be  up  to  the  ship’s  store  officer  and  often  the leading  Ship’s  Serviceman. Good   sales   representatives   can   assist   you greatly in the submitting of orders and the timely delivery  of  merchandise.  When  you  are  getting underway on a few hours’ notice, having contacts with  the  right  sales  representatives  can  be  crucial. Salespeople can also introduce you to new items on the market that may indeed be an asset to your ship’s  store. Other   commercial   sales   representatives, however, may not be quite so helpful. They may try  to  sell  you  overpriced  merchandise  of  poor quality.  They  may  load  your  desk  with  free samples and offer kickbacks as an inducement for you  to  buy.  They  may  even  try  to  influence  you with  name-dropping  of  respected  persons  or organizations. Representatives may offer to wine and dine you on the beach and provide you with various other pleasures to create an obligation on your  part. POLICY.—  Just  what  can  you  do  to  avoid problems   with   commercial   salespersons?   Well, your   office   could   just   choose   to   avoid   sales representatives.   However,   this   would   mean   a sacrifice  of  the  benefits  for  the  ship’s  store  that might  have  resulted  if  your  ship’s  store  officer  had chosen to deal with commercial representatives. Perhaps  your  office  should  set  aside  a  certain  date and  time  in  which  the  ship’s  store  officer,  the Ship’s  Serviceman  in  charge  of  procurement,  or you, the leading Ship’s Serviceman, might see the sales representatives. Make this time known to the quarterdeck   and   to   the   sales   representatives themselves.  This  method  would  prevent  continual interruptions   of   your   other   duties.   Also,   be particularly   careful   when   you   are   procuring merchandise,   especially   luxury-type   merchandise, that is unlisted in the bulletins or catalogs. Use your   official   publications   for   determining   the requirements  for  luxury  items.  Above  all,  don’t accept  gifts  or  favors. STANDARDS   OF   CONDUCT.—   The  De- partment of Defense directive that sets forth the standards  of  conduct  applicable  to  Department of   Defense   (DOD)   personnel   strictly   prohibits Navy personnel from accepting (either directly or indirectly)  any  favors,  gratuities,  or  entertainment from  persons,  firms,  or  corporations  with  whom they do business whenever the favors, gratuities, or entertainment could possibly be interpreted as an  influence  on  objectivity  and  impartiality  of DOD  personnel.  You  can  find  the  DOD  Stand- ards  of  Conduct  in  the  appendixes  of  this RTM,  in  your  NAVSUP  P-487,  and  in  Ship’s Serviceman   3   &   2,   module   1,   appendix   1. You must comply with the Standards of Conduct at  all  times  whenever  you  are  dealing  with commercial   sales   representatives.   In   addition, firm  policy  should  be  established  by  your  ship’s store  officer  in  regard  to  dealing  with  commer- cial  salespersons.  You  should  make  yourself  aware of  this  policy. AUDITING   PROCUREMENT RECORDS As  was  mentioned  in  chapter  3  of  this training   manual,   one   of   the   primary   respon- sibilities   of   the   senior   Ship’s   Serviceman   is assisting  the  ship’s  store  officer  in  an  audit of  the  ship’s  store  records  and  returns.  It is  important  for  you  to  audit  periodically  rather than  just  at  the  end  of  the  quarter.  Therefore, you   should   frequently   review   all   procurement documents   for   accuracy,   proper   format,   and correct   distribution. PURCHASE  OPERATION  REVIEWS A  review  of  the  purchase  operation  of  each activity  that  has  been  given  purchase  authority must  take  place  at  least  every  18  months.  The review should be conducted by the cognizant type commander;  the  Commander,  Construction  Bat- talion,  U.S.  Atlantic  Fleet;  or  the  Commander, Construction  Battalion,  U.S.  Pacific  Fleet.  The reviewer must make certain that proper purchase procedures and practices have been followed. The reviewer  also  provides  guidance  and  assistance  as needed.   The   reviews   can   be   a   part   of   your regularly  scheduled  supply  management  inspec- tions  (SMIs). PROCUREMENT   DOCUMENT REVIEWS In  your  career  as  a  Ship’s  Serviceman,  you have  probably  encountered  the  foul-ups  that  result when  someone  fails  to  take  the  time  and  effort to  prepare  a  procurement  document  correctly. 4-19