Civilian Steps to Planning Your Acquisition Career
The Army Director, Acquisition Career Management (DACM) Office is proud to support the elite Army Acquisition Workforce (AAW), a dedicated team of approximately 40,000 civilians, officers, and noncommissioned officers, who provide the equipment and services that ensure Army Readiness, now and in the future.
The Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act (DAWIA) (enacted by Public Law 101-510 on 05 November 1990) mandated the establishment of training, education, and experience standards for certification, in order to develop and maintain a professional and relevant defense acquisition workforce. All AAW professionals are responsible for meeting the DAWIA certification requirements of their assigned position at the assigned level and maintaining currency in their primary Acquisition Career Field (ACF). Below are all the steps needed to successfully maintain an acquisition career.
Key Resources to Acquisition Career Management:
- AAW Quick Reference Guide. In order to help you understand the mandatory requirements for your acquisition position, as well as the many career development opportunities available to you as an AAW member, the Army DACM Office developed the AAW Quick Reference Guide posted on this page. We highly recommend that you become familiar with this guide.
- Your supervisor! Supervisors play an active role in assisting and advising subordinates on career development decisions; discussing education, training, and experience needs; working with their subordinates to draft an individual development plan (IDP) to schedule and attain these goals; providing adequate time to pursue career development activities; and encouraging cross-functional training and assignments.
- Your Organizational Acquisition Point of Contact (OAP). Your OAP is your on-site resource for acquisition information. They are trained to respond to questions from their organizational acquisition personnel and the AAW. A list of organizational OAPs can be seen here: https://www.us.army.mil/suite/files/39843103.
- The Army DACM Office. We are here to support you with career development opportunities and initiatives. Our website is an invaluable resource for AAW policies, career management updates, training opportunities, and other important information. We also communicate with you through our monthly DACM Hot Topics (https://asc.army.mil/web/category/dacm-topics/) and quarterly DACM News (https://asc.army.mil/web/dacm-newsletter/). Ask an AAW question by submitting a ticket to the Army DACM Office’s help desk, located in the Career Acquisition Management Portal (CAMP), at https://rda.altess.army.mil/camp/index.cfm?fuseaction=support.helpRequest.