FORT BELVOIR, Va. –
Defense Logistics Agency Army officers are working with Army Sustainment University at Fort Gregg-Adams, Virginia to help educate future logistics leaders on how to conduct business with the agency more effectively.
DLA and ASU have launched a pilot program targeting sustainment officers in the Logistics Captains Career Course and Warrant Officer Advanced Course to increase awareness of DLA’s capabilities, provide tools to improve readiness at the tactical level, and build relationships for future collaboration between the two entities.
“We need them to understand how to leverage us to improve their own readiness at the unit level,” DLA’s deputy army senior service integrator, Maj. Daniel Marvin, said. “The population that we are talking to have maybe four or five years as officers who understand tactical-level logistics.”
“We also want to help them build a foundation to understand that there is a bigger strategic logistics enterprise that they can start affecting by conducting proper forecasting and sending the right demand signals,” he added.
Marvin, who has spent his career as an explosive ordnance disposal officer, worked with DLA’s Army readiness officer, Chief Warrant Officer 3 Jaquata Davis, to tailor their briefing to the junior sustainment leaders.
“With this basic question in mind – ‘What does DLA do for me?’ – we kind of developed some talking points to address some of the concerns of an individual down at the tactical level or supply room.”
Davis also recalled questions that she had while previously working at the tactical level.
“Coming here [DLA] kind of brought things full circle for me,” Davis said. “I now understand that it is not that easy and there are some things that I could have done at my level to expedite the procurement process.”
She added that now that she has been on both the tactical side and at DLA, she is better able to relay information to the people who really need it.
Looking back on her own experience, Davis noted Army officers often lack an understanding that DLA does not make supplies but procures supplies and materials.
“We have to help them understand the process, because that is the biggest challenge,” she said. “The other challenge is to help them understand the important role demand and forecasting projections play in making it easier to get them what they need.”
The first briefing was conducted Nov. 19 during the Logistics Captains Career Course at ASU. The DLA reps provided tips on leveraging DLA to improve unit readiness and provided contact information for customer service representatives across DLA’s various missions.
Future briefings will be provided every other month for participants in ASU’s Logistics Captains Career and Warrant Officer Advanced Courses. Marvin and Davis said this first briefing provided valuable feedback to help improve future sessions.
“Moving forward, I would like to prepare some cheat sheets for them pertaining to commercial-off-the-shelf items or how to properly fill out supply requests,” Davis said.