Automated tool for Acquisition Program Management Students (ATAPMS)

Abstract

This thesis explores the top-level requirements for an Automated Tool for Acquisition Program Management Students (ATAPMS) that is designed to enhance training and education in the acquisition management field. The Department of Defense (DoD) has identified the education and training of the acquisition workforce as a strategy to help make the acquisition system more effective and efficient. As a result, the DoD established the Defense Acquisition University (DAU) to provide the required education and training. More recently, Executive Order 13111 and the Defense Reform Initiative have presented a mandate for the DoD to find ways to use technology to further this strategy. Currently, the consortium schools of the DAU are using emerging technologies to increase access to their courses. However, the DAU curricula lack automated acquisition management training programs that allow instructors to qualitatively assess students' work. This thesis recommends a set of top-level requirements for an automated program that are in compliance with the Advanced Distance Learning Initiative. It then illustrates through a prototype module, using a commercial authoring tool, how an ATAPMS can assist the DAU instructors teach the critical aspects of Acquisition Program Management.