COMMAND/ORGANIZATION: Army Contracting Command-Redstone Arsenal
TITLE: Lead contract specialist
YEARS OF SERVICE IN AAW WORKFORCE: 21
DAWIA CERTIFICATIONS: Contracting Professional
EDUCATION: B.S. in business management, Alabama A&M University
AWARDS: Army Acquisition Executive Leadership in Excellence Award (2025, 2024); Army Contracting Command-Redstone Arsenal Team of 3rd Quarter (2024); Secretary of the Army Civilian Service Commendation Medal (2023)
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Faces of the Force: Roland Carter
As a contracting officer, Roland Carter has demonstrated unwavering commitment to mission success and supporting the warfighter. He leads with determination, focus and a relentless drive to get the job done—no matter the challenge. Reflecting on the demands of his role, Carter says he “spent many days traveling, several weeks negotiating and even experienced some sleepless nights working late to ensure that the needs of the requiring activity in support of Soldiers were met.” Because that’s just how he rolls. “Seemingly impossible award schedules coupled with expiring funds have been known to increase even the most relaxed heart rate,” explained Carter. “Negotiations can seem endless as disagreements with the contractors and subcontractors force you to meditate. Workload increases as the workforce shrinks. Despite every obstacle, you continue to push through. You press forward and get the job done no matter what.”
Carter, who serves as a team lead contract specialist for Army Contracting Command-Redstone Arsenal (ACC-RSA), within the Tactical Missiles directorate, utilizes unlimited warranted signatory authority to enter contracts on behalf of the United States. Simply stated, he purchases all Javelin Weapon System components in support of the warfighter. “Despite some struggles, the greatest satisfaction in this career field is knowing that you planted a seed, watered it, pulled the weeds and stuck around to see the harvest,” Carter described. “When the hard work is complete, and you award a major acquisition after long arduous months and/or even years of rigid toil, you made it to what I call ‘contracting Christmas.’ Drinks are officially on me.”
WHEN AT THE PENTAGON - Carter, checking out the visitor’s room at the Pentagon, where he was honored to receive the Army Acquisition Executive Leadership in Excellence Award on January 9, 2024. (Photo provided by Roland Carter)
Carter’s 21-year career began shortly after graduating from college, when he was accepted into the Army Material Command Intern Program at the U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command.
“My first assignment as an intern was to procure spare parts for the Black Hawk [UH-60] and Chinook [CH-47] helicopters; during this period, I was ecstatic to simply have a promising career after much rejection,” Carter reflected. “Everything about the new career was fascinating to me. The basic activity of simply driving through the military installation’s gate each morning was surreal as a new employee. It finally started to look like my college degree had paid off. I finally had a little stability and could adequately provide for my children.” Over time, Carter began to seek more than just operational excellence—he craved growth. Weary of routine assignments, his motivation shifted from simply “being there” to taking on more challenging high-impact responsibilities. As his aspirations grew, he found that while formal training classes are valuable for transitioning, securing a mentor early in one’s career is just as vital to professional development and long-term success.
“I was blessed with more than one official mentor over the years who taught me the ropes. There are many unwritten rules and basic workplace etiquette that most new recruits are not fully aware of. There are certain situations that should be avoided and certain opportunities that one should pursue. Without a mentor, it may be hard for you to understand the questions of ‘how’ and ‘why’,” he said. “Sometimes we do things based on routine without understanding why we are doing that task. You absolutely cannot grow without understanding the questions of ‘how and why’. You must find your contracting Jedi.” Carter recalls one of his most memorable career development program experiences was a six-month Joint ACC-RSA/Program Executive Office (PEO) Broad-Based Training and Developmental Assignment, where he temporarily served as a contract analyst within the Missile and Space Directorate of the PEO. There he supported key aspects of the major portions of Hellfire and Longbow procurement programs and gained valuable insight into the acquisition process from the customer’s perspective. This experience increased awareness about various preliminary contracting activities that are not as visible within ACC-RSA. “I would highly encourage everyone that is able to learn both the customers’ side of the acquisition process in addition to the contracting command’s viewpoint. This is a program that needs a major reboot in today’s world.”
NECESSARY PREPARATIONS - Preparing Robyn’s Garden for the Big Spring Crush and Alabama Wine Festival in Harvest, Alabama on July 15, 2022. (Photo provided by Roland Carter)
Outside of work, Carter said he’s known as a professional winemaker within his local community. As the former owner of Robyn’s Garden Winery in Huntsville, Alabama, he won over 40 winemaking awards and was highlighted on AL.com and link.al.com, as well as featured in several local news stories. “I see a lot of similarities between wine making and the acquisition process. Both processes require the ability to follow concise guidelines in order to achieve the best results,” he related. “If a person was to miss just one simple step in either process, the outcome could be wasteful, costly and disastrous.” In addition, he said, both activities require a lot of patience. “You are not going to produce a great batch of wine in a day, week or a month. In fact, the best wines may take years to produce. Like wine making, the contracting process, in general, takes an immense amount of patience and absolutely does not happen in a day, week or month. Both processes virtually follow the same timelines and are subject to guidelines. When you follow both the wine making process as well as the acquisition procedures correctly, the final product is gratifying.”
Carter has learned over the course of his career that “life is short.” With over 20 years in the contracting field, he’s seen a lot of people come and go via retirement or other means of departure and watched the workplace “march on” as the workload of former employees was reassigned.
“While retirement can be a reason to celebrate, it may be difficult to process rare situations where individuals were not afforded the opportunity to reach their retirement age,” he said, so he tends to consider the workload and personal life balance before volunteering for something new on the job—unless “voluntold.” And he tries to schedule all “use or lose” vacation time at the beginning of the year, to ensure that family life is considered in addition to work-related deadlines.
“It’s great to be known as a top performer on the job. Receiving praise can be addictive. It feels good to be needed,” but, he said, “the ambition at work should not be at the expense of neglecting priceless personal/family moments outside of work that add value to life’s story. The office will move on, but your limited time on earth is priceless. As the elders say, ‘Work hard, play hard’.”
“Faces of the Force” highlights the success of the Army Acquisition Workforce through the power of individual stories. Profiles are produced by the Army AL&T magazine team, working closely with public affairs officers to feature Soldiers and civilians serving in various Army acquisition disciplines. For more information, or to nominate someone, go to https://asc.army.mil/web/publications/army-alt-submissions/.
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