25 YEARS AND COUNTING


Such a workforce would incorporate uni- formed personnel to better understand military and operational needs for mate- riel and services. Te AAC was created to bridge generating force processes with the operational force needs it serves, and it has performed this role with remark- able success.


DIMENSIONAL REQUIREMENTS Annette LaFleur, team leader for the U.S. Army Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineer- ing Center’s Design, Pattern and Prototype Team, uses a 2-D design program, but she is excited about the possibilities that 3-D printing capabilities hold for her industry and for Soldiers. Quick prototyping with 3-D printing—or additive manufacturing—is just one of many dimensions to the work that the Army Acquisition Workforce does for the benefit of the Soldier and the nation. (U.S. Army photo by David Kamm)


In establishing the AAC, the Army pro- fessionalized the Acquisition Workforce, defining career trajectories for military and civilian acquisition workers with clear expectations for education, training, experience and assignments that promote competence and skill among the work- force. As DOD recognized in the Better Buying Power initiative, a professional workforce has been instrumental to suc- cess in an environment of constrained resources. Tere is simply no substitute for informed, rational business judgment at every level of our workforce. Te AAC, by design, has expertly exercised such judgment throughout a critical time.


Te greater Army Acquisition Work- force has approximately 38,000 members worldwide. It pulls together professionals from across Army organi- zations, including PEOs, the U.S. Army Materiel Command, Space and Missile Defense Command, Test and Evalua- tion Command, Medical Command and numerous others. Army Acquisition professionals are engineers, scientists, logisticians, contract specialists, testers, program managers and cost estimators, among other specialties.


GENESIS TO GRAVE


CPT Michael Andersen and CPT Joy Harry transport a heavy-duty military tow bar July 20 to the 401st Army Field Support Brigade (AFSB) facility at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan. Acquisition personnel work the whole spectrum of Army materiel and services, from genesis to operation to grave. (Photo by Sharonda Pearson, 401st AFSB Public Affairs)


Tis broad array of skill sets is necessary to effectively manage the myriad pro- grams, both existing and nascent, that the Army must have to maintain its dominance—and do it all in a budget environment that demands we do more with less. While resources are shrinking, our threats are not. Te Army’s research,


6


Army AL&T Magazine


October–December 2014


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