DCMA - Defense Contract Management Agency
09/06/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 09/06/2024 11:50
Keystone Program drives opportunity, development
For professionals new to Defense contracting, stuck in a stalled career arc or unfulfilled in their current role, the Defense Contract Management Agency offers an intriguing path forward.
Introduced in 1997, the Keystone program is DCMA's primary acquisition training development program. It supports recruiting, developing, and retaining of select individuals in the acquisition and non-acquisition community. It is designed to develop entry-level and transitioning employees, referred to as Keystones. The program enables team members to perform with a high-degree of technical competence and achieve a broad understanding of the agency and its warfighter-support mission.
Keystones are recruited from inside and outside the agency, and it's an excellent opportunity for both, said Yvette Bowers, the former Keystone program manager and current Programs Branch supervisor.
"For those inside the agency, this is an opportunity to try something different," she said. "If they find themselves in a career series with limited growth or limited promotion potential, there's an avenue in the Keystone program for them to try something different, or if they're just interested in the multifunctional capabilities of the agency.
"For those who are outside of the agency, this is an opportunity for graduates, individuals coming from the commercial sector, or individuals that are not in any way associated with the government to come into the government to serve and be a part of an elite force of individuals, who are making sure the warfighter receives everything they need to fulfill their mission," Bowers continued. "This program allows them to be trained, and it's paid training, so you get to learn everything you need while you develop your certifications. You get to do rotational assignments. We give you a mentor, someone who's going to help you navigate this process and your Keystone journey."
As the former program manager, Bowers works with Keystones, their managers and other agency stakeholders to ensure individual and program success. She said it would have been beneficial at the start of her career.
"It reminds me of my early days in my career, where I wondered: who would guide me; what assistance would I receive?" she asked. "I remember back to those days wondering: what were those things that I needed? You know, a little more mentorship, a little more guidance? I'm now in a position where I can ensure that the Keystones get all those things that I thought I needed and may not have received."
Keystones spend up to three years gaining technical knowledge and skills in accordance with DCMA guidelines and the Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act for education and training. Various methods are used to develop Keystones, including formal classroom training, distance learning, rotational assignments, specialized projects, extensive on-the-job training, coaching, and mentoring.
A graduate of the Keystone program will have the theory and the practical experience to excel in their chosen career field. Keystone alumni are also eligible for DCMA leadership training, like the Emerging Leaders program, said Bowers.
Starting as a GS-4 office automation clerk, Tina Vetreno, now deputy executive director of Financial and Business Operations, credits the Keystone program for her success. At the start of her career with the agency, she went to school at night for her accounting degree.
"Miraculously, an opportunity for an accounting intern position opened up, and I was selected for the position," she said. "When I started the position as an accountant, it wasn't just about me doing rotations in accounting. I got to shadow every functional area in DCMA. I went out to the field, and I went to contract management offices; I shadowed engineers, industrial specialists, quality, contracts, you name it; if that mission was in DCMA, I had the opportunity to work alongside those individuals for a short period of time."
"It was an amazing opportunity," Vetreno continued. "It helps me see, as an enabler in this organization (and) somebody who works in finance and budget now and is the deputy director of FB, to really have an opportunity to understand what we do in FB and how that impacts the mission of the agency. To see resources that we're fighting for and defending in the budget office and how that impacts everybody working at every level in the agency."
It's exciting to see the agency continue to invest in Keystones, Bowers said.
"I'm excited about the energy that's going into the program right now," she said. "It's not just about functional training. It's about giving people an opportunity to have a broad experience across DCMA, understanding the mission of DCMA and being able to see themselves in that mission. Especially as an enabler, it's hard sometimes to see ourselves and how we impact the warfighter."
The Keystone program helped Bowers change her job into her passion as it increased her understanding of the mission.
"I think that's one of the best things about the Keystone program," she said. "It helps you to see DCMA as more than just coming to work and doing your job but to be really invested in it."
The focus on hands-on training and leadership development is vital for Shellon Perry, a contract administrator for DCMA Missiles Orlando.
"We are learning the organization inside and out, and that's going to help us grow," Perry said. "I keep hearing from everyone that we are the next leaders for DCMA. We're the next supervisors, administrative contracting officers or deputies of DCMA. So, that's one thing I find exciting because you don't find that in a lot of professions or companies. They don't grow from within. They recruit from outside, and you have a lot of people inside that facility who never get the chance to move up or shine. But DCMA believes in recruiting from within, which I think that you are going to retain a lot of good people, and I look forward to it."
Introduced in 1997, the Keystone program is DCMA's primary acquisition training development program. It supports recruiting, developing, and retaining of select individuals in the acquisition and non-acquisition community. It is designed to develop entry-level and transitioning employees, referred to as Keystones. The program enables team members to perform with a high-degree of technical competence and achieve a broad understanding of the agency and its warfighter-support mission.
Keystones are recruited from inside and outside the agency, and it's an excellent opportunity for both, said Yvette Bowers, the former Keystone program manager and current Programs Branch supervisor.
"For those inside the agency, this is an opportunity to try something different," she said. "If they find themselves in a career series with limited growth or limited promotion potential, there's an avenue in the Keystone program for them to try something different, or if they're just interested in the multifunctional capabilities of the agency.
"For those who are outside of the agency, this is an opportunity for graduates, individuals coming from the commercial sector, or individuals that are not in any way associated with the government to come into the government to serve and be a part of an elite force of individuals, who are making sure the warfighter receives everything they need to fulfill their mission," Bowers continued. "This program allows them to be trained, and it's paid training, so you get to learn everything you need while you develop your certifications. You get to do rotational assignments. We give you a mentor, someone who's going to help you navigate this process and your Keystone journey."
As the former program manager, Bowers works with Keystones, their managers and other agency stakeholders to ensure individual and program success. She said it would have been beneficial at the start of her career.
"It reminds me of my early days in my career, where I wondered: who would guide me; what assistance would I receive?" she asked. "I remember back to those days wondering: what were those things that I needed? You know, a little more mentorship, a little more guidance? I'm now in a position where I can ensure that the Keystones get all those things that I thought I needed and may not have received."
Keystones spend up to three years gaining technical knowledge and skills in accordance with DCMA guidelines and the Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act for education and training. Various methods are used to develop Keystones, including formal classroom training, distance learning, rotational assignments, specialized projects, extensive on-the-job training, coaching, and mentoring.
A graduate of the Keystone program will have the theory and the practical experience to excel in their chosen career field. Keystone alumni are also eligible for DCMA leadership training, like the Emerging Leaders program, said Bowers.
Starting as a GS-4 office automation clerk, Tina Vetreno, now deputy executive director of Financial and Business Operations, credits the Keystone program for her success. At the start of her career with the agency, she went to school at night for her accounting degree.
"Miraculously, an opportunity for an accounting intern position opened up, and I was selected for the position," she said. "When I started the position as an accountant, it wasn't just about me doing rotations in accounting. I got to shadow every functional area in DCMA. I went out to the field, and I went to contract management offices; I shadowed engineers, industrial specialists, quality, contracts, you name it; if that mission was in DCMA, I had the opportunity to work alongside those individuals for a short period of time."
"It was an amazing opportunity," Vetreno continued. "It helps me see, as an enabler in this organization (and) somebody who works in finance and budget now and is the deputy director of FB, to really have an opportunity to understand what we do in FB and how that impacts the mission of the agency. To see resources that we're fighting for and defending in the budget office and how that impacts everybody working at every level in the agency."
It's exciting to see the agency continue to invest in Keystones, Bowers said.
"I'm excited about the energy that's going into the program right now," she said. "It's not just about functional training. It's about giving people an opportunity to have a broad experience across DCMA, understanding the mission of DCMA and being able to see themselves in that mission. Especially as an enabler, it's hard sometimes to see ourselves and how we impact the warfighter."
The Keystone program helped Bowers change her job into her passion as it increased her understanding of the mission.
"I think that's one of the best things about the Keystone program," she said. "It helps you to see DCMA as more than just coming to work and doing your job but to be really invested in it."
The focus on hands-on training and leadership development is vital for Shellon Perry, a contract administrator for DCMA Missiles Orlando.
"We are learning the organization inside and out, and that's going to help us grow," Perry said. "I keep hearing from everyone that we are the next leaders for DCMA. We're the next supervisors, administrative contracting officers or deputies of DCMA. So, that's one thing I find exciting because you don't find that in a lot of professions or companies. They don't grow from within. They recruit from outside, and you have a lot of people inside that facility who never get the chance to move up or shine. But DCMA believes in recruiting from within, which I think that you are going to retain a lot of good people, and I look forward to it."