“YOU MAY HAVE BEEN AN ACQUISITION WORKFORCE MEMBER FOR YEARS AND YEARS, BUT UNTIL YOU ACTUALLY COME INTO A DEPLOYED ENVIRONMENT, YOU JUST DON’T GET IT. WHEN YOU COME HERE AND YOU ACTUALLY SEE THE WORK OF THE SOLDIERS AND YOU’RE SHARING IN THE SAME HARDSHIPS, IT REALLY DOES HELP REFRAME THE IMPORTANCE OF THE WORK, AND IT’S INSPIRING.”
subject-matter experts in fabrication and technical assessment, and reachback to CONUS for capability-specific advice were tremendous,” adding up to a suc- cessful test and validation of the system.
Te SharePoint portal, too, “was defi- nitely a win, for [Soldiers] to be able to turn in their property and know exactly what they’re turning in.” It is specifically for non-standard equipment, such as the double-V-hull Stryker, for which there was no central repository of information, Muller explained.
Products and processes aside, what impressed Muller just as much about this in-theater development effort were the people involved, from the front offices to the forward operating bases (FOBs). “It’s been extremely
rewarding, personally
and professionally, to work closely with combat brigade team and division-level staffs,” he said.
“Tere is tremendous value in seeing, firsthand, the efforts of our Acquisition Corps, military, DOD civilians and contractors in their direct support to our troops at FOBs and combat outposts across Afghanistan,” not to mention the wealth of advice and recommendations they offered to improve acquisition processes. Likewise, working with the 3rd Infantry Division in Kandahar was rewarding, given the unit’s combat experience dating to World War I, Muller said.
“Seeing the daily commitment of Soldiers who know their mission, who work for great leaders and strive daily to exceed the standard in the accomplishment of their duties, is tremendously inspiring,” Muller said. “As acquisition professionals,
our work is no less important, but it’s not the ‘tip-of-the-spear’ experience that our Soldiers face in daily combat operations across Afghanistan.”
Muller said that his deployment to RC(S) came with “a huge learning curve, because I had never worked in such a dynamic environment. While I might have known of some of these programs on the periphery, working with the pro- gram offices directly was a first.” Before deploying to Afghanistan, Muller had deployed to Kosovo once and to Iraq twice. Likewise, the people
are what
Muller said he would miss the most after leaving Afghanistan.
“It’s always amazing for me to see the folks who really get it and are dedicated. Across the military, DA civilian and contractor workforce, there are just great people, and that makes it a whole lot easier.” Many of them are “two times a volunteer, three times a volunteer; they volunteered for military service and then, into retirement, volunteered again to come back out as a civilian to a combat zone.” Tey “have accepted those risks, believe in their mis- sion, and are living, working and fighting for us all. Tose are great people who could probably enjoy a much easier life in the States,” Muller noted. “And many of them have been here multiple years— two, three, four years.”
Tat kind of commitment “needs a little bit more of a rugged person,” he said. “You have to be willing to face and endure hard- ships. We don’t have creature comforts here like we all enjoy in the States. You’re definitely not going to go to TGI Fridays for a beer and a steak. We do have a Friday night steak night, but that’s about it.”
Tere is also, of course, tremendous per- sonal risk in deployment to any war zone, Muller said, and the austere environment of Afghanistan can be challenging,
Muller’s advice to others contemplating or preparing for deployment to a combat zone is to “come prepared to learn and grow professionally. Professionally, there is no substitute for experience, but a close second is subject-matter expertise in the systems and processes that you will use in your deployment.” A given for every military acquisition member and DOD civilian is certification as a contracting officer’s representative; understanding the “rules of
ment will make the regular engagements with support contractors significantly more efficient and effective, Muller said.
In short, Muller said, “Be confident, be professional, adapt and overcome! A com- bat deployment will place you outside of your comfort zone of skills, knowledge and abilities on the very first day.”
Muller said that three things motivated him to persevere and succeed through- out the deployment: remembering all of the sacrifices that have been made on our behalf for liberty; working to improve the operating area and leave a better “foxhole” for the next Soldier; and knowing that he was part of an important team whose mission is to bring the best of technology to America’s Soldiers.
“I came here to do the best that I could for the Soldiers,” he said. “And I would come back.”
—MS. MARGARET C. ROTH
the road” of contract manage-
ASC.ARMY.MIL
117
WORKFORCE
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132 |
Page 133 |
Page 134 |
Page 135 |
Page 136 |
Page 137 |
Page 138 |
Page 139 |
Page 140 |
Page 141 |
Page 142 |
Page 143 |
Page 144 |
Page 145 |
Page 146 |
Page 147 |
Page 148 |
Page 149 |
Page 150 |
Page 151 |
Page 152 |
Page 153 |
Page 154 |
Page 155 |
Page 156 |
Page 157 |
Page 158 |
Page 159 |
Page 160 |
Page 161 |
Page 162 |
Page 163 |
Page 164 |
Page 165 |
Page 166 |
Page 167 |
Page 168 |
Page 169 |
Page 170 |
Page 171 |
Page 172 |
Page 173 |
Page 174 |
Page 175 |
Page 176 |
Page 177 |
Page 178 |
Page 179 |
Page 180 |
Page 181 |
Page 182 |
Page 183 |
Page 184 |
Page 185 |
Page 186 |
Page 187 |
Page 188 |
Page 189 |
Page 190 |
Page 191 |
Page 192 |
Page 193 |
Page 194 |
Page 195 |
Page 196
