ARMY DACM OFFICE UPDATES:
FROM THE DDACM: Strategic Evolution
By Joan L. Sable
DID YOU KNOW?
Your Army DACM Office is hard at work! The Army Acquisition Workforce (AAW) Human Capital Strategic Plan (HCSP) ensures we remain strategic in talent management efforts. There are a number of initiatives underway, such as reducing the time to hire AAW civilians, leadership and professional development programs for every level, supervisor training, on-boarding training and work-life balance training. Additional strategies include an AAW Strategic Partner Network featuring senior-leader Acquisition Career Management Advocates (ACMAs), senior-level Army Acquisition Functional Leaders (AAFLs) and Organizational Acquisition Points of Contact (OAPs) ready to help with your AAW questions. There is also an AAW HCSP governance structure made up of your senior leaders, supervisors and colleagues to help the Army DACM Office strategically focus and ensure leadership support moving forward.
Ultimately, our vision for the AAW is: A Highly Capable, Agile, Adaptive and Professional AAW . Our human capital strategic plan ensures we focus on the people part of the acquisition business. If the Army DACM Office can help you in any way, please let me know.
Find out more in the original, full-length article at https://asc.army.mil/web/dacm-newsletter/.
ACQUISITION TRAINING, EDUCATION AND LEADER DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES:
INTERESTED IN A LEADERSHIP POSITION AS A PRODUCT DIRECTOR?
Now’s your chance to apply for the FY20 Army Acquisition Corps (AAC) Product Director Centralized Selection Board (Civilian-Only). Applications are being accepted August 12 through September 12, 2019. Eligible applicants are AAC members, GS-14 (or broadband equivalent) and Level III Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act (DAWIA) certified in Program Management at the time of application. The application process is completed online in the Career Acquisition Personnel and Position Management Information System (CAPPMIS) at https://rda.altess.army.mil/camp/ —look for the green tab labeled “AAPDS” (Army Acquisition Professional Development System).
Please visit the Army DACM Office website for specific program details: https://asc.army.mil/web/career-development/prod-dir/.
COMING SOON: Emerging Enterprise Leader Program Cohort #2,
What is the Emerging Enterprise Leader (EEL) Program? As part of the continuing AAW Talent Management (TM) strategy, the Army DACM Office’s EEL initiative is a one-year developmental program which provides aspiring leaders in the grades of GS-11 and GS-12 (or equivalent) within the Program Executive Offices and Army DACM Office with specialized junior leader development. The application window is August 12 – 30, 2019. EEL broadens participants’ perspectives and builds leadership competencies early in their Army careers. The objective of the program is to identify and develop a community of prospective future enterprise leaders who will have a full understanding of the Army’s vision and mission. The EEL Program inspires, motivates and enlightens the Army’s next generation of enterprise leaders.
Eligible candidates must have a minimum of Level 1 certification in their current acquisition position requirement and GS-12s must meet certification requirements for their acquisition position by the date of application submission.
Please refer to the following website for a complete listing of eligibility requirements:
https://asc.army.mil/web/career-development/programs/emerging-enterprise-leader-eel-program/.
CLOSING SOON! FY20 INSPIRING AND DEVELOPING EXCELLENCE IN ACQUISITION LEADERS
The FY20 Inspiring and Developing Excellence in Acquisition Leaders (IDEAL) program application period will close on August 21, 2019. For FY20, there will be two cohorts: one at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, and one in Huntsville, Alabama. This innovative leadership development program prepares mid-career acquisition professionals (GS 12–13 or equivalent) for positions where they will lead people, teams and other work groups.
Want the inside scoop? One IDEAL participant, Krysta Zurowski, shared her experiences about the program in an intriguing article at https://asc.army.mil/web/news-perspective-the-ideal-course-part-1/ . If you are interested in applying and want some insider tips on the application process, consider this helpful article straight from the IDEAL training manager at https://asc.army.mil/web/news-perspective-the-ideal-course-part-2/.
Read more about the program and how to apply at https://asc.army.mil/web/career-development/programs/inspiring-and-developing-excellence-in-acquisition-leaders-ideal/.
A VIEW FROM THE INSIDE – TRAINING WITH INDUSTRY
Take a moment to hear what Training with Industry (TWI) participants thought about their experiences with Army’s industry partners in this compelling video at https://youtu.be/DxVAR38Rx0g/
TWI is a year-long work experience program designed for high-performing officers and non-commissioned officers providing extensive exposure to managerial techniques and industry practices within corporate America. The Army acquisition community greatly benefits from TWI as participants apply and bring their newly-acquired skills and knowledge back home to the Army after their assignment with industry. Read more about the benefits of TWI at https://www.hrc.army.mil/content/Training%20With%20Industry/.
THE ARMY GHOST PROGRAM IS OPEN FOR APPLICATIONS
The application window is open for the FY20 U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) Ghost Program. This is a unique, broadening opportunity is for junior Army acquisition professionals to directly support the mission of delivering Special Operations Forces (SOF) capabilities to downrange warfighters. During this tour-of-duty rotation to MacDill Air Force Base, Florida, selectees are immersed in a fast-paced, highly rewarding joint environment and will lead a 90-day sprint to meet the demanding needs of our SOF operators. The lessons learned will increase selectees’ knowledge of rapid acquisitions and prepare them to assume future responsibilities as program managers or contracting officers in the future. USSOCOM is primarily looking for high-performing FA-51 acquisition captains and majors (O-3 or O-4) with two to four years of acquisition experience. The program is continuously accepting nominations and has flexible start dates throughout each quarter. The program is funded by the Defense Acquisition Workforce Development Fund and is offered at no cost to the applicant’s command.
To apply, or if you have any questions, send an email to ghost-recruiting@socom.mil.
ARE YOU TRANSFORMING, DISRUPTING AND LEADING?
See how the front line of Army acquisition is getting creative and transforming its thinking, disrupting ineffective processes and leading the way toward delivering Warfighter solutions with a collection of 12 Defense Acquisition University (DAU) “TEDxDAU” videos. For the first time ever, this TEDxDAU event, which took place on June 12, 2019 at DAU’s Fort Belvoir campus, featured a wide variety of innovative speakers from Army and other Services. Sit back and enjoy this exciting series of brief yet engaging and mind-opening talks at https://www.dau.mil/TEDxDAU/.
ORGANIZATIONAL ACQUISITION POINT OF CONTACT ROSTER
Due to the current transition of Army Knowledge Online (AKO) to AKO 2.0, the OAP Roster has temporarily moved. The OAP Roster is updated monthly and during the AKO transition, the roster will be housed on MilSuite at https://www.milsuite.mil/book/docs/DOC-640236/. Be sure to update your internet browser’s OAP bookmark!
FY19 Senior Rater Potential Evaluations
It’s time for AAW personnel in grades GS-12 through GS-15 to start thinking about FY19 Senior Rater Potential Evaluations (SRPEs). As supervisors review Individual Development Plans and Continuous Learning Points with their acquisition employees, they should ensure that the correct raters and senior raters are established within CAPPMIS. Supervisors and managers can view SRPE guidance and tutorials under the SRPE tab at
https://rda.altess.army.mil/camp/.
Contact the Army DACM Office if you need assistance; representatives there can offer workforce and supervisor briefings to your organization.
POLICY UPDATES
KEEPING THE FACTS STRAIGHT
A few important policy updates from the Army DACM Office were recently released:
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- Critical Acquisition Position (CAP) and Key Leadership Position (KLP) Policy—In compliance with the DOD issuances and Department of the Army policies, this Army DACM Memorandum provides guidance on the designation, qualification, tenure agreements and position waivers
for CAPs and KLPs. - FY20 Annual Certification standards for the Science and Technology Manager (S&TM) Acquisition Career Field (ACF)—No changes in S&TM certification standards or position category descriptions.
- FY20 Annual Certification standards for the Engineering and Production, Quality and Manufacturing ACFs—Approved FY20 certification standards in the ENG and PQM career fields. These changes apply to DOD acquisition workforce professionals seeking certification after
September 30, 2019.
- Critical Acquisition Position (CAP) and Key Leadership Position (KLP) Policy—In compliance with the DOD issuances and Department of the Army policies, this Army DACM Memorandum provides guidance on the designation, qualification, tenure agreements and position waivers
View, download and save these and other Army DACM Office policies in our Policies Library at https://asc.army.mil/web/alt-workforce-policy-procedure/.
DAU NEWS
PMT 401 PROGRAM MANAGER’S COURSE
An administrative change was made to PMT 401’s course description page. PMT 360 is no longer listed in the DAU iCatalog as a prerequisite for taking PMT 401. Why? Long story short, to reduce redundancy. One of the prerequisites for taking PMT 401 is to be DAWIA Level III certified in the Program Management acquisition career field. In order to become Level III certified, one of the mandatory training requirements is to have taken PMT 360, or officially received predecessor credit on your DAU academic transcript from having taken PMT 352B. In summary, the inherent requirement of PMT 360 as a PMT 401 prerequisite has not been removed or changed; only the way it is written in the “Notes” section of PMT 401’s course description page at http://icatalog.dau.mil/onlinecatalog/courses.aspx?crs_id=85/.
Speaking of PMT 401…Training Quotas Available!
Are you DAWIA Level III Program Manager certified? If so, you may be interested in taking PMT 401 Program Manager’s Course—a premier, 8-week long DAU Program Management training experience. PMT 401 provides case-based learning that inspires and challenges DOD Program Managers to think critically, decide wisely and lead confidently in a complex acquisition environment. Speakers, team projects, media training and leadership simulations round out and enrich this “train as you fight” class. The Army still has some training quotas available in the upcoming PMT 401 #006 session at Kettering, Ohio from August 19 – October 11, 2019. Target attendees are board-selected ACAT I or II program managers, Level III Program Management career field members who have demonstrated the potential to become major program or project managers.
CONTINUOUS LEARNING POINTS from Defense Acquisition University
DAU recently conducted an in-depth analysis of its assignment of Continuous Learning Points (CLPs), resulting in a more accurate assessment of the average time it takes to complete online DAU training courses. This new data prompted a data-based decision to adjust designated CLP values of some, not all, online training classes such as ACQ 101 and ENG 101. In the DAU catalog, every course has its own, individual course description page. Each course description page will indicate if the class is undergoing a CLP value modification. Please take special note that CLP values will be awarded based on the student’s course completion date and NOT on the student’s start date. These modified CLP values are effective October 1, 2019. For example, if you began taking ACQ 101 on September 26, 2019, which is in FY19, and successfully completed that class on October 22, 2019, which is in FY20, the new, reduced CLP value will be assigned to your DAU transcript. Visit DAU’s online catalog at http://icatalog.dau.mil/.
SLIGHT NAME CHANGE
DAU will soon be transitioning its email addresses and web domains from “dau.mil” to a new “dau.edu” nomenclature. During the transition period, emails and online visits to DAU’s email accounts and pages will automatically be re-directed to “dau.edu” domains. The transition is expected to be completed by the end of August.
SPOTLIGHT ON SUCCESS
This month, we are spotlighting the work of the AAW—your chance to highlight the interesting work you or your teammates are doing in support of the warfighter. Don’t be shy—tell us what you’re working on! Fill out a FACES OF THE FORCE nomination form and we’ll help get the word out. Details are at https://asc.army.mil/web/publications/army-alt-submissions/.
THE ARMY AL&T MAGAZINE IS A TOOL FOR YOU
The Summer 2019 edition of the Army AL&T Magazine is now available online at https://asc.army.mil/armyalt/Summer2019/html/index.html/.
This professional journal provides the AAW community with in-depth, analytically focused articles on a range of topics including AL&T processes, procedures, techniques and management philosophies. Subscribe today: https://asc.army.mil/web/publications/army-alt-magazine/.
