DACM OFFICE UPDATE
SHATTERING RECORDS – THE FY20 STUDENT LOAN REPAYMENT PROGRAM
The Army DACM Office is proud to announce that over 900 applicants have been approved for the FY20 Student Loan Repayment Program (SLRP). This year, a conscious effort was made to fund as many of our workforce members as possible. To do that, the Army DACM Office created a modeling system to support Army retention efforts which valued critical acquisition career fields, the degrees being attained and targeting acquisition employees in the earlier stages of their acquisition service in order to encourage longevity in their careers. These selectees will receive 100% of their requested student loan.
Additional funding allowed the DACM Office to exceed the approximately 400 selectees last year by utilizing a tiered percentage approach and reaching those applicants who met the first two criteria and were either junior or senior to the optimum years of service. This solution supports both command and organizational retention needs and provides over 500 additional applicants with some financial incentive.
The SLRP is an annually funded program under the authority of the Defense Acquisition Workforce Development Account (DAWDA). The purpose of this program is to repay federally insured student loans as a retention incentive for civilian acquisition employees with critical acquisition skills. Any Army civilian acquisition employee is eligible to apply. For more information: https://asc.army.mil/web/career-development/programs/student-loan-repayment-program/.
THE FINAL COUNTDOWN – 29 DAYS LEFT TO MEET YOUR CLP REQUIREMENT!
We are in the final quarter of the current Army Acquisition Workforce (AAW) continuous learning two-year cycle, which began October 1, 2018, and ends September 30, 2020. Nearly 25% of the AAW is not on track to meet this requirement! The Army Director, Acquisition Career Management (DACM) Office reminds the workforce that the requirement to complete 80 Continuous Learning Points (CLPs) within this two-year cycle is the backbone of ensuring the AAW is armed with the most current training and education to support the Soldier. A fast and easy way to earn CLPs is by taking online Continuous Learning Modules (CLMs) through DAU; which typically only take 1-2 hours to complete. To browse through and apply for Defense Acquisition University (DAU) continuous learning modules, CLICK HERE or visit https://icatalog.dau.edu/.
MANDATORY ANNUAL ETHICS TRAINING REMINDER
As members of the AAW, the standards of expertise, experience and ethics are high. We are required by law to be certified at the appropriate level for our acquisition positions, and we are mandated to maintain currency in our acquisition career fields with continuous learning. Mandatory ethics training instills the importance of conducting ourselves in an ethical manner, and we ensure our professional development is on a forward track by updating our individual development plans (IDP) every six months. The Army DACM Office reminds you of the following mandatory requirements:
By September 30, 2020:
CLPs: All acquisition professionals who are certified within this CLP cycle must attain a minimum of 80 CLPs for the current 2018 – 2020 CLP cycle. See details in the CLP policy memo here https://asc.army.mil/web/clp-policy-jan-11-2019/.
By December 31, 2020:
Ethics Training for AAW Professionals: The list of accepted ethics training modalities that meet the annual requirement has been expanded to include:
- Office of The Judge Advocate General online ethics training: https://www.jagcnet.army.mil/EthicsTraining
- DAU online courses: Overview of Acquisition Ethics (CLM 003); Ethics at Work (HBS 415) https://icatalog.dau.edu/onlinecatalog/tabnavcl.aspx
- Watching the 16-minute DAU online ethics video: https://media.dau.edu/media/Ethics+and+Leadership/0_1kc6s9ge/62925211
- Attending any installation or organizational judge advocate general-sponsored ethics training
- Army Office of General Counsel, Ethics and Fiscal – Annual Online Ethics Training: https://www.fdm.army.mil./documents/OnlineArmyEthicsTraining2020.pdf
All ethics training options for the AAW can be found on the Mandatory Annual Ethics Training memo located here: https://asc.army.mil/web/dacm-ethics-rqmnt-memo/
Additional Requirements:
Certification Requirement: If you are a new acquisition workforce member, you must be certified per the Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act (DAWIA) in your acquisition career field within 24 months of assignment. NOTE: Because of the COVID-19 implications, an extension to the 24-month grace period was granted to qualifying personnel. See details here:
https://asc.army.mil/web/usdas-and-dacm-memorandum-12-month-cert-extension-and-faq/
Individual Development Plan (IDP) Requirement: Acquisition personnel must review and update their IDP in the Career Acquisition Personnel and Position Information System (CAPPMIS) with their supervisor at least once every six months at https://apps.asc.army.mil/camp/.
More information on these requirements can be found in the AAW Standards memo: https://asc.army.mil/web/dacm-memo-fy20-army-acq-workforce-stnds/
SENIOR RATER POTENTIAL EVALUATION
The Senior Rater Potential Evaluation (SRPE) period is fast approaching. Since 2015, the SRPE has been required annually for GS-12 through GS-15 and pay band equivalent AAW professionals. Evaluations for this fiscal year cover 1 October 2019 through 30 September 2020 and senior raters must complete the SRPE by 31 December 2020. Now is a good time to check your IDP supervisor in CAPPMIS and ensure that information is correct. The Army DACM Office will release all annual SRPEs on or about 1 October 2020. Employees, raters and senior raters can find policies and guidance, videos, instructional briefings and a user manual on the website at: https://asc.army.mil/web/senior-rater-potential-evaluation/. If you’re brand new to the process, check out the live training tutorial within the SRPE module at: https://apps.asc.army.mil/camp/.
CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS TO THE 2020 MAJOR GENERAL HAROLD J. “HARRY” GREENE AWARDS FOR ACQUISITION WRITING COMPETITION
Now through September 30, submissions are being accepted for the seventh annual 2020 Major General Harold J. “Harry” Greene Awards for Acquisition Writing! If you or someone you know can answer MG Greene’s commonly asked question of: “What have you done for the Army today?”, then you may want to submit an application package to this prestigious award. The Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army (Acquisition, Logistics and Technology) (ASA(ALT)) sponsors this critical writing competition among members of the DoD acquisition workforce. Authors are required to select and write about U.S. Army Acquisition from the following categories: Acquisition Reform; Future Operations; Innovation; or Lessons Learned. The winners’ submissions will be published in a supplement publication to the Spring issue of Army AL&T magazine and receive awards at the annual U.S. Army Acquisition Executive’s Excellence in Leadership Awards ceremony in Washington, D.C.
The Principal Military Deputy to the ASA(ALT), Lt. Gen. Bob Marion officially announced the writing competition , emphasizing that “It is important that members of the acquisition workforce, as well as any interested individual, have this opportunity to drive the dialogue about meeting and overcoming challenges in delivering capabilities to warfighters,” For complete competition details, including the 2020 Writing Award Call to Submissions document, go to
ACQUISITION EDUCATION, TRAINING AND CAREER DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES
FY 21 PRODUCT DIRECTOR CENTRALIZED SELECTION BOARD
Open now through September 4, 2020, applications are being accepted to the FY21 Product Director Centralized Selection Board. Potential candidates are GS-14 and GS-15, DAWIA Level III Program Management certified Army acquisition workforce members. This board selects the best talent for the important leadership positions within the acquisition community. A list of FY21 Product Director positions can be found on the USAASC/Army DACM Office website: https://asc.army.mil/web/career-development/prod-dir/. Please note that the FY22 LTC/GS-14 Product Manager board is a completely separate board from the FY21 GS-14 Product Director board. Therefore, applicants need to apply to both boards to be considered by both boards.
DAU NEWS
FY21 DAU TRAINING INFORMATION
The 1st and 2nd Quarter FY 21 DAU training schedule was released on 27 August, 2020. There will be no resident (classroom) training through the end of this calendar year (1st Quarter). The DAU training schedule for the 3rd and 4th quarters of FY21 will be released on 26 January, 2021.
Due to reduced capacity, only Priority 1 students will receive a confirmed reservation, assuming they’ve met the prerequisite requirements and there are seats available. However, the Army DACM Office will waitlist all other student priority levels. For most classes, when there are still seats remaining 65 days (for Priority 2) and 40 days (for priority 3-5) prior to the class start date, the student will roll into a reservation and will be notified by email. Due to the late schedule release, the roll window for some Virtual Instructor-Led Training (VILT) courses in the first quarter will occur 17 days prior to the class start date.
As has always been the case, a non-priority 1 student may be bumped for a higher priority student up to 5 business days before the reservation cut-off or class start date, whichever is earlier.
To browse the DAU catalog, go to https://icatalog.dau.edu/.
DACM POLICY
ARMY ACQUISITION ADVANCED CIVIL SCHOOLING POLICY AND PROCEDURES
Effective August 19, 2020, an updated Advanced Civil Schooling (ACS) policy has been signed by the Director, Acquisition Career Management (DACM). This memorandum updates the responsibilities and outlines policy and procedures for Active Component Functional Area 51 (FA51) officer participation in the Department of the Army’s Advanced Civil Schooling (ACS) Program. For more information: INSERT URL TO POLICY HERE Visit the ACS website page here: https://asc.army.mil/web/career-development/programs/advanced-civil-schooling/
UPDATED STUDENT LOAN REPAYMENT PROGRAM POLICY
Effective July 31, 2020 the DACM signed an updated Student Loan Repayment Policy outlining roles, responsibilities, application and selection processes, funding, and other associated program requirements. The memo can be accessed on our Policy Library page at https://asc.army.mil/web/final-slrp-policy/. Visit the SLRP website page here: https://asc.army.mil/web/career-development/programs/student-loan-repayment-program/
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