Procurement Countdown Winter 2007/08 No. 134

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

The New GuyWhen Bill McNally walked

into the Office of Procurement asthe new Assistant Administrator(AA), he was in an unusualposition. He was the new kid.Sure, he’s an experience procure-ment professional who hastouched some of the mostinteresting programs in thegovernment. Sure, he’s worked onone of NASA’s most importantundertakings of all time, the“Vision for Space Exploration.”As the Special ProcurementAdvisor in the ExplorationsSystems Mission Directorate(ESMD), he worked with theOffice of Procurement at Head-quarters as well as contractingpersonnel at some of the Centers.For all of that, he walked in thatfirst day to an organization thatwas made up of people who knewtheir jobs and did them, but theydidn’t know him.

Whey Sheryl Goddard wasthe Acting AA, she had been aprocurement analyst and adivision director within the office.Everyone knew her and she kneweveryone. When Tom Luedtkebecame the AA, he had been adivision director and then thedeputy AA. Everyone knew himand he knew everyone.

Then, Bill walked in. Hedidn’t know most of the peopleand most of them didn’t knowhim. It could have been a veryuncomfortable position foreveryone. Bill made sure it wasn’t.He told people right away that he

had things he wanted to accom-plish. Then he tempered it byletting them know he wasn’tgoing to arbitrarily change things.He was going to listen to people.He wanted to understand whythings were done the way theywere. If it turned out the current

way was better, he was going toleave it alone. By sharing thatinsight, he turned a tense situationinto a constructive one.

If you want to understandBill, the most important thing toknow is that he loves a challenge.That could be the result of hisNew York City upbringing andhis die-hard love of the Yankees.Whatever caused it, he has put itto good use throughout the years.

THE SPACE BUG

When Bill graduated fromcollege, he joined the Air Force.His first job, at Vandenberg AirForce Base, started him on thepath that would eventually lead toNASA. During his time atVandenberg, he saw the space

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experience up close. Bill was acontract administrator andindustrial specialist to the Atlasprogram. He said it was a greatexperience because it was “hands-on” work on a program that waslaunching rockets. He wasn’tsitting in an office far removedfrom the missions. He was rightthere. The space bug bit him hard.It made him want to work forNASA, but that was still yearsaway.

After four years atVandenberg, the Air Force chosehim for an educational trainingprogram working in industry. Hetook off his uniform, put on asuit, and became a contractor. Hewasn’t an observer, he worked.During the months he was there,he wrote proposals, foundcontracts for his company,worked packages, and muchmore. He said the experience wasreally fascinating. It gave himpractical knowledge of howcontractors worked and why theydid what they did. That knowl-edge would prove invaluablewhen he returned to the AirForce and throughout his career.

In looking back, Bill thinksone of the most importantprograms he worked on duringhis Air Force career was theStrategic Defense InitiativeProgram (SDI), also known asStar Wars. That is because of thesuccess of the early technology

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projects. They demonstrated that amissile defense system was achiev-able and so helped bring about thefall of the Soviet Union.

According to Bill, part of thegreat thing about SDI was it gavehim a chance to work with distin-guished leaders like GeneralAbramson, who went on to run theSpace Shuttle office in its earlydays. Today, General Abramson isa member of the NASA AdvisoryCouncil. While Bill was the Direc-tor of Technology Contracts atSDI, he worked with the Directorof Technology, a man named MikeGriffin. Working at SDI was aturning point in Bill’s career. Itreignited his love of space andworking on space projects.

Bill continued to work onspace-related contracting through-out the rest of his military career.In 2003, he retired from the Air

Force but wasn’t ready to stayhome playing golf. For one thing,life was too interesting. Foranother, one of his two sons wasstill at home getting ready forcollege. Bill went back to industrywhere, among his other jobs, heprovided consulting advice toNASA as part of the ExplorationSystems Architecture Study. Thatled to his changing from contractorto civil servant when, in 2005, hebecame the Special ProcurementAdvisor in the ESMD. He wasthere until he became the AssistantAdministrator for Procurement inSeptember.

Bill is as excited about workingat NASA as he was when hedreamed about doing it. He lovesthe procurement challenges itbrings. According to Bill, “Thereare always exciting and difficultthings to do at NASA, especially

now.” He continued, “NASA hasthree incredibly hard jobs rightnow, ending the Shuttle, continuingto build the Space Station, andstarting a whole new project to getus to the Moon and beyond.”

One of those alone would bechallenge enough. The threecombined keep NASA personnelworking at a fever pitch. Bill thriveson it. He says that working atNASA, in some ways, reminds himof working at the Strategic DefenseInitiative. As with SDI then, NASAhas challenging work, does thingsthat have never been done before,and has world class people whobelieve in the programs andflourish doing the work.

It’s been a long journey fromthe time the space bug bit BillMcNally. But he’ll be the first tosay that the trip getting here wasgreat, and it has been well worththe wait.

A Few Things to Know About Your New AA

The New Guy

Never call him Mr. McNally. It is always Bill, except when he signs official documents. Then it isWilliam P. McNally.

Bill sees us as an Agency, not as separate Centers. He wants all of us to work together.

Bill expects to work with all of the procurement people at NASA. He wants interaction back as well. Hewants to see improved communication between people wherever there is a barrier.

If you have questions that can’t be answered in your organization, Bill wants you to contact a procure-ment analyst at Headquarters. Ask questions, ask for clarifications. We’re here to help.

Bill believes that while Headquarters is important, the Centers are critical. They write the contracts, notHeadquarters. They are living the issues real time while Headquarters is providing guidance. As Bill said, the

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Centers are the “spear of our sword.”

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People on theMove

ARC

The Ames Acquisition Officecontinues to go through variouspersonnel changes as people moveinto and out of the division.

Congratulations: Thefollowing individuals receivedpromotions in 2007: RhondaBaker, Patricia Hudson, MarianneShelley, Rachel Khattab, StarrStrong, Robin Wong, JanessaLangford, Veronica Llamas, andJustin Pane. The following indi-viduals were selected as the 2007Ames Acquisition Division PeerAward winners: Patricia Hudson,Joanne Comstock, and MarianneShelley. Dee Morrison, AmesProcurement Officer, received anAmes Honor Award. Dee wasnominated and selected under theSupervisor/Manager category.Veronica Llamas, Ames contractspecialist, was selected for theNASA Foundations of Influence,Relationship, Success, and Team-work (FIRST) Program. This is adevelopmental program that aimsto cultivate a community ofprospective future leaders so thatthey will have a full understandingof the Agency’s vision and missionareas.

Farewell: The Ames Acquisi-tion Division said farewell toseveral individuals during the 2007calendar year as a result of retire-ments or other career choices.These individuals had madesignificant contributions to theNASA mission and had beenmembers of the NASA acquisitionfamily for numerous years. The2007 retirees were Charlie Ady and

Robert Guerrero. Both menworked primarily on the facilitiesconstruction program in recentyears. Additional losses includedGail Woll, Carlos Torrez, andRhonda Baker who are pursuingother career options but remainwith NASA Ames. Hanan Kim alsoleft the division to pursue a privatesector position in Southern Califor-nia. We will miss these individualsimmensely but wish them goodluck in their new endeavors.

New Faces: We are veryfortunate to have been able to pickup some talented contract special-ists from other agencies. We wouldlike to welcome the following 2007additions to the Ames Acquisitionteam: Trupti Sanghani, CoastGuard; Manny Herrada, DoD;Elisban Rodriguez, DoD; Justin

Pane, DoD; and Ameka Chapman,NMO. Both Justin and Ameka areformer NCIP interns who didrotations with Ames. We welcomethem back. We would also like towelcome the following co-opinterns who joined the program in2007: Christine Benavides, Melissalyn Perkins, andRachel Jandron.

GRC

Congratulations: Contractspecialist, Tim Pierce, GRCProcurement Division, received anExceptional Service Medal this pastsummer. Over the past three years,he has awarded and supported thetwo largest onsite support servicecontracts – TIALS (Technical,

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The Peopleon the Movecolumn onlyincludes thosenames thatwere submit-ted to theProcurementCountdown. Ifyou knowpeople whoshould belisted in thiscolumn,contact yourcenterProcurementCountdownpoint ofcontact, orsend thenames to theeditor, SusieMarucci, on(202) 358-1896, or viaemail atsusie.marucci@nasa.gov.

Thank You, SherylAs all of you know, the Office of Procurement has gone

through some pretty big changes this year. Bill McNally is now theAssistant Administrator for Procurement. Tom Luedtke is theAssociate Administrator for Institutions and Management. Be-tween Tom’s leaving and Bill’s coming on board Sheryl Goddardstepped up to the plate and ran the Agency’s procurement organi-zation.

When Tom Luedtke was promoted, Sheryl was tapped to bethe Acting Assistant Administrator. She had been a divisiondirector for less than a year. The job would be a big challenge foranyone. With little warning or time to prepare, Sheryl sat in the bigchair. She kept the Office of Procurement stable during an un-stable time. She had a full plate while in the job. She was theDeputy Chief Acquisition Officer. She worked closely with ESMD.She ran Procurement Management Surveys. She did so muchmore. Her work as the Acting AA was critical to NASA.

Sheryl did a terrific job. In September, she handed over asmoothly running organization to Bill McNally.

Sheryl, thank you for everything you did as the Acting Assis-tant Administrator for Procurement. The personal sacrifices youmade and the long hours you put in are very much appreciated.

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Information, Administration, andLogistics Services) and GESS-2(Glenn Engineering & ScientificServices). Tim has demonstrated anability to adapt to change bymaking a successful transition tothe new Procurement System, theContract Management Module(CMM). Tim is one of thedivision’s most frequent users ofCMM. He has processed more than700 contract actions in the systemsince it went live in November2006. Tim has been at NASA formore than 16 years. During thattime, he has demonstrated acontinued commitment to supportthe procurement mission, themission of the Glenn ResearchCenter, and above all the missionof NASA. Saundra Gage wasselected as the NASA GrantsSpecialist of the Year. Saundra wasrecognized by Tom Luedtke at theProcurement Training ConferenceAwards dinner in Long Beach, CA,last December. Over the past year,she has worked as a member of theCMM Templates team. She hasalso supported a design review ofthe NSSC grants award andtransition process and successfullyawarded the OAI ConsolidatedCooperative Agreement. She hasdone all of this while maintainingher many other normal grants andcontract responsibilities. Saundrahas demonstrated a continuedcommitment to support theprocurement mission, the missionof the Glenn Research Center andabove all the mission of NASA.The GRC Procurement Division isproud of these award winners andlooks forward to their continuedsuccess!

Farewell: Gary Golinskiretired after 34 years in Procure-ment, 29 of which were with

NASA. Gary began his career atthe Defense Electronics SupplyCenter in Dayton, OH. While atGRC, he made contributions tomajor programs such as the LaunchVehicles program and the HighSpeed Research program. Heserved as the contract specialist forNASA’s first Science Institute andthe National Center for Micrograv-ity Research. Gary accepted aposition with Highland Software,Westlake, OH, as the GovernmentContracts Administrator. Althoughwe were sad to see him go, we areexcited for the new opportunitieshis position will bring and wish himthe best!

GSFC

GSFC employees are beingrecognized and on the move. Thiswas a stellar year of recognition forour procurement staff. We areproud of the following awards andhonors recipients.

Congratulations: The follow-ing employees were recognized bythe Center for their outstandingcontributions as follows: LaShawnDavis, Diversity Enhancement;Cindy Stoltz, Outstanding Leader-ship; Delia Robey, OutstandingManagement; and the SpaceSciences Simplified AcquisitionTeam, Exceptional Achievement.The following personnel have beennominated for NASA Headquar-ters Medals: Tom Russell, Excep-tional Achievement Medal; HettieCourtney Outstanding LeadershipMedal; and Delma Moore, Excep-tional Service Medal. Michele Rookand Michelle Padfield were chosenfor Space Flight Awareness LaunchHonoree Awards. Lorrie Eakin wasselected for the Center’s Project

Management Development Enter-prise program. PMDE is a develop-mental program established byCenter management that providesthe work experiences, training,guidance, and direction necessaryfor selected technical and profes-sional administrative personnel toassume key management positions.The following people receivedManagement Operations Director-ate Awards: Teresa Anthony, ChrisWhyte, Laurie Friederich, LaShawnDavis, Sandy Bruce, Lee Cetorelli,Delia Robey, Anetra Tucker,Veronica Okai, and the WallopsProcurement Office. The followingindividuals were promoted toContract Specialist: Diana Jester,Cheryl Johnson, Yolanda Williams,Keisha Eldridge, Jonnelle Goff,Monica Price, Carol Dibble, andJennifer Perez. The followingindividuals were promoted toSenior Contract Specialist: RicardaMason, Jonas McNair, BrendaGreen, Geoff Sage, DarleneDorsey, Jim Jones, JonathonWingerberg, Natesa Robinson, andJennifer O’Connell. MichelleConnerton was promoted to SeniorContracting Officer.

Farewell: The GSFC procure-ment family wishes the best to thefollowing employees: AndrewDennis left Wallops and went toKSC. Jolyn Nace is on a detail toPublic Affairs. Rachel McIntyrewent to Treasury. Lisa Martin wentto the Air Force. Klaus Sextonwent to Homeland Security. DorisWood went to the White House.Susan Richards went to NASAHeadquarters. Ray James Sisneroswent to the Department of Energy.Anetra Tucker went to PublicAffairs.

New Faces: The GSFCprocurement family welcomes the

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People on the Move

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following new hires: Audie Chesleyfrom FEMA, Carlene Jackson fromDOT/FTA, Karen Weaver fromNASA Headquarters, TheresePatterson from the Air Force,Marybeth Evans from privateindustry, Sislyn Barrett from theDC Government, Denise Byrdfrom private industry, LoisMcDuffee from NIH, Erika Eamfrom Department of Justice, andLisa Mullen from private industry.Welcome to the following co-opstudents: Donald Gray, HowardUniversity; Gustavo Malagon,Interamerican University; AshleyMcQueen, University of Maryland;and Tracie Hill, Bowie StateUniversity. Welcome to thefollowing people who are here ondetail: Torey Stevenson from ourRegional Finance Office, GretaMcCommas from our SpaceSciences Directorate, Linda Garufi,Rogenia Burton-Pendergast, andKathi Thomas all from our Engi-neering Directorate.

This information is updated byWanda Behnke and located on theGSFC Procurement OperationsDivision website at http://code210.gsfc.nasa.gov.

HQ

Congratulations: Ron Criderand Jeff Lupis were recipients ofthe 2007 Headquarters HonorAwards. Jerry Edmond, MonicaManning, Mary Stevens, and KenSateriale were chosen for SpaceFlight Awareness Launch HonoreeAwards.

Farewell: Lou Becker of theContract Management Division hasleft the Office of Procurement tobecome the new Assistant Admin-istrator for the Office of InternalControls and Management Sys-tems. We miss him already.

New Faces: RosaliaToberman is temporarily with theOffice of Procurement as part ofher Leadership DevelopmentProgram until the end of January.

JSC

Congratulations: DawnAlexander has been chosen to serveas the procurement lead on theAgency-wide NASA ProtectiveServices SEB being conducted atKSC. Billy Autry was named theDeputy Manager of the Policy andSystems Office. Mary Kincaid wasnamed Deputy Manager of theInstitutional Procurement Office.Joe Campbell was selected as ateam lead at the White Sands TestFacility (WSTF) Office. KrystineBui was selected as team lead in theShuttle Procurement Office. LarryKenyon graduated from theLeadership Development Program.Jeff Cullen recently returned from asix-month rotation at the JetPropulsion Laboratory as part ofhis Senior Executive Service CareerDevelopment Plan. Wendy Stonewas chosen for NASA’s Founda-tion of Influence, Relationships,Success, and Teamwork (FIRST)Program. Last year’s graduate ofthe FIRST program was IreneGarcia of WSTF.

Farewell: Michael Ballard,Josh Soto, Colleen Burns, DavidWaterson, and Aaron Eason wholeft NASA to pursue other oppor-tunities.

New Faces: MichaelDuckworth and Roger Robertsjoined the Procurement Office.

LARC

Farewell: Lee Nadeau acontract specialist at LaRC for sixyears is now at the Center forDisease Control and Prevention in

Atlanta, GA. Charles Wingate acontract specialist at LaRC for alittle over a year is now at GSA inAtlanta, GA.

New Faces: Daphne Dardencame to LaRC in December 2006from Supervisor of Shipbuilding,Conversion and Repair, UnitedStates Navy (SUPSHIP, NewportNews). She is a price analyst in theBusiness Management branch. FranRisinger came to LaRC in April2007 from the National Transpor-tation Safety Board. She is in theCenter Operations branch. ShaneKram came to LaRC in April 2007from Jefferson Labs. He is in theResearch and Projects Contractingbranch. Drena McIntosh came toLaRC in September 2007 from theAir Force Acquisition Management& Integration Center (AMIC). Sheworks in the Center Operationsbranch. Octavia Hicks came toLaRC in January 2007 from the AirForce Flight Test Center. She is inthe Center Operations branch.Sylvia Small came to LaRC in April2007 from SUPSHIP, NewportNews. She is in the Center Opera-tions branch. Temple Moore is aCooperative Education Studentcurrently attending Thomas NelsonCommunity College. She supportsthe Center Operations branch.

NMO

Congratulations: Congratula-tions to the following people whowere recently promoted: CheryllWilliams, Gabriel Romero, andRebecca Wilkinson.

Farewell: Ameka Chapman,who has returned to Ames Re-search Center; and Ron Sepesi, theActing NMO Procurement Officer,who has returned to Glenn Re-search Center.

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During the courses offered atGoddard in July 2007 and Langleyin September 2007, Aeronauticsand Astronautics were presented byAir Force Academy instructors.They not only knew the material,they lived it. Anyone who can takeconcepts as complex as fluiddynamics and orbital physics andrender them sensible to a contract-ing-type truly “gets it.” Not onlydid the instructors exemplifymastery of the concepts, but theyalso brought energy and excitement

which infected the students. Theyprovided a wealth of informationand initiated thought-provokingdiscussions on aeronautics andspace flight which left the non-technical students with a betterunderstanding of and appreciationfor NASA’s core competencies.

So what will the non-engineersget from the course that you can’tget from watching the DiscoveryChannel? One thing is the sense ofconnection. The course is what it isbecause NASA is what it is … whatwe are. The sometimes agonizingculture of open discussion andquestioning authority hits homewhen a group of dedicated engi-neers and scientists, all committedto a successful mission, disagree. Itis within this crucible, through the

Foundations of Aerospace — By Ron Backes, HQ Analysis Division and Don Moses, HQ Program Operations Division

NASA is truly an amazingAgency to work for. There are fewagencies, and few careers, whereyou find a predominance of peoplewho are dedicated to what they dosimply because they love it.Whether you are driven by a loveof science, exploration, or justbuilding high-tech stuff andsending it up strapped to rocketswith thousands of pounds ofthrust, there are few other organi-zations in the world that offer whatNASA offers. How do you adaptto a career at NASA? What is themagic formula for success?

The Foundations of Aerospace(FoA) course, the introductorycourse to the Academy of Pro-gram/Project & EngineeringLeadership (APPEL) curriculum, isa course that helps to answer thosequestions and gives participants ataste of what NASA is about. TheFoA course provides a basicunderstanding of program andproject management at NASA.Attended by NASA engineers andthose who support them, the FoAcourse is geared for new hires, bothtechnical and non-technical. Thetwo-week course focuses onproviding participants with the “bigpicture” overview of NASA, itsgovernance model and operations,and basic concepts of aeronauticsand astronautics.

The FoA course containsmuch more. The topics range froman overview of NASA history,Mission Directorates, and theorganization of NASA, to funda-mental communication and teambuilding skills. Presenters withinthe FoA course include top NASAleadership and world-renownedexperts from outside NASA.

intense communication and teamdynamics, that NASA’s reputationfor excellence is nurtured. Byunderstanding this dynamic and thetension that underlies it you gain adeeper appreciation for the needsand drives of our customers. Youwill feel a closer connection to thepulse of NASA.

INVESTING WISELY

As with any great and nobleendeavor, the return is proportionalto the investment. In preparationfor the FoA course, you will begiven prework: interview threeexperienced engineers and write aone-page report on why they choseNASA, what they wish they knewwhen they started, and what theywould impart to a new employee.NASA has some of the mostbrilliant minds of today and mostof them are approachable. Duringone pre-work interview, Dr. DonYeomans, senior research scientistand Manager for the Near-EarthObject Program at the Jet Propul-sion Laboratory, related his passionfor working here at NASA. “Todayyou can either look down to thebottom of the oceans or upwardand outward,” he said. “The lovefor exploration, for trying newconcepts, expanding the edge ofknowledge, it is in my blood. If youfind something that you love to do,you will work harder at it, and yourdevotion will ensure your success.”With regard to the second pre-work interview question, “whatthey wish they knew when theystarted,” the consensus amongNASA engineers interviewed wasto have had a better understandingof the NASA “big picture” earlierin their careers. This would have

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helped more than having “tunnelvision” and being strictly taskfocused. The advice they wouldprovide new hires is to advancetheir technical, communication,and management skills; be sure tonetwork, take advantage of theexpertise around them; and work indifferent areas while stayingfocused on the NASA “big pic-ture.” This type of insight can beobtained before setting foot in theclassroom.

PROBLEM SOLVING

Communication and team-building exercises pepper the two-week course. In one exercise, youare given the challenge of prioritiz-ing the objectives for an interna-tional organization. Many peoplewill likely jump right in and work tosolve the world’s problems andpossibly miss the point. It is easierto solve problems than to step backand look at the process you use toreach the solution. It seems like it isslowing you down, but investingthe time to plan and understand theprocess results in better solutionsand often saves time. However, itisn’t easy. When a group of brilliantscientists, engineers, and procure-ment professionals all short-circuita discussion because of pressure tomake the 45-minute deadlineimposed by the facilitator, thelesson becomes clear: What wouldyou do if the pressure were more“real?” What if you were the soledissenting voice standing between alaunch/no-launch decision? Part ofthe experience was to recognizeyour personal shortcomings. It isnever a comfortable experience but

achieving that realization in a“safe” environment is invaluable.

So what can you do with thisprecious insight and knowledge?You may not be recognized as thisgeneration’s Isaac Newton, but youmay benefit from a deeper appre-ciation of what NASA is all about.You may come to know NASA’s“heart and mind.” You may beginto understand that what appears tobe a convoluted and self-defeatingdecision-making process stems

from a unique culture and set ofvalues. You may come to under-stand the composite of programsand projects that make the Agencyspecial. You may gain an apprecia-tion for what drives your custom-ers. By grasping the basic conceptsof Aeronautics and Astronautics,you may really be able to spellNASA.

There is no magic formula forsuccess at NASA. Certain elements,however, are essential to enjoying asuccessful career. The FoA coursehighlights three. First, to besuccessful you must diversify yourexperience. Operational experienceand support to projects andprograms provides a sound founda-tion. They will reward you with apersonal sense of satisfaction andaccomplishment. Once you

establish your technical reputation,seek to broaden your experience toinclude other Centers and Head-quarters. Second, NASA is acollection of highly intelligentscientists, engineers, and profes-sionals. Network with similarly-minded colleagues and exploretogether. Be a team player, collabo-rate with others, and build strongpersonal relationships across theAgency and across your field.Don’t get caught up in the way youwould have decided something.Voice your opinion, even dissentup the chain as necessary. How-ever, once a decision is made,support it. Don’t undermine adecision from within just becauseyou would have done it differently.Finally, find something you love atNASA and do it over and overagain.

In sharing our thoughts onsuccess along with our experienceat FoA, we highly recommend thecourse to procurement staff. Youwill gain a “foundation” of pro-gram and project management atNASA, a deeper understanding ofNASA’s Mission and Vision forSpace Exploration, an enhancedability to communicate customerneeds, and a “launch pad” forsuccess at NASA. The coursetargets new NASA employees(tenured five years or less) but maybe beneficial to longer tenuredemployees as well. Anyone inter-ested in FoA can login to theSATERN website and view thecourse description, check out theschedule, and register at https://satern.nasa.gov/elms/learner/login.jsp.

Foundations for Success

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My Move to the Big CityBy Ann Sharpe, HQ Program Operations Division

For many years, my career goalwith the Federal Government hadbeen to take a position in theWashington, DC, area. There is somuch history in DC and its localcommuting area. So much to seeand do, so many theaters, muse-ums, civil-war battlefields, historicalhomes, etc., etc., the list is all butendless. Now, that I have met mygoal and have hands-on knowledgeof the area, the list grows everlonger and longer of things I neverknew existed.

My career with the FederalGovernment began with the Navy.While working for the Office ofNaval Research detachmentslocated at Stennis Space Center,with the Naval Ocean Research &Development Activity and then forthe Naval Research Laboratory, Ihad many occasions to travel toDC. However, they were neverlong enough. These short businesstrips were just long enough tospark my interests in the area.

My career began as a procure-ment clerk. I took advantage of theeducational opportunities throughthe Navy. At times, I attendedcollege full-time at night andworking full-time during the day. Iwas able to obtain a BS degree, anda Masters’ degree. I then workedtoward a Doctorate. As my educa-tion level grew, so did my career –until I reached a career ceiling withthe Navy’s procurement organiza-tion at Stennis. But, I simplycouldn’t let that stop me. Thatwasn’t where I intended my careerto end.

GOING TO NASA

Career advancements in thesame location, on-site at Stennis,

soon materialized as opportunitiesbecame available at NASA. In1999, I was hired by the NASA/Stennis’ Procurement Office aspolicy analyst, procurement-cardcoordinator, training coordinator,and ISO 9000 coordinator. Iworked other areas including IEMPand activities that were not directlyhands-on procurement. As myinterests and involvement in NASAgrew, so did my career. Soon I was

the Contracting Officer responsiblefor the Space Shuttle Program’stest firing of the shuttle’s mainengines. This was a dynamic, dreamjob – and, what a team I work with– the COTRs, the program andproject managers, the contract’smanagement personnel! Workingtogether, truly as a team, our workflowed like it never had before –meeting crucial deadlines andstaying within the contract’s costlimitations. Actually being therewhen engines were being tested,watching the ‘fire and smoke,’ thenwatching shuttles lift-offs – know-ing I was a part of these historicalendeavors – I’ll always rememberthese activities and the people. I’malready sharing these memorieswith my grandchildren. Yet, asgreat as this was, there was stillsomething missing.

THE NSSC

While still a CO with theshuttle program, I was heavily

involved with the NASA SharedServices Center (NSSC) from thevery beginning. Two years prior toNSSC’s “go-live,” I was on theNSSC Procurement Transitionteam and later with its change team.There were opportunities forfurther career advancements withthis exciting new entity from theground floor. I could be a part of itand, hopefully, make a difference.Best of all, Stennis was selected asthe site where the NSSC would bebuilt. I was the second procure-ment person hired by the NSSC.All on one location, onsite atStennis, I had managed to progressfrom an entry level procurementclerk to a CO. I loved my job asCO over the NSSC’s A-76 awardedcontract – NASA’s first public-private competition. It was theheart of the NSSC. I was therewhile the NSSC became a realityand grew and while over 300contractor and governmentpersonnel were hired. Yet, therewas still something missing that Ilonged to accomplish.

In 2006, an announcement forpositions at NASA HeadquartersOffice of Procurement was re-leased. This was what I’d beenlooking for. This had been my goalfrom years back. This was myopportunity to move to the big city,full of history, full of so much tosee and do. Even better, this wasmy opportunity to work in theHeadquarters Office of Procure-ment, side-by-side with people I’dknown and worked remotely withfor years.

HAVING IT ALL

I had always secretly beencurious about the aspects of NASA

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A New Position Leads to Positive ResultsBy Deborah Ford, Langley Research Center

In February 2004, seniorleadership at NASA LangleyResearch Center (LaRC) met toformulate the actions necessary torealign LaRC with President Bush’snew Vision for Space Exploration.In order to achieve this focus, eightmultidisciplinary teams wereformed to look at both technicaland institutional issues. One of theeight teams formed was the CultureChange team. The team focused onissues in the areas of values,leadership, communication,becoming a learning organization,and simplifying our internalprocesses by making them morecustomer-focused and user-friendly. The Culture Change teamworking with the Business Pro-cesses, Tools, and Techniques teamidentified the simplified acquisitionprocess as a candidate for processimprovement.

One recommendation from theteam was the implementation of anew position titled PR Screener.That is my job. The goal of thisposition is to provide as muchconsistency as possible to theprocess by having a main point ofentry for all commercial purchaserequisitions entering the LaRCOffice of Procurement. The mainduty of the screener is to ensurethat a complete and usable pro-curement package accompanies thePR. If the package is incomplete ormissing supporting documentation,the PR is returned to the end userand PR initiator so that correct oradditional data can be sent throughthe SAP/CMM process. Thescreener is also a focal point forquestions or for reviewing docu-ments before they are submitted

with PRs. As the PR Screener, Ihave begun outreach efforts bymeeting with small groups of PRinitiators (normally at the branchlevel) and answering questionsabout the procurement process.Feedback is helpful in understand-ing the customers’ frustrations.

In a recent meeting with ourlargest directorate at the Center,one topic of discussion was solesource justifications. The initiators

explained their frustration when aPR is rejected because the solesource justification was not ac-cepted. After explaining anddefining a sole source, many feltthat they finally understood whatwe were looking for in the justifica-tion and what truly made a solesource procurement. The PRScreener is also the CO for thesimplified acquisition buyers of allrequirements less than $50K. AsCO, I reviewed and signed over500 awards during 2007.

CHALLENGES ANDREWARDS

The largest obstacle in thisposition is communication withcustomers. This is why the trainingwe conduct and phone calls andemails we receive are so important.The more explanations andknowledge that we give the cus-tomers, the more they understand

our process, and ultimately they areable to give us what we need inorder to meet their requirements.

Since this position was createdin January 2007 and working withcustomers commenced, thenumber of incomplete procure-ment packages has dropped from80 percent to 50 percent. It contin-ues to decline. Our lead timescontinue to improve. The majorityof our procurements under $50Kare made within the establishedlead times. This can be attributedto the fact that our buyers are nowreceiving complete and usableprocurement packages at thebeginning of the process. Previ-ously, they would often have towait for the required documentsfrom the end users even after thePRs had been received in Procure-ment.

Overall, the position hasevolved since January. For ex-ample, providing guidance to theSimplified Acquisition Buying teamhas become a significant part of thejob. I also perform duties rangingfrom something as simple assigning shipping documents toreviewing license agreements. Inmy opinion (and I don’t say thisbecause it is my job), this positionis a very valuable part of the teamin Procurement as it enables otherparts of the office to function moresmoothly and meet the expecta-tions and needs of our customers.

What’What’What’What’What’s it all about:s it all about:s it all about:s it all about:s it all about:

Winter 2007/08 page 10

The NASA Management OfficeEverything You Ever Wanted to Know About the NMO but WereAfraid to Ask…

WHERE IS THE NASA MANAGEMENT OFFICE?

Getting the Job Done:Getting the Job Done:Getting the Job Done:Getting the Job Done:Getting the Job Done:

Jet Propulsion Laboratory Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory

The sun seldom sets on us. The NMO is a NASA Headquarters resident organization providing contractmanagement, oversight, and liaison support for Headquarters at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, CA,and at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (JHU/APL) in Laurel, MD. We maintain directcommunication between Headquarters and JPL as well as between Headquarters and JHU/APL.

WHO WORKS AT THE NMO?

The NMO is staffed by NASA Headquarters civil servants. We are led by our Director, Dr. Eugene Trinh. Dr.Trinh is a former astronaut who conducted physics experiments on the United States Microgravity Laboratory-1(USML-1) Spacelab mission (STS-50) in 1992.

There are 28 staff members sited at our two locations: three at APL and 25 at JPL. Our staff includes a mix oftechnical personnel, environmental specialists, property managers, legal staff, and Contracting Officers.

The Contracts Management Section makes up half of the NMO staff with 14 employees currently. We have aProcurement Officer, ten warranted Contracting Officers (including a procurement analyst), a business systemsanalyst, a program analyst, and a secretary.

WHAT KIND OF ACTIVITIES DOES THE NMO PROCUREMENT OFFICE PERFORM?

The contracts’ staff works cradle-to-grave contracting actions of the NASA/JPL prime contract, JHU/APLcontracts, and operating contracts for the Deep Space Communication Complex facilities including awards,administration, and performance oversight. Our primary customer is the Headquarters Science Directorate. Weissue and administer task orders for missions on their behalf, including Mars exploration missions, the SpitzerSpace Telescope, New Horizons, Living with a Star, the Cassini Saturn mission, STEREO, and MESSENGER.Other specific work that we manage includes business system oversight such as Accounting – CAS disclosure, ratestructure, estimating, compensation, etc.; Audit resolution – DCAA, OIG, GAO; Contractually required NASAPolicies – updates; Award Fee/Award Term Management; and Acquisition Oversight – system approval (CPSR),policy/procedure review, consent to subcontract, and advance notice of intent to subcontract.

As you can see, we have a diverse and challenging workload involving the performance of traditional ACOand PCO functions.

Winter 2007/08 page 11

Headquarters. Now I’m here. Ihave finally arrived at HeadquartersOffice of Procurement. Now I’mwalking the historic streets of DC,Old Town Alexandria, and so manyof the surrounding cities. Now I’mhearing and being part of policiesbeing made, working with peopleI’ve admired for many years. WhenI first accepted the position, Ibecame fearful that I was doing thewrong thing. Had I reached toohigh this time in my career? WouldI be able to meet the requirementsexpected of me? Would I be happyin a place like Headquarters?However, I did not need to worry.I’m continually amazed at thecongeniality of the personnel in theOffice of Procurement. I had notexpected this. The overall environ-ment is that of friendliness, ofpeople ready and willing to help.

Ann Sharpe(continued from page 8)

The managers are always ready tolisten and always have positiveattitudes. Peers are there when youneed them. I’ve found that I have alot to offer from my diverseprocurement background andrecent hands-on experience. I’malso involved in many interestingactivities, such as working on theAgency’s Competitive Sourcingteam. I am involved with such areasas soliciting and gathering informa-tion from across all NASA for theFair Act Inventory. I work withothers on the team putting theinventory into its final version,providing it to OMB for approval,then submitting the approved datato Congress. I work with theAgency’s Work Year Equivalents(WYE) Action team to study and

explain growth of contractorWYEs. I review and processANOSCAs for various approvalsand for award notification toCongress by Public Affairs prior toCenter release of award informa-tion. I actively participate inProcurement Surveys, which alsoaffords the opportunities to meetand know people across theAgency. I organize and participatein some of the ProcurementStrategy Meetings. I am so fortu-nate to be involved in so manyinteresting activities.

It took a while, but I’vereached my goal. The pinnacle ofmy career in the place I wanted tolive. I can’t believe I have been sofortunate. I can’t believe that I,Ann Sharpe, am so blessed to behere, in this place, at this verymoment.

WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN JPL AND JHU/APL?

JPL is a Federally Funded Research & Development Center (FFRDC) operated by the California Institute ofTechnology under NASA contract NAS7-03001. It is a cost plus award fee, award term type contract, whichcurrently extends to 6/30/2010. JPL is a NASA-owned facility operated by Caltech employees, with nearly 5,000personnel and a $1.5B annual budget. JPL has a dual programmatic and institutional character: 1) NASA Centerand 2) NASA Contractor. FAR 35.017 outlines the unique relationship between an FFRDC and its Governmentsponsoring agency.

JHU/APL is a University Affiliated Research Center (UARC). Its sponsor is the Navy under a NAVSEAcontract. A NASA Management Office presence at the JHU/APL was established in November 2005 to admin-ister all contracts between NASA and the JHU/APL. In May 2006, the NMO at JHU/APL and the NMO at JPLwere integrated into one office.

JHU/APL is not an FFRDC as set forth in the FAR. However, NASA has determined that JHU/APL hasessential research capabilities that the Agency requires be maintained. Currently, the NMO unit at JHU/APL isresponsible for administering three large existing contracts transferred from GSFC in addition to the AerospaceResearch, Development, and Engineering Support contract awarded in September 2006.

WHAT’S THE NMO MISSION?

To optimize the unique global capabilities at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Applied Physics Laboratory, andDeep Space Network to enable scientific discovery and space exploration.

Winter 2007/08 page 12

The NSSC’s Grants Process – Striving to ProvideUnparalleled ServicesBy Cassandra Williams, NASA Shared Services Center

There are BIG things going on in South Mississippi. The NASA Shared Services Center (NSSC) has com-pleted its second successful fiscal year end. If you haven’t checked out the NSSC via its website atwww.nssc.nasa.gov, you should.

As you know, the NSSC has taken on many roles for NASA. The NSSC Procurement Division has a well-defined process when it comes to awarding grants and cooperative agreements. The NSSC stepped up to the plateand took the challenge of processing grants/cooperative agreements in 29 days or less. But there is a catch. Acomplete technical requirements package must be submitted before the 29-day clock starts ticking.

The NSSC grant process is simple. The most important things to remember are: (1) determine which procure-ment vehicle will satisfy your requirement - grant or cooperative agreement; (2) prepare a purchase request and acomplete technical requirements package; and (3) submit them to the NSSC for processing. Once it gets to theNSSC, your requirement will be in good hands. The documents necessary for a complete technical requirementspackage depend upon whether the proposal was solicited or unsolicited. The required documents are listed in abox accompanying this article. A transmittal sheet with a checklist of the documents necessary for a completetechnical requirements package can be found at http://www.nssc.nasa.gov/forms. Once at that site, choosedocument NSSC-FORM-0025 and click on the revision date. The form is in MS Word.

After the Center determines whether the proposal will be awarded as a grant or cooperative agreement, itcommits the funds by creating, approving, and releasing a PR. While the PR is being processed and approvedthrough SAP/CMM, the technical requirements package should be submitted to the NSSC to begin the awardprocess. The complete technical requirements package may be submitted via fax: 866-779-6772; email:nssc@nasa.gov; or via regular mail or Federal Express: NASA Shared Services Center, ATTN: Procurement-SP,Building 5100, Stennis Space Center, MS, 39529.

THE PROCESS

The technical requirements package is immediately scanned into Tech Doc and assigned a change requestnumber in Remedy where it will be tracked throughout the award process. The technical requirements package isthen routed to the NSSC’s Service Providers’ Front End team.

The Front End team matches the technical package with the released PR in CMM. It is very helpful andmakes things go faster when the technical requirements package is attached to the PR in SAP and interfaces toCMM. This is the preferred method. The PR number should also be referenced on the transmittal sheet for easeof tracking. The Front End team accepts the PR in CMM and assigns a grant/cooperative agreement number. Anotification is then sent to the technical officer and resource analyst that the NSSC is in receipt of the package.The Front End team reviews the package for completeness and for compliance with local policies and procedures.Indirect and fringe benefit rates are also verified and compared to federally-audited rates. If additional informationor missing documents are required, the recipient, resource analyst, or technical officer is contacted. If the FrontEnd team experiences difficulty with securing the required documentation within five days, assistance is requestedfrom a Government Grant Officer. If the technical requirements package is complete and acceptable, the status inRemedy is changed to “Work In Progress.” This officially starts the 29-day clock to process the grant award. Thegrant package is then routed to the Service Provider’s Grant Writing team.

The Grant Writing team prepares the award in CMM working closely with the Front End team to minimizeinterruptions to the Grant Officers. After that, the grant file is reviewed by the Service Providers’ Peer Reviewteam and is then routed to the Government Grant Officers’ team (at the NSSC) for approval.

Grants are awarded on a first-in, first-out basis. After review and approval, the award status is changed inRemedy from “Work In Progress” to “Approved.” The award is then routed to the Service Provider’s Distribu-tion team for electronic distribution, reporting, and filing.

SEARCHING

The status of grants and cooperative agreements can be tracked via the NSSC’s Grant Status Query System atwww.nssc.nasa.gov/grantstatus. This system incorporates several enhancements intended to provide superior

Winter 2007/08 page 13

CONTACTSYour first call should always be to the Contact Center at: 877-NSSC123 (877-677-2123) or via email: nssc-

contactcenter@nasa.gov. A Remedy tracking ticket will be created for all calls and emails ensuring a timelyresponse.

If you have questions about your requirement at any time during the process and prefer to speak directlywith a Grant Officer, you may call one of the four members of the Grant Officers’ team:

HQ/NMO - Benjamin Benvenutti, 228-813-6128, benjamin.s.benvenutti@nasa.govGSFC - Paula Martin, 228-813-6277, paula.r.martin@nasa.govGRC/LaRC/ARC/DFRC - LouElla Simonetti, 228-813-6274, louella.simonetti-1@nasa.govKSC/MSFC/SSC/JSC - Cassandra Williams, 228-813-6271, cassandra.williams-1@nasa.gov

If you still have issues which cannot be resolved by first calling the Contact Center or second contactingyour Center Grant Officer, you may contact:

Tina Landes, Procurement Analyst/Grants Officer, 228-813-6175, Tina.M.Landes@nasa.govMonique Sullivan, Chief, Research Activities Branch 228-813-6134, Monique.Sullivan-1@nasa.gov

REQUIREMENTSRequired documents for “Solicited” proposals fornew or successor awards include:

Technical evaluation/peer review evaluation andselection documentation

Copy of selection letter sent to recipientApproved detailed budget along with endorsed

proposal (to include appropriate budget narrative/justification)

Current, signed certificationsCopy of solicitation cover pageOther documents as applicable: justification and

other approvals (equipment, travel, subcontractconsent, general-purpose equipment, human andanimal testing); special language and/or requirementfor award (unique reporting requirements, traininggrant provisions, statement of nature of collaborationfor cooperative agreements)

Purchase Requisition

Required documents for “Unsolicited” proposalsinclude:

Justification and Approval for Unsolicited Pro-posal and technical evaluation

Approved detailed budget along with endorsedproposal (to include appropriate budget narrative/justification)

Current, signed certificationsOther documents as applicablePurchase Requisition

Required documents for “Multi-Year Funding/Continuations” include:

Progress report from recipient or a progressstatement from the technical officer

Technical evaluation memorandum or statementfrom the technical officer

Revised budget (if different from the originalbudget when awarded)

Other documents as applicablePurchase Requisition

service and quality information to our customers. You can search by Principal Investigator, Technical Officer,Grant Number, Pgroup/Center, PR Number, Proposal Title, Institution, Status, Complete Package Date, AwardDate, Performance Start Date, and Performance End Date. The NSSC follows the same process when awardingsupplements for funding actions, no-cost time extensions, and augmentations. However, the process is not asdetailed because most of the verifications were completed when the grant or cooperative agreement was awarded.If you have questions or your query needs more detailed information, please call the Contact Center.

The NSSC strives to keep technical personnel informed at all times and is constantly improving its processes.Comments and feedback are requested and appreciated. They may be sent to the Contact Center. The NSSC is acustomer-focused organization striving daily to provide “unparalleled services” to both our internal and externalcustomers.

Winter 2007/08 page 14

Procurement Conference Charts

A Unique Form of Contract Incentive: Award TermBy Laurie K. DeClaire, Johnson Space Center

Award term is an exciting formof contract incentive with greatpossibilities. Although procedurallysimilar to the award fee incentivefound in the Federal AcquisitionRegulation (FAR) Part 16.405-2,award term is a non-monetaryincentive, which rewards thecontractor with additional periodsof performance without a newcompetition. Award term is aunique approach to maintaining thehighest levels of performance byrewarding contractors with oppor-tunities for increased futurebusiness. A contractor’s length ofcontract term is directly related tohow well it performs under thecontract. For JSC, that level ofperformance is associated with adetermination of “excellent” by theAward Determination Official.

The award term incentiveshould be structured in such a waythat it motivates contractors toachieve excellent performance. JSCrecommends using the standard-ized award fee guidelines in itsapproach to award term. Unlike theaward fee evaluation which istypically a six-month performanceperiod, award term will be com-posed of two bi-annual evaluationperiods. These will be averaged toobtain a final technical score.

At JSC, cost performance isone of the key components in theevaluation of a contractor underaward term. Utilizing the incentiverequires a contractor to meet a costgate. A cost gate is defined as atarget cost that a contractor mustmeet before an additional term maybe awarded. The cost gate and thefinal technical score will be used asthe basis for the award termdecision.

To continue to motivate thecontractor, JSC’s recommendationis to use the award fee incentiveduring periods not subject to anaward term evaluation. It is impor-tant to realize that award term canbe utilized with different contracttypes for different products andservices. The maximum period ofperformance a contractor may earnis 10 years. However, any potentialterm greater than five years requiresan NFS deviation. Should thecontractor fail to earn term in twosuccessive periods, all remainingaward term is forfeited and theprocess of re-procurement begins.

The JSC Award Term Imple-mentation team has spent the lastyear researching and gathering dataon this new form of incentive. Inorder to bring the JSC procurementorganization the best products

possible, the implementation teamhas conducted an extensive amountof benchmarking. This informationhas been assembled into a collec-tion of best practices and lessonslearned by other NASA Centersand the Department of Defense.The templates developed by theteam incorporate findings from theother Centers and Governmentagencies.

The Award Term Implementa-tion team is pleased to announcethat it is in the process of rollingout guidance on the use of this newcontract incentive to JSC procure-ment personnel. Here at JSC, weare anticipating that two trainingclasses will be provided to theprocurement organization nextAugust. JSC Procurement will benotified of the dates for scheduledclasses via email. Perhaps otherCenters will be interested inlearning about our classes andinstituting some of their own.

The members of the JSCAward Term Implementation teamare Laurie DeClaire, LaraProcknow, Billy Autry, RobertaBeckman, Stephanie Hunter, JohnTrahan, Jessica Miller, DeleneSedillo, Susan Sinclair, and LizFountain.

The charts for the Fall 2007 Procurement Training Conferencein Orlando are now online. You can find them at: http://ec.msfc.nasa.gov/hq/library/conf2007/index.html.

Winter 2007/08 page 15

NMO (CONTINUED)

(continued from page 5)

People on the Move

New Faces: Steven Parker is the new Procurement Officer. He came from the Kennedy Space Center. CarrieParish joins the NMO at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (JHU/APL) in MD. Carriecomes to us from the Department of Veterans Affairs in Los Angeles. She lived near one part of the NMO andmoved across the country to work at the other.

NSSC

New Faces: As a song from the 70s goes, “Welcome Back….” not to Mr. Kotter but to Louann Beu.Louann was previously at the NSSC on a two-month TDY to assist the Grants team to prepare for “Go Live”with the Wave I Centers. Louann is back this time on a permanent basis as the Contracting Officer for theAgency-wide contracts team. Prior to joining us, Louann was the Center liaison at Dryden and lived in a gatedmountain community. She says she will not miss the bit of snow that the area normally receives. She and herhusband, Richard, are looking for a home to buy in the area. Another newcomer to our division is MarkChadwick. Let’s give Mark a grand Southern welcome. Mark transferred from the US Courts in Washington, DC.He is the new Contracting Officer for the Service Provider Contract. Mark’s vast knowledge and background withthe Navy has enabled him to easily “hit the ground running.” Mark says he’s looking forward to golfing at thecourses in Diamondhead as well as getting settled into his new home with his two German Shepherd dawgs(that’s Southern for dogs). So WELCOME to Mississippi and the NSSC, Louann and Mark!!!

SSC

Congratulations: The following individuals were promoted: Rob Harris, Joseph Ladner, and James “Jake”Jacobs. Rob Harris also received the Space Flight Awareness Launch Honoree Award.

Farewell: Penny Parker, team lead, Center Management Support Division, retired in August. Betty JoSpiering, contract specialist, transferred to FEMA contracting at the Gulf Coast Recovery Center in Biloxi, MS.Warren Wood, cost price analyst, transferred to the Office of the Inspector General at Housing and UrbanDevelopment in New Orleans.

New Faces: Randal Barnett joined us and is with DCMA. Leana Marshall joined us and is our co-op attend-ing Pearl River Community College. She will attend the University of Southern Mississippi in the future. BeckyMcKenzie comes to NASA from Mississippi State University. She worked as a co-op at Marshall Space FlightCenter (alternating semesters) during school. Charles Heim comes to us from the NASA Shared Services Center.Sonja Rushing has recently joined us from the contracting office at Keesler Air Force Base.

Changes: The following people’s titles have changed: Rose Baker assumed cost/price analyst duties. BethBradley was named Center Management Support Division team lead. Jason Edge was named Lead ConstructionSpecialist.

Other: Approval was received from NASA Headquarters and the Center Director announced that theAcquisition Management Office (AMO) and the Office of the Chief Financial Officer will become separateoffices (instead of being a combined Business Management Directorate). The Procurement Officer and the CFOwill report directly to the Center Director. The AMO will now be called the Office of Procurement.

Winter 2007/08 page 16

Procurement Countdown is publishedby NASA’s Office of Procurement.

Editor.............................Susie Marucci (202) 358-1896 susie.marucci@nasa.gov

Procurement Countdown

www.nasa.gov

Continuous LearningBy Mary Petkoff, NASA Headquarters

All NASA contracting person-nel are required to meet newcontinuous learning requirements.Valuable benefits of continuouslearning are acquiring new contract-ing knowledge, including informa-tion about revised acquisitionpolicies and procedures; crosstraining to learn about other relatedareas, such as program/projectmanagement; and developingmanagement and leadership skills.

Contracting personnel arerequired to accumulate 80 Continu-ous Learning Points (CLPs) everytwo years. The first reportingperiod is October 1, 2007, toSeptember 30, 2009. As we phasein the new requirements at NASA,continuous learning completedbetween July 1, 2006, and Septem-ber 30, 2007, can also be countedtoward the first reporting period.For the second reporting period, allCLPs must be earned during theactual time period of October 1,2009, to September 30, 2011.

EARNING CLPS

The four methods of earningCLPs are training, professionalactivities, education, and experi-ence. A description of each con-tinuous learning method, thecreditable activities, and therecommended amount of CLPsassigned for each activity are foundat: http://www.fai.gov/career/certprog.asp. All continuous

learning activities must be job-related. Generally, CLPs are earnedin smaller increments i.e. less than20 CLPs per continuous learningsession.

Completion of acquisitionrelated on-line training or on-linecontinuous learning modulesoffered by the Defense AcquisitionUniversity (DAU) or the FederalAcquisition Institute (FAI) allowindividuals to earn CLPs. Procure-ment professionals can access on-line training or on-line continuouslearning modules at https://www.atrrs.army.mil/channels/faitas/courses/crssearch.aspx.

Ways to satisfy continuouslearning requirements includeparticipating on ProcurementManagement Survey Teams,attending Procurement TrainingConferences, completing annualethics training, serving on arotational assignment, completingAgency or Center informationtechnology or security training,serving as a mentor, or attendinginternal training sessions, such asbrown bag lunches, focusedtraining sessions, and targetedlearning workshops.

HOW TO TRACK

Individuals are responsible fortheir own career developmentincluding continuous learning.Contracting personnel are requiredto record and track their continu-ous learning, regardless of which

method or methods are used toearn CLPs. Approved SATERNinternal or external training re-quests are required before registra-tion in on-line, on-site, or off-sitetraining. In addition, CLPs will alsoneed to be recorded in the Acquisi-tion Career Information Manage-ment System (ACMIS), maintainedby FAI, once the software is fullyupdated.

Contracting supervisors shouldhelp identify opportunities forcontinuous learning, discusscontinuous learning during meet-ings concerning performance plansand performance appraisals,encourage individuals to includecontinuous learning on individualdevelopment plans, and approveparticipation in continuous learningactivities. Eventually, supervisorswill also be required to validatecontinuous learning activities inACMIS.

Center procurement trainingcoordinators track CLPs earned bycontracting personnel. Six monthsbefore the end of the first reportingperiod, the training coordinatorsmust notify any individuals andtheir supervisors who have notearned the required CLPs.

NASA contracting personnelhave ample opportunity to meetthe new continuous learningrequirements. Based on the ever-changing acquisition environment,you must acquire new knowledgethroughout your entire career.