Acquisition Education and Training Corner: January 2012

By January 31, 2012September 17th, 2018Career Development, General

Acquisition Leadership Challenge Program

We are piloting the new Acquisition Leadership Challenge Program (ALCP), a 2½-day course focusing on developing better civilian leadership. FY12 offerings will be available for courses running from February through July. Contact your command Acquisition Career Management Advocate if you are interested in attending. The two levels of ALCP, with areas of focus, are:

ALCP I (GS-12/13, O-3/O-4)

  • Personal leadership strengths and weaknesses.
  • Preferred leadership styles.
  • Modeling leadership challenges.
  • Using power to increase productivity.
  • Cultural traits that affect organizational performance.
  • Practical solutions to personnel issues.
  • Setting and achieving goals.

ALCP II (GS-14/15, O-5/O-6)

  • Comprehensive look at personal leadership strengths, weaknesses, preferences, styles, and behaviors.
  • Leadership styles and their effects on individual and team performance.
  • Dynamics of conflict: sources, nature, and techniques to influence outcomes.
  • Improving group communication.
  • Collaborative teamwork.
  • Effective enterprise leadership.
  • Supports and barriers to success in the acquisition environment.
  • Setting goals and developing practical strategies to reach them.

Training with Industry

This is a 10-to-12-month rotational opportunity for Acquisition Officers (O-3 to O-5) to work side by side with industry. Current participating companies for Army acquisition in FY12 are: Google Inc., Microsoft Corp., Coca-Cola Co., Cisco Systems Inc., EADS North America Inc., Lockheed Martin Corp., Computer Sciences Corp., Intel Corp., General Dynamics Corp., and Boeing Co.  For more information, please contact your assignment officer. Contact information is at https://www.hrc.army.mil/site/protect/branches/officer/FS/Acquisition/Acquistion_Contact__Information.htm.

DAU Senior Service College Fellowship

The 2012-13 Defense Acquisition University – Senior Service College Fellowship (DAU-SSCF) announcement is open through March 15, 2012, to all eligible GS-14s and 15s who have met their current position certification requirements. For more information, visit https://asc.army.mil/web/career-development/programs/defense-acquisition-university-senior-service-college/announcement/.

Federal Executive Institute Announcement

The Federal Executive Institute (FEI) Leadership for a Democratic Society announcement is open through June 13. Any interested GS-15s who have met their position certification requirement should read the announcement at https://asc.army.mil/web/career-development/programs/federal-executive-institute-leadership-for-a-democratic-society/ for additional information and details on specific offerings and submission requirements. Starting this fiscal year, any applicant for FEI must have either completed the Civilian Education System (CES) Advanced Course or received equivalency or constructive credit before submitting an FEI application. Interested applicants should visit the website on CES course credit at https://www.atrrs.army.mil/channels/chrtas/help/CES_Course_Credit.asp.

School of Choice

The School of Choice announcement will be open from March 12 through May 7 to full-time career civilian Army Acquisition, Logistics, and Technology workforce members in GS-11 through -15 and equivalent pay bands within a demonstration project  who have met their position certification requirements. The announcement at https://asc.army.mil/web/career-development/programs/school-of-choice/ provides additional information and details on how to apply for this opportunity.

Naval Postgraduate School – Master of Science in Program Management

The Naval Postgraduate School – Master of Science in Program Management announcement will be open from March 19 through May 21 to all eligible personnel in GS-11 through GS-15 or broadband/pay band equivalent who have met their current position certification requirement. For more information, visit https://asc.army.mil/web/career-development/programs/naval-postgraduate-school-master-of-science-in-program-management/announcements/.

Defense Acquisition University Training

  • The FY13 Defense Acquisition University (DAU) class schedule will be available for registration beginning May 17. Students are encouraged to plan and apply early for DAU training. Applying early will improve their chances of getting the class in the timeframe requested. Please apply through the Army Training Requirements and Resources System (ATRRS) Internet Training Application System (AITAS) at https://www.atrrs.army.mil/channels/aitas. For more information on DAU training, including step-by-step instructions, definition of training priorities, or frequently asked questions, please visit https://asc.army.mil/career/programs/dau/default.cfm. Once you receive a confirmed reservation in the requested class, be sure you attend the class as planned.
  • The timeframe for DAU course cancellations is 30 calendar days from the date the student receives a reservation. Cancellations for a confirmed reservation must be received at least 30 calendar days before the class starts or by the reservation cutoff date, whichever is earlier. Cancellations submitted after that deadline must have general officer or Senior Executive Service member approval, per Department of the Army DAU Training Policy and Procedures signed Dec. 9, 2011, online at https://asc.army.mil/docs/programs/dau/DAU_Training_Policy_&_Procedures.pdf. Students placed on wait status should revisit the class wait(s) and cancel as necessary. If a student rolls into a reservation from a wait within 30 days of the class start date, the student will be held to the 30-calendar-day cancellation policy.
  • To address the shortfall in Level II contracting classes, six commercial vendors and four universities offer equivalent classes. The vendors continue to teach the FY11 Contracting courses in FY12, and the courses are valid predecessors to the new FY12 courses until Sept. 30, 2013. More information on equivalencies is at the DAU website http://icatalog.dau.mil/appg.aspx. If you are unable to obtain CON 280 or CON 290 during FY12 and would like to use Section 852 funds to pay for an equivalent provider, please request approval from your command to attend training. If approved for training by the command, the Section 852/Defense Acquisition Workforce Development Fund program manager for that command will request funding from the U.S. Army Acquisition Support Center Section 852 manager by submitting a Program Request Form for FY11, found at https://www.usaasc.info/section852_cms. The point of contact is Jack Kendall at john.f.kendall.civ@mail.mil.
  • On Dec. 12, 2011, DAU released CON 170E, Fundamentals of Cost and Price Analysis Equivalency Examination. CON 170E allows students to test out of taking the two-week resident CON 170 course. If a person does not meet the Deputy Director, Acquisition Career Management waiver requirements for CON 170, he or she has the option to fulfill CON 170 by passing the exam. Students opting to take the equivalent exam must receive a grade of at least 80 percent. Prerequisite CLC 058 (in the DAU Digital Library) is required for entry to take the exam. Students interested in taking the exam in lieu of attending the resident CON 170 portion may apply at ATRRS AITAS: https://www.atrrs.army.mil/channels/aitas. For more information on the CON 170E exam, the concept card has more information: http://icatalog.dau.mil/onlinecatalog/courses.aspx?crs_id=1898.
  • To address the shortfall in Level II business, cost, and financial management (BCFM) courses, the Army is placing only first-priority students into available BCFM classes. Level II courses are available on the FY12 schedule. DAU has expanded classroom size from 24 to 28-30 in 4th-quarter FY11 and all FY12 course offerings, specifically the following courses: BCF 203, BCF 205, BCF 206, BCF 211, and BCF 215. An additional 680 seats were added to the FY12 schedule in light of additional offerings and an increase in class size. The demand is due to a temporary surge of BCFM certification requirements, along with an increase in BCFM workforce members needing certification. The Army will continue to request that more seats be added to the FY12 schedule. For experienced BCFM personnel, fulfillment of the course is recommended. For more information, go to http://icatalog.dau.mil/DAUFulfillmentPgm.aspx.
  •  DAU has successfully procured a commercial-off-the-shelf new Student Information System to replace the current distinct DAU registration systems for the four services. The web-based system, named PORTICO, will interface with DAU and DoD systems, AITAS, and CAMP/CAPPMIS. Army workforce members will be able to authenticate using a DoD Common Access Card. PORTICO will standardize functionality and capability, allowing more transparency and up-to-date status information for students applying for DAU courses. The system is in the Business Requirements Review phase, with initial operating capability planned for January 2013. For more information, go to http://www.dau.mil/sis/default.aspx.

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