What does the movie "National Treasure" and our contracting work have in common?

In some of his free time, Jim likes to brew his own beer.

Our contracting officer is helping rehabilitate one of our national treasures.

What is your name and job title? Jim Waller, Contract Specialist with the Denver Service Center (DSC) Contracting Division.

What experience and education do you have? I have a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration/Management Information Systems from the University of Montana in Missoula, Montana and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Incarnate Word in San Antonio, Texas. I have been with the National Park Service (NPS) for almost one year. My government contracting career began about five years ago at Buckley Air Force Base when I entered the United States Air Force Copper Cap internship designed to provide accelerated contract specialist training. Before joining the contracting field, I worked in a variety of sales positions (even dedicating a summer to door-to-door pest control!).

What is a typical day like? I currently provide contracting support to our parks in the South and North Atlantic unified regions. I spend most of my time facilitating construction progress meetings, talking to prospective contractors, and working with our project managers to ensure the renovations to our parks are made on-time and on-budget.

What career advice would you give to someone who wants to follow a similar path? Contracting is a complex and rewarding career field. To maximize your experience, you must be willing to step out of your comfort zone and meet challenges head-on. As the “keepers of the contracts,” we are often considered a road block in final purchases. Don’t be a road block! Serve as a business advisor and formulate creative solutions to get your project team the things they need.

What is one of the bigger projects you are working on and what about that project might surprise people? Remember the movie National Treasure? Nick Cage steals the Declaration of Independence which leads him to a treasure buried in an undercroft area below Trinity Church in New York City. Many might be surprised that the Lincoln Memorial has a real, three story, 43,800 square foot undercroft. Unfortunately, the space contains no monumental treasure…yet! I am part of a team at NPS that is working to rehabilitate this space for National Park visitor enjoyment.