ACQUISITION TRAINING, EDUCATION, AND DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES
ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS—DAU SENIOR SERVICE COLLEGE FELLOWSHIP
The Director of Acquisition Career Management (DACM) Office is now accepting applications for the Defense Acquisition University Senior Service College Fellowship (DAU-SSCF) program through Jan. 24, 2024. The DAU-SSCF program is a 10-month educational senior leadership development opportunity sponsored by the DACM. DAU-SSCF is conducted under the auspices of the DAU through the Huntsville, Alabama; Picatinny Arsenal, New Jersey; and virtual seminars. The virtual seminar is an excellent SSC/SSCF option for any interested and eligible acquisition workforce members outside of Huntsville and Picatinny. DAU-SSCF provides leadership and acquisition training to prepare senior-level civilians for leadership roles such as product and project manager, program executive officer and other key acquisition leadership positions, including contracting.
The DAU-SSCF program is also approved as a Military Education Level-1 (MEL-1) Senior Service College equivalent. For the O6 and GS-15 centralized selection list (CSL), an MEL-1 is required before assumption of command. DAU-SSCF is the only civilian fellowship approved by the Army. To learn more, go to https://asc.army.mil/web/career-development/programs/defense-acquisition-university-senior-service-college.
APPLICATION DEADLINE EXTENDED—LEADERSHIP EXCELLENCE AND ACQUISITION DEVELOPMENT (LEAD) PROGRAM
Great news for future acquisition leaders: The deadline to apply to the LEAD program has been extended to Dec. 22, 2023. LEAD enhances the leadership abilities of the Army’s high-performing GS-12 and GS-13 (and payband equivalents) acquisition professionals by offering expanded training through a series of education, leader development and broadening assignments to build skills required for positions of greater responsibility. LEAD participants are provided centrally funded leadership training and developmental assignments within the Army acquisition community. View the list of past graduates on the LEAD Yearbook page. Any questions can be directed to the LEAD program manager, Kelly Terry, at kelly.l.terry2.civ@army.mil.
SAVE THE DATE: FEB. 1—THE ACQUISITION TUITION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM BEGINS ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS
Feb. 1, 2024, will be here before we know it, and now is a good time to begin preparing your application packets to the ever popular Acquisition Tuition Assistance Program (ATAP). ATAP provides tuition assistance, including laboratory and technology fees, to eligible Army Acquisition Workforce (AAW) professionals taking individual acquisition/business-related college courses OR pursuing an acquisition/business-related bachelor’s or master’s degree. Eligible applicants who already have a master’s degree can now apply for a second master’s degree in a business, technical or acquisition-related discipline.
REMINDER: DEC. 31 IS THE DEADLINE TO COMPLETE SENIOR RATER POTENTIAL EVALUATIONS
The fiscal year 2023 Senior Rater Potential Evaluations (SRPE) completion window is now open. The SRPE is a talent management tool used to evaluate the potential of every civilian acquisition professional (at the GS-12 through GS-15/broadband equivalent). The intent is to assess future potential for positions of greater responsibility and/or centrally selected professional development opportunities. As an AAW member, rater or senior rater of an AAW professional, you must ensure a SRPE is completed. Senior raters must complete the SRPE by Dec. 31, 2023. To prepare, first take a moment and ensure your email address is current in the Career Acquisition Personnel and Position Management Information System (CAPPMIS) at https://apps.asc.army.mil/camp.
You may update your email address using the Acquisition Career Record Brief (ACRB) ‘Edit’ feature in CAPPMIS. AAW members should ensure their Individual Development Plan (IDP) identifies the correct Rating scheme; this enables the Army DACM Office to notify all parties of critical updates and required actions. The SRPE policy requires the Rater to modify the annual default dates and identify a new effective end date corresponding to the status change or supervision date. This ensures the AAW professional does not have any unrated SRPE time and that their annual SRPE cycle remains intact.
For guidance on the completion of the SRPE, including helpful hints and system guides, visit the dedicated SRPE webpage. If you have any questions about the SRPE process, contact your organization’s Acquisition Point of Contact (OAP) or Acquisition Career Management Advocate (ACMA). A list of OAPs can be found on MilSuite at https://www.milsuite.mil/book/docs/DOC-640236.
DID YOU KNOW?
NEW CREDENTIALS IN YOUR ACQUISITION FUNCTIONAL AREA
Did you know there are now 60 defense acquisition credentials available to take? Within the past 60 days, new credentialing programs across the functional areas have been released such as:
BUSINESS-COST ESTIMATING
- CBC 001 Software Cost Estimation: This credential provides the appropriate level of knowledge, skill and hands-on experience necessary to produce a software cost estimate for a system or subsystem based on the newest acquisition and technological changes.
BUSINESS-FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT
- CBFM 002 Industry Financial Business Acumen: This credential provides DOD acquisition professionals with a deeper understanding of how industry supports DOD. This credential will address the operational, financial and decision-making aspects of doing business with DOD where the business financial manager is involved in the process from beginning to end.
- CBFM 003 Defense Business Systems for Financial Managers: This credential is a cross-functional, general-purpose review of the tenets and principles of defense business systems (DBS) and financial management (FM) systems. Learners will be introduced to the standards, laws and component FM systems with respect to appropriations, fiscal law, oversight and other aspects of DBS.
- CBFM 004 Military Construction for Financial Managers: This is a cross-functional, general-purpose credential on the tenets and principles of military construction (MILCON) and financial management. The participants will be given the standards, laws and principles for MILCON with respect to appropriations, fiscal law and other important aspects.
PROGRAM MANAGEMENT
- CACQ 012 International Acquisition Security Cooperation for PMs: This credential enhances the program manager’s ability to effectively plan and execute international acquisition and exportability (IA&E) activities to improve acquisition outcomes for the DOD and foreign partners in support of the National Defense Strategy.
CONTRACTING
- CCON 028 Contracting for Logistics & Sustainment: This credential includes the skills required for employees in the 1101 and 1102 job series who are responsible for acquiring supplies and services associated with the logistics and sustainment of weapon systems.
To browse through the entire catalog of credentials and apply to a credentialing program, go to https://www.dau.edu/credentials. For a comprehensive list of credentials and their associated functional areas, go to https://asc.army.mil/web/dacm-office/functional-areas/#credentials.
UPDATED INFO SHEETS—ENGINEERING AND TECHNICAL MANAGEMENT AND TEST AND EVALUATION
Technical workforce information sheets for the engineering & technical management (ETM) and test & evaluation (T&E) functional areas have recently been updated by the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, Systems Engineering and Architecture (SE&A) Office. These info sheets feature the recommended sequence to take certification courses as well as learning assets and highlight how technical expertise supports the development of innovative joint warfighting capabilities.
To view the new ETM and T&E info sheets, along with others in the SE&A focus areas, go to https://www.cto.mil/sea/info-sheets.
DAU NEWS
ACCEPTING SUBMISSIONS TO THE DEFENSE ACQUISITION WORKFORCE WRITING AWARDS COMPETITION
DAU has announced a call for papers for the inaugural Defense Acquisition Workforce Writing Awards, established in 2023 to encourage curiosity and persistence in overcoming obstacles and to promote innovation in defense acquisition. Participants can compete in two categories:
- Innovation in Overcoming Obstacles
- Innovation in Implementing Acquisition Flexibilities
Papers should document approaches to program management that emphasize innovation and local adaptation. These would include the use of simplified acquisition procedures, inherent flexibilities within the Federal Acquisition Regulation, commercial contracting approaches, public-private partnership agreements and practices, cost-sharing arrangements, innovative contractor incentive practices, and other innovative implementations of acquisition flexibilities and authorities.
Five award recipients may be selected in the Innovation in Overcoming Obstacles category and one recipient in the Innovation and Implementing Acquisition Flexibilities category. Recipients will receive a $5,000 cash prize. All military and civilian members of the Defense Acquisition Workforce are eligible to compete for the 2024 Defense Acquisition Workforce Writing Awards. Contractors and DAU employees are not eligible. Essays should be 1,000 to 1,500 words and must be submitted by email to writing.award@dau.edu by Feb. 1, 2024. For additional submission requirements and information, go to https://www.dau.edu/writing-awards.
