DOD, industry finalize IT personnel exchange
A pilot program will help defense officials build up their workforce's skills to protect and defend.
The Defense Department issued June 20 a final rule on a pilot program that lets the agency and private-sector companies exchange IT expertise.
In the rule, officials assigned responsibilities and provided procedures for implementing the pilot program. The initiative is known as the Information Technology Exchange Program and aims to help DOD build up its workforce skills to protect and defend.
“Given the changing workforce dynamics in the IT field, DOD needs to take advantage of these types of professional development programs to proactively position itself to keep pace with the changes in technology,” officials wrote in its Federal Register notice.
The program has been ongoing, though. Defense officials issued an interim rule about the effort in 2010.
So far, DOD has placed one private-sector employee who completed a six-month assignment with the DOD Office of the Under Secretary of Defense Comptroller. DOD expects to have two more private-sector employees on board in the third quarter of fiscal 2012.
In addition, DOD has posted nine ITEP detail opportunities for private-sector employees. The fields include: service-oriented architecture; cybersecurity; IT project management; IT infrastructure/consolidation; social media; and mobility and wireless. There is also an opportunity for a DOD employee to work with a small, veteran-owned company.