JUST CAALL


DON’T REINVENT THE WHEEL: SEARCH THE PORTAL


Recent updates to the lessons learned portal make it easier to search—you can save search terms, see what others in your organization are searching, and bookmark results for later. (Image by Varijanta/iStock)


EASIER ACCESS AHEAD According to Guite, several techni- cal


improvements have been made to


the portal. Gaining access to the site is simpler, and navigation has improved, thanks to recent upgrades. “We have redesigned the landing pages [for access] based on the users’ account types. So if you’re a PEO [program executive office] user, you’ll be able to see recent lessons submitted by your organization and some of the searches that people are doing, and bookmark your favorite lessons and doc- uments to get to them quickly.”


Other enhancements include a rede- signed home page with simplified menus and the capability to see lesson activity occurring throughout the portal, such as recent lessons, as well as the ability to save common search strings that can be quickly recalled and executed in future ALLP sessions. Also under consideration is a proposal to permit contract users to access the entire portal instead of limit- ing them to inputting lessons only. “We realize that contractors are a valuable asset. Tey have great experience that we want to capture. Tat was a restriction we had when we first set up the portal,” said Guite. Getting that relaxed, he said, will lead to more users submitting their expe- riences and research.


Additional efforts are underway that will take advantage of social media features to further ease the exchange of lessons and best practices within the Army acquisi- tion enterprise. Working with ASA(ALT) and the USAASC, the ALLP plans sev- eral initiatives to:


• Leverage user forum software to sup- port discovery and sharing of timely acquisition topics;


• Provide access to podcasts and webi- nars, allowing acquisition experts to disseminate valuable knowledge throughout the community;


• Develop a dynamic contact list to easily identify experts across the acquisition enterprise that can support informa- tion exchange on specific acquisition challenges.


CONCLUSION


“Lessons learned [that are] properly docu- mented and analyzed are of enormous value to the acquisition community, and go a long way toward improving the acquisition process,” Williamson said.


“We just need to focus the mission on the easy sharing of information between those who have the answers based on experience and those searching for them.”


With the current budget climate, Guite said, “You’ve got to do things smarter.


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You want to make sure you don’t repeat the same issues that others have already figured out. So if you can get on [the ALLP] and be smarter with your time and money, hopefully you can get pro- grams out under budget and on schedule.”


For more information, go to the Army Acqui- sition Lessons Learned Portal at https:// apps.aep.army.mil/ALLP.


MR. STEVE STARK is senior editor of Army AL&T magazine. He holds an M.A. in creative writing from Hollins University and a B.A. in English from George Mason University. In addition to more than two decades of editing and writing about the military, science and technology, he is, as Stephen Stark, the best-selling ghostwriter of several consumer health-oriented books and an award-winning novelist.


MR. ROBERT E. COULTAS is an editor for Army AL&T magazine and an Army AL&T news blog editor. He is a retired Army broadcaster with more than 43 years of combined experience in public affairs, jour- nalism, broadcasting and advertising. Level I certified in program management, he has won numerous Army Keith L. Ware Pub- lic Affairs Awards and is a DOD Thomas Jefferson Award recipient.


Army AL&T Magazine


January-March 2017


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