MARCH 2019 HOT TOPICS

Army DACM Office Updates:

Recognizing Outstanding Army Acquisition Individuals and Teams!

• Congratulations are in order for nine civilian members of the Army Acquisition Workforce (AAW) who have been selected as product directors through the FY19 Product Director Centralized Selection Board. The board convened in October at Fort Knox, Kentucky, and identified high-performing civilians with leadership potential to fill civilian product director positions commensurate with their military counterparts, thereby ensuring that the Army meets the future needs of its Soldiers. The board is a high-priority talent management initiative championed by the director of the Army Acquisition Corps. The slating for product director positions will be announced later this month. For more information about the board, go to https://asc.army.mil/web/career-development/prod-dir/.
• Principal Selections:

• • *Craig Besaw, U.S. Army Futures Command
  • Robert Domitrovich, U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command
  • Raymond Folden, Program Executive Office (PEO) for Combat Support and Combat Service Support (CS&CSS)
  • Diane McCarthy, PEO CS&CSS
  • **Mark McCoy, PEO Ground Combat Systems
  • Michael Sawyers, PEO CS&CSS
  • **Michael Willoughby, PEO Simulation, Training and Instrumentation
  • Elanor Winchester, PEO Enterprise Information Systems
  • Chad Young, U.S. Army Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center
  • *FY19/20 Project Director Selectee

**FY20 Product Manager Principal Selectee

• Hooray and congratulations! An Army team composed of the Army Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office and the Project Manager for Electronic Warfare and Cyber (part of the PEO for Intelligence, Electronic Warfare and Sensors (PEO IEW&S)) received the 2018 David Packard Excellence in Acquisition Award, presented by Honorable Ellen M. Lord, undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, on Feb. 26. The team was one of four groups to receive this prestigious award. More details can be found at https://asc.army.mil/web/news-army-rco-pm-ewc-team-up-to-win-prestigious-award/.
• Speaking of winners, let’s give a round of applause to four Army winners of the 2018 Defense Acquisition Workforce Individual Achievement Awards, who were honored at a ceremony at the Pentagon on Feb. 5:

• • Billy McCain, Global Combat Support System – Army, received the Individual Achievement Award for Life Cycle Logistics.
  • Cassandra Simmons-Brown, Joint Program Executive Office for Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense, received the Individual Achievement Award for Financial Management.
  • Robert Fox, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, received the Individual Achievement Award for Facilities Engineering.
  • James Kettner, PEO IEW&S, received the Individual Achievement Award for Engineering.

Photos from the award ceremony and additional information about the winners can be found at https://asc.army.mil/web/news-army-acquisition-captures-four-dod-awards/.

• You’re invited to cast your vote for the best articles, graphics and photos that appeared throughout Army AL&T magazine in 2018! Your vote will determine the winners in the magazine’s annual ALTies awards recognizing contributions from our AAW community. Go to https://www.cvent.com/d/s6qlb5 to vote—as often as you like. For even more voting power, share the survey link throughout your organization. Voting will close at midnight ET on March 8, and the winners will be announced later this spring.
• We’re constantly updating the USAASC and Army DACM Office website with topical information that’s important to everyone across the Army Acquisition Workforce (AAW). Some of the latest updates include:

• • A new USAASC and DACM Office organization chart.
  • An updated announcement for the Naval Postgraduate School Systems Engineering Non-Resident Master’s Degree Program.
  • Revised guidelines for the placement of Occupational Series 1102 personnel.
  • New policies for Fulfillment and Continuous Learning Points.

Find all this and more on our website at https://asc.army.mil.

Policy Updates:

• Effective Jan. 31, the Army acquisition procedures for implementing the DOD Acquisition Career Management Mandatory Course Fulfillment Program were updated. The memorandum can be accessed on our policy page at https://asc.army.mil/web/army-dacm-office-course-fulfillment-policy-final-31jan19/.
• Effective Oct. 4, 2018, the Army Acquisition Executive signed a memorandum addressing delegation of authority to sign tenure agreements for key leadership positions. Read the memo at https://asc.army.mil/web/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/94-Delegation-of-Authority-to-sign-Key-Leadership-Tenure-Agreements.pdf.
• Do you have any questions about AAW policies that you’ve seen on the DACM Office website? We now have a new, dedicated email address specifically designed for Army acquisition policy questions. Send your policy questions to belvoir.usaasc.mbx.dacm-policies@mail.mil and standby for a quick response.

Acquisition Training, Education and Leader Development Opportunities:

Congratulations are in order for the Training with Industry (TWI) fellows selected for FY19/20! TWI fellows are embedded with leading defense and commercial companies for 12 months to glean best practices and bring back lessons learned to the Army. This program is extremely vital in helping Functional Area 51 acquisition officers increase their knowledge of industry operations. The following Army acquisition officers were selected for this prestigious opportunity:

Maj. Timothy Godwin – Amazon
Maj. Joshua Headley – Amazon Web Services
Maj.(P) Christopher Stewart – Boeing
Lt. Col. Christopher Orlowski – Ford
Maj. John Kump – Founders Fund
Lt. Col. Naim Lee – General Dynamics Information Technology
Maj.(P) Isaac Cuthbertson – General Dynamics Land Systems
Maj.(P) Sheila Howell – Lockheed Martin
Lt. Col. Stephen Miller – Microsoft
Lt. Col. Shannon Thompson – Motorola
Lt. Col. Joseph Minor – Sierra Nevada
Maj.(P) Courtney Gary – 3M

For more information about TWI, go to https://asc.army.mil/web/career-development/programs/aac-training-with-industry/.

• Congratulations to the 63 Army acquisition workforce professionals who made the FY19 selection to participate in the Inspiring and Developing Excellence in Acquisition Leaders (IDEAL) program. IDEAL is offered to Army acquisition workforce civilians at GS-11/12/13 or broadband equivalent with leadership potential. Participants take part in three, one-week resident courses over six months between which they return to their workplaces to apply what they’ve learned.  The course has received rave reviews from participants since its launch in 2017. See the full story here: https://asc.army.mil/web/news-congrats-to-the-fy19-ideal-selectees/ . Read the entry below to see what participants are saying about the IDEAL program!
• The Army DACM Office recently had the opportunity to speak with some of the latest graduates from the IDEAL program. IDEAL—Inspiring and Developing Excellence in Acquisition Leaders—is a leadership development program sponsored by the DACM Office for AAW civilians with identified leadership and supervisory potential who are GS-11/12/13 or equivalent. See how the program is positively impacting their professional and personal lives at https://asc.army.mil/web/news-harvesting-the-bounty-of-the-ideal-program/.
• Defense Acquisition University (DAU) recently updated some of its predecessor criteria. To learn more about the predecessors, go to http://icatalog.dau.mil/onlinecatalog/AllPredecessor.aspx. To view the online DAU course catalog and register for courses, go to http://icatalog.dau.mil/onlinecatalog/tabnav.aspx.
• The Defense Civilian Emerging Leader Program (DCELP) is open for applications. DCELP develops emerging leaders at GS-07 to GS-12 (and broadband equivalent) and prepares them for further development as leadership responsibilities increase. The program includes residential courses in team development, effective writing, and conflict resolution. Applications will be accepted through March 28. See all the details at https://asc.army.mil/web/career-development/programs/dcelp/.
• Now being offered at Picatinny, New Jersey: The DAU Senior Service College Fellowship is open for applications through March 29. This valuable 10-month program prepares students for leadership roles such as product and project manager, program executive officer and other key acquisition leadership positions. See more details at https://asc.army.mil/web/career-development/programs/defense-acquisition-university-senior-service-college/
• Consider applying for Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) opportunities! Applications are being accepted from Feb. 11 through April 16 for the following programs:

• • NPS Systems and Program Management Non-Resident Master’s Degree Program. This interdisciplinary program offers a non-resident option for qualified AAW professionals at GS-11 through GS-15 (and equivalent) to broaden their technical capabilities in order to successfully lead initiatives in support of the defense acquisition system. Find more information at https://asc.army.mil/web/career-development/programs/naval-postgraduate-school-master-of-science-in-program-management/.
  • NPS Systems Engineering Non-Resident Master’s Degree Program with a System of Systems Focus. This program is designed for AAW professionals at GS-11 through GS-15 who hold a bachelor’s degree in engineering or a related science or technical field. NPS educates and trains students with tools and technologies relevant to their work, resulting in acquisition professionals with greater knowledge and expertise to better meet the needs of their customers.