MODERNIZING THE WORKFORCE


The most important benefit to the workforce of the coming changes is the shift from a one-size-fits-all system of training and certification toward a system that can be tailored to varied performance needs across jobs or assignments.


Supervisors will have an even greater responsibility to identify what each of their employees needs—what training, which specific skills and credentials—in order to be successful.


While we have given a lot of opportuni- ties to the individual employee, we have also made a tremendous effort at making supervisors as good at their craft as we possibly can. Tose efforts will pay off for us now; we have to have a network of committed and dedicated supervisors who understand their roles and respon- sibilities. It will be up to supervisors to identify the “point-of-need” competency requirements when developing a team to manage a program. Do team members need new learning or other training, for example, to remain current in their skill sets and knowledge?


We’re obviously asking a lot of our super- visors, which means our selection of who becomes a supervisor becomes even more important. It’s fairly straightforward to look at a potential supervisor’s set of experiences and see if they’ve had the right kinds of jobs to be technically competent. But determining whether they’re going to


80 Army AL&T Magazine Spring 2020


be a good leader of people is much more difficult.


Tat’s why many of our top programs use the Senior Rater Potential Evaluation (SRPE), which measures not perfor- mance, but potential. Of vital importance to anyone who wants to be a program manager in the civilian acquisition work- force, the SRPE is a tool allowing a selection board to look at a historical set of evaluations of an employee’s potential. It gives the board insight into an individual’s strengths and their potential to perform in a leadership capacity.


What we ask of our supervisors is only going to increase. To build that pipe- line of future supervisors and provide the opportunity for potential supervisors to perform at higher levels, organizations can offer short-term experience working at a higher level or in rotational assign- ments, with the chance to demonstrate competence and capacity to perform in a new area.


Giving someone a rotational opportunity that’s relatively low risk enables them to do what you’d be asking them to do if you


were to hire or promote them. And you get the chance to see them in action. You get to see them apply their skills and develop a degree of confidence that they’re ready for the next step.


Te Army Director for Acquisition Career Management Office offers advanced leadership development courses like the Acquisition Leadership Challenge Program, the Defense Acquisition Univer- sity – Senior Service College Fellowship, the Defense Civilian Emerging Leader Program, Inspiring and Developing Excellence in Acquisition Leaders, Senior Enterprise Talent Management/Enterprise Talent Management, the Emerging Enter- prise Leader program and the Professional Development Series offered by the Army Acquisition Center of Excellence.


CONCLUSION Since DAWIA’s inception 30 years ago, the Army has spent a lot of money to create a highly trained, skilled and talented work- force. Tat investment has paid off. But maintaining a static position will not allow us to compete on a global scale in today’s environment. We are in a very complex world with adversaries that aren’t play- ing by the same rules we do. If we are to provide the Army and our Soldiers the greatest capabilities possible, ones that exceed those of our adversaries, we have to invest in the future. We cannot remain static, because our adversaries aren’t remaining static.


Te talent that we have is the critical piece that allows us to be successful, so we spend a lot of time and effort to understand to the best of our ability the data associated with what we know and what we don’t know, and we use that data to make smart decisions to create a better future for our acquisition workforce.


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