Preparing the Acquisition Workforce: A Digital Engineering Competency Framework

This paper describes the goals, methods, approaches, and preliminary results of a research task within the Systems Engineering Research Center (SERC). Evidence across the Services and industry has affirmed digital engineering is a critical practice necessary to support acquisition in an environment of increasing global challenges, dynamic threats, rapidly evolving technologies, and increasing life expectancy of our systems currently in operation. Digital engineering updates the systems engineering practices to take full advantage of computational technology, modeling, data analytics, and data sciences. The Department of Defense's vision for digital engineering is to modernize how the Department designs, develops, delivers, operates, and sustains systems, while continuing to practice systems engineering efficiently and effectively. Digital transformation is fundamentally changing the way acquisition and engineering are performed across a wide range of government agencies, industries, and academia. As the Department of Defense transitions to digital engineering, there is a need to develop and maintain an acquisition workforce and culture that is literate in model-based engineering, competent in digital engineering models, methods, tools, and understands digital artifacts across the acquisition lifecycle.This paper outlines the development of the Digital Engineering Competency Framework by the Systems Engineering Research Center. The purpose of the Digital Engineering Competency Framework is to provide clear guidance for the Department of Defense acquisition workforce, in particular the engineering acquisition workforce, through clearly defined competencies that illuminate the knowledge, skills, abilities, and behaviors required for digital engineering professionals. The approach taken to develop the Digital Engineering Competency Framework draws from existing competency models discovered during a literature search and from the practicing Digital Engineering community. The development process for the Digital Engineering Competency Framework relied initially on literature findings to develop a draft model that was reviewed by subject matter experts through a series of workshops. No existing competency models focused on digital engineering (or model-based systems engineering or model-based engineering) were found during the literature review. However, several related competency models were identified, and these informed the initial draft model. At appropriate points, the draft model(s) were assessed through community presentations and industry review and appropriate revisions were made.The Digital Engineering Competency Framework has currently completed several iterations of subject matter expert review and revisions and is approaching a finalized general structure. The overarching structure of the DECF will consist of competency areas, proficiency levels within the competency, and constituting knowledge, skills, abilities, and behaviors. The specific knowledge, skills, abilities, and behaviors that will be associated with each competency area are the primary elements still changing in current iterations. Once the model is finalized, it will be compared with the existing Defense Acquisition University curriculum to determine what elements of such existing curriculum already support these competencies. Gaps will be noted, and training recommendations will be developed. As with the development of the model itself, this will be an iterative process. Another critical use case for the Digital Engineering Competency Framework is to enable hiring for Digital Engineering Positions, given Competency models and frameworks are used by hiring managers to ensure that individuals have the required and appropriate skillsets to adequately perform their jobs.