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New program reintroduces career series to command

By Ryan Mattox, Mission and Installation Contracting Command Public Affairs OfficeJanuary 11, 2017

New program reintroduces career series to command
Renee Burek, left, discusses the 1105 career series program with Kim Wentrcek at the Mission and Installation Contracting Command, or MICC, on Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston, Texas. Burek is the 1105 program coordinator for the MICC, and Wen... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-FORT SAM HOUSTON, Texas (Dec. 22, 2015) -- A new program is being developed to reintroduce a career series to assist contracting offices with their workload to support the Mission and Installation Contracting Command's, or MICC's, 2025 transformation.

The MICC Contracting Operations Directorate, which stood up in August as part of the MICC 2025 transformation, is developing the Purchasing Agent, also known by its job series 1105, Career Series Program, to ensure these individuals receive a newcomer's orientation, knowledge and skills to become proficient in their jobs.

The program will fall under the umbrella of the newly created MICC Academy. A guide for simplified acquisition procedures, a utilization plan and training course materials will be developed for those in the 1105 series. The program also assists field offices with the integration of this new career series in their workflow process.

"We know we cannot just bring in all of these 1105 into the workforce without educating them," said Brig. Gen. Jeffrey Gabbert, the MICC commanding general. "This program is designed so as soon as they graduate from this program they will have all the basic tools to perform contracting actions like simple buys and reverse auctions. They will know the basic building blocks to support the organization."

Renee Burek, the 1105 program coordinator for the MICC, is responsible for facilitating the program, inspiring collaboration and encouraging effective communication. Burek will oversee any Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act certification and training, forecast funding for training requirements, track any issues or trends for command resolution and be available to conduct one-on-one career development guidance.

The establishment of a program coordinator provides new employees in the 1105 career series with a person at MICC headquarters to assist them with career development needs.

Program officials are re-engineering the processes and procedures to ensure standardization and efficiency for simplified processes and simplified acquisition procedures, or SAP. MICC officials are gathering information and looking at areas where simplified acquisition procedures have become overly complicated.

"We have received feedback from the field offices of areas under SAP that have become overly complicated," Burek said. "We want to make sure the training is based upon standardized minimum requirements. We will need to ensure these minimum requirements are agreed to by the entire MICC enterprise to ensure proper standards are applied to contract management reviews."

The program will include a utilization plan to assist with position management of the reintroduction of the 1105 series. The utilization plan will include core competencies that are required for each of the target grades.

"It is critical to demonstrate growth in knowledge and capability through the grade structure," said Maureen Huston, the lead procurement analyst at MICC on Fort Hood, Texas. "We want to be able to use this series to its utmost. Well-trained 1105s not only get the simplified acquisition procedure mission done but also allow more 1102s to be available for higher dollar value, complex source selections."

Program course developers are creating training course materials to support the development of the first-year acquisition worker. Some material was gathered from other federal agencies for training, and based on agreed standards, to develop other 1105 training courses. The aim of the training is to provide practical training for entry-level individuals before entry into the workforce. The MICC has 73 individuals in the 1105 career series and a goal to have 180 across the command.

"One of the training initiatives is to depict the workflow visually displaying how the work product is accomplished utilizing the multitude of system applications and tools," said David Westfall, a contracting officer at MICC on Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. "The objective of this initiative is to provide our new 1105 personnel with an easy to understand graphic guide, which has been developed in large part by Sgt. 1st Class David Archibald of the 735th Contracting Team - to assist them in their first year of development. It should serve as an introductory guide to our common acquisition systems, and assist them in getting acclimated to their new work environment."

Headquartered on Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston, the MICC is made up of more than 1,500 military and civilian members responsible for contracting for Soldiers. In fiscal 2015, the command executed more than 36,000 contract actions valued at more than $5.2 billion across the Army, including $2.25 billion to American small businesses. The command also managed more than 600,000 Government Purchase Card Program transactions in fiscal 2015 valued at an additional $747 million.

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