Acquisition Education and Training Corner

Army Acquisition Civilian Leadership Development Plan
The Army Director of Acquisition Career Management (DACM) recently published our first leadership development plan for civilians. Unfortunately, there is not one clear path for civilians…that would be too easy! Unlike the military, civilians can/will take hundreds of different routes in their quest for upward mobility. This plan is meant to serve as a guide for all levels of our acquisition workforce. Using this model, each workforce member may see what the training requirements are at each level. In addition, they may also use this plan to identify desired training opportunities available at upper levels and each opportunity is hyperlinked to an information page for the program. Please take some time to review programs of interest to you and put any on your Individual Development Plan (IDP) and discuss with your Supervisor.

The model is broken into Four Sections (from bottom to top):
1. Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act/Defense Acquisition University (DAU) Training – functional REQUIRED training from left to right from Level I through 400 Level courses.
2. Continuing Education System Courses – Army G-3/5/7 REQUIRED courses from left to right from Foundation Course, Basic, Intermediate, Advanced, and Continuing Education are for Senior Leaders depending on your rank.
3. Leadership Training – Includes all the leadership opportunities available in our Army Education, Training and Experience (AETE) portfolio as well as a few DOD and U.S. Army Materiel Command programs.
4. Higher Education – Bachelor, Masters Degrees as well as Senior Service Colleges (SSC) and SSC Fellowships (SSCF); please note that all courses are hyperlinks which will take workforce members to dedicated pages to each course/program where they may find additional information. Above is an image of the Development Plan; however, you may view the full version and download a copy here: https://asc.army.mil/career-development/civilian/career-planning-steps/.

The 2013-14 DAU-SSCF announcement is open January 22-March 28 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/. This program offered in Aberdeen, MD, Huntsville, AL, and Warren, MI provides a great opportunity for our civilians to attend a SSC within their local area.

The “Acquisition Leadership Challenge Program” (ALCP) is the newest program to the AETE Portfolio for the Army. Based upon the huge success our sister service the Air Force has had with ALCP, we piloted multiple offerings of the 2.5 day course in FY12. For FY13, we are bringing the course to you. For more information on how to apply, visit https://asc.army.mil/web/career-development/programs/acquisition-leadership-challenge-program/. Below is the FY13 ALCP training dates (by location):

 
Defense Acquisition University (DAU) Training

The Army DACM office will start working with DAU to project the FY14 demand. On May 16, 2013 the FY14 schedule will be available for students to apply for classes. If students are unable to attend an FY13 course, they need to review and complete the required course prerequisite(s) now for a course they intend to take in the future. Students should continue to apply for FY13 courses available on the schedule. Planning and applying early will afford students better opportunity in obtaining a class in the timeframe requested. Encourage your supervisor to approve your training request as soon as you apply. Students should view the DAU I-catalog at http://icatalog.dau.mil to ensure they meet the prerequisite(s), prior to applying to a DAU course. A weekly low fill listing posted weekly at http://icatalog.dau.mil/onlinecatalog/tabnav.aspx to allow students opportunity to attend classes coming up in the next 60 days. Low fill classes within 60 days of the class start date are available on a first come, first served basis.

Applications cannot be processed by the Army registrar office until the training has been approved by the supervisor. It is also imperative the student and supervisor email addresses are provided correctly on the Resources Internet Training Application System (AITAS) student profile. Please apply through the Army Training Requirements and AITAS at https://www.atrrs.army.mil/channels/aitas. For more information on DAU training to include, systematic instructions, training priority definition or frequently asked questions, please visit: https://asc.army.mil/web/career-development/programs/defense-acquisition-university-training. Once you receive a confirmed reservation in the requested class, ensure you attend the class as scheduled. Cancellation requests for a confirmed reservation must be submitted at least 30 calendar days before the class starts or by the reservation cutoff date, whichever is earlier, to avoid a ‘no show.’

DAU provides a listing of equivalencies (http://icatalog.dau.mil/appg.aspx) for all courses delivered by DAU and/or predecessors courses, which are considered acceptable towards meeting current acquisition career field certification requirements. To document equivalencies, accepted by DAU that are obtained from other institutions, open a helpdesk ticket at: https://apps.asc.army.mil/camp/index.cfm?fuseaction=support.helpRequest and request your Acquisition Career Record Brief be updated to reflect DAU equivalent course(s) completion. On September 4, DAU approved the very first DAU equivalent vendor, Trio Consulting accredited to teach BCF 211 – Acquisition Business Management. Students interested in taking BCF211 DAU equivalent course, should apply and contact the vendor directly. Trio Instructors can bring the course to your Organization to teach the course locally onsite. Please contact Trio directly at www.trio-consulting.com.

BCF 211 will split into two courses: BCF 220 (Web) and BCF 225 (classroom). BCF 211-Acquisition Business Management transition to BCF 220 & BCF 225 will start for classes starting January 7, 2013. Students with reservations in classes starting that day and thereafter have been notified directly by DAU of the change and the requirement to complete the prerequisite course, BCF 220 prior to attending the resident portion, BCF 225. Students must successfully complete BCF 220 prior to applying to BCF 225. Students completing BCF 220 in advance, must review the course material at a minimum two weeks prior to start of date of the resident BCF 225 course to ensure successful completion. Taking the time to focus and successfully complete prerequisite course BCF 220 will likely determine the success of the resident portion (BCF 225).

DAU course management has a new process to allow higher priority, specifically Priority 1 students, first preference in the DAU resident courses. As result, students in Priority 2 through 5 will be waitlisted for classes showing available seats. When a student is placed in a wait status, they will roll into a reservation 65 days prior to class start date if a Priority 1 does not encumber a seat. They could still be bumped up to five business days before the class reservation cut-off date or start date, whichever is higher if a higher priority student applied within the 65 days. The new process minimizes bumping and allows Priority 1 students to see which courses actually have seats available for them to obtain their required position certification.