways in which the
private sector is often better positioned to provide
stabilization and support services in complex environments than many governments. For example, the
private sector’s ability to offer surge capacities and
specialized services far exceeds typical governmental
or military capabilities. By tapping into global capacities, the industry possesses the capability for rapid,
flexible responses and service expansions that surpass
the abilities of governments which rely on their own
internal capacities.
The use of contracting firm services also has the
benefit of alleviating personnel drain and reducing logistical burdens for governments. By having ad-hoc
needs filled by private contracting firms, deployed
militaries and peacekeeping operations can focus
a greater proportion of their resources on the longstanding mandates already set for them by the international community.

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