DITAP Digital IT Acquisition Professionals Program The Digital

DITAP: Digital IT Acquisition Professionals Program

The Digital IT Acquisition Professional (DITAP) Training & Development Program offers a FAC-C core-plus certification for contracting professionals 2

Problem Statement: Government technology purchasing suffers from acquisitions based more on compliance than delivery, organizations who may lack technical knowledge, and a lack of focus on improving service delivery for end users.

Digital Service Core-Plus Certification Objectives Become Digital Service Acquisition Specialists who apply strategic thinking, industry best practices, market place conditions, and appropriate acquisition strategies to the procurement of digital supplies and services Are equipped with the knowledge necessary to be imbedded within Digital Service teams to serve as a business advisor to the team, its customers, and its stakeholders Have the knowledge to lead agency training, workshops, and consultations in order to expand digital service procurement expertise within their agency and the government. 4

Iterative Approach to Program Development What we did What we learned Challenge. gov: In May of 2015 OFPP & USDS released a prize challenge to determine if a training & development program could be built to meet the necessary training objectives for acquisition professionals A 3 -phased approach with to allow for concept, design, and development of the program through a pilot was highly successful way of testing a hypothesis Pilot: Utilized 30 contracting professionals from several large and small agencies to prove design concept The concept of the development program is proved. Individuals receive training to be able to start implementing digital service acquisition, however, not expert level MVP: Had to prove that success in pilot could be replicated with improvements. Used a different set of 30 contracting professionals for 4 months. The time was a challenge based on content delivered, majority of the students were able to complete the course, participation and badging strategies implemented were successful Scaling: The program is larger than OFPP or USDS can manage so to scale, a bigger plan must be enacted Providing the open source content, Ed. X platform, and facilitation guides will enable vendors and agency training institutions to replicate the success with minimal time/cost 5

Pilot + MVP Cohort Results – April 2017 Worked on Digital Services Procurements? 70% 60% 50% 45% 65% 55% 35% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% 2 -3 years prior to program Since program ended None At least 1

77% Indicated a difference in their job based on what they learned in DITAP 81% Indicated increased visibility as a digital services professional 71% Have been approached by others to apply knowledge & skills gained in the program

Although it is a 4 -6 month training program… This program was a worthwhile investment of my time 3% 27% 70% To a Great Extent To a Moderate Extent To a Slight Extent

Program Features

Iterative Learning: agile approach to lessons Access to Industry Experts and Digital SMEs Flipped Classroom & Self Directed Learning Skills lab & real world application Shadowing/Interviewing Team of teams/Cohort/Alumni identification Badging 10

Scaling the Solution

The use of Ed. X, an open Source Learning Management System, made it possible to facilitate the program. It includes discussion boards, the course material, supplemental reading material, a Wiki, and custom options were built in to facilitate badging and participation tracking 12

Scaling the Solution

The Need Survey Digital Service Training & Development questionnaire was administered by FAI. gov as a supplemental to the Acquisition Human Capital Plan Who All civilian 23 CFO Act Agencies were required to complete the supplement Key Result Overall agencies estimated that roughly 6, 500 civilian workforce members would need digital service training

FAC- C Digital Service Training ESTIMATED TOTAL: 3, 006 FAC-C

FAC- P/PM Digital Service Training ESTIMATED TOTAL: 2, 176 FAC-P/PM

By the Numbers…. Contracting Professionals Program Managers Other support staff (CORs) Total CY 17 CY 18 CY 19 Digital Service Expertise Need Identified 3, 000 2, 200 1, 300 6, 500 1, 180 2, 600 2, 720 Approximate Total Number 13, 000 8, 700 N/A Percent of Workforce Needing Digital Services Training 23% 25% N/A Target Number Needing Training at Master-Level 1, 000 750 None 1, 750 180 600 970 Target Number Needing Awareness Training 2, 000 1, 450 1, 300 4, 750 1, 000 2, 000 1, 750

The Ask Agency Training Institutions Industry Training Providers At least 1 agency led training in CY 18 At least 2 Industry led development programs offered by CY 18 Develop and run the digital service training & development program to meet the needs of training the federal acquisition workforce By using the already developed content, instructional design, proven outcomes & instructional material, we believe this goal to be achievable

Competencies and Outcomes Competency Performance Outcome Digital Services in the 21 st Century Government Describe digital services in the 21 st century, including what they are, who provides them, how they are delivered, and why they are important Understand What You Are Buying Determine the problem to be solved while effectively supporting and communicating with the customer and industry How do you buy Effectively use techniques for acquiring digital service solutions in your solicitation or acquisition strategy Awarding & Administering Digital Service Contracts Conduct and award digital service contracts, using and applying metrics and incentives appropriately, and applying proper course correction when necessary Leading Change as a Digital IT Acquisition Professional Apply techniques to create a culture of innovation within your sphere that enables you and others to effectively lead and influence customers to the best solutions Application of Skills Apply techniques learned in the course through various activities

DITAP Scaling Framework: USDS Agencies Industry *Manage Open Source content & platform *Hire/Train Facilitators *Create industry run development program *Determine competencies & certification process *Recruit & Run Application Process *Provide SME’s to course facilitators *Contribute to Open Source content & edx platform *Evaluate & Approve changes to program elements *Provide funding for program (if facilitating) *Assist with Buy In/Program Recruitment/ Top Cover *Provide funding for participants *Manage Alumni community *Conduct DITAP Program * Give participants digital service acquisition opportunities * Ensure program is developed with 70% of content provided *Create remaining 30% of program facilitation *Recruit & run application process *Contribute to open source content & Ed. X platform * Provide program to remote/distant regions/areas

Competencies/Certification Badging Levels – Level II Bronze Level = 80% course completion Silver Level = 90% course completion Gold Level = 100 % completion CLPs = 60 CLPs = 70 CLPs = 80 Additional training & competency based applied skills requirements. To Be Determined FAC-C Core Plus Certification Given to all Bronze Level Badge earners 21

Required Core Content Approval of Program USDS has validated through two run programs the core content and facilitation techniques that must be provided in order for students graduating to receive the certification. USDS Provides Validation Core Content: We have identified 70% of the content, facilitation methods, participation elements, and readings that must be included in development program to ensure consistency and keep the certification brand related to the achieved outcomes. The purpose of this is two-fold: 1. Maintain consistency of certification approach and skills achieved • USDS will evaluate the proposed development program – either from agency or industry – to determine that the basic requirements/competencies are covered • Will maintain the approval of all core content updates as part of the open source strategy for the Ed. X platform • Will communicate to FAITAS/OFPP approved courses so registered participants will earn eligible credit & certification • The remaining 30% of the content can be exactly the same as provided in either the pilot/MVP version of the program or can vary based on the specific skills or learning approaches that the program provider wants to apply. 2. Streamline the process of getting more development programs built & delivered in CY 17 22

Open Source Content to be Provided by USDS Content Map All course content & readings Pilot & MVP Transition Reports w/ Recommendations Access to Ed. X Platform Classroom Instruction Slides w/ facilitator notes Classroom activities w/ facilitator instruction 23

Discussion/Questions