FROM THE DIRECTOR OF
ACQUISITION CAREER MANAGEMENT RONA LD R. R ICH A R DSON JR .
BUILDING AN ACQUISITION LEADER PIPELINE
To ensure a future workforce that is ready, diverse and integrated, we must provide folks with the experience necessary to meet the increasing demands of our profession.
can help bring those goals to fruition. W
We need to build a pipeline of leaders who are poised to not only take on future Army challenges, but also to successfully manage our teams and organizations, ensuring our Army Acquisition Workforce (AAW) remains ready, diverse, integrated and professional.
Building a pipeline of leaders—think the next two generations of acquisition leaders—is no easy task and is one that requires deliberate planning on the part of both the current leader and the acquisition professional. In my considerable experience, from serving as an Army officer to working with industry and to my current role as the Army Direc- tor of Acquisition Career Management (DACM) as an Army civilian, I see three areas where leadership skills can be developed.
MODELING Te first time we are exposed to leadership (the Army defines leadership as “the process of influencing people by providing purpose, direction and motivation while operating to accomplish the mission and improve the organization”) happens when we take our first job. For me, that was when I was about two weeks out of the Officer Basic Course. I experienced a stressful situation and saw firsthand how two leaders can react to a situ- ation in very different ways. One leader yelled and pointed blame, while the other chose to stay calm and focus on learning and looking ahead to the next exercise. I decided in that moment the type of leader I was going to be—and the type I was not going to be.
Te calm leader became my mentor for many years. Te leadership he exhibited in that moment, and the model that he provided over time, very much shaped my perception of what it means to be a Soldier and a respected leader. I look back at that initial expe- rience and realize now the profound impact it has had on my career and the type of leader I have matured into.
92 Army AL&T Magazine Winter 2024
e need the right people in the right place at the right time. Tat doesn’t just mean filling open positions and building a cushion of subject matter experts. It also means considering the goals and growing needs of the organization and identifying and developing future leaders who
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