Engineer presents professional information designed to keep U.S. military and civilian engineers informed of current and emerging developments within their areas of expertise for the purpose of enhancing their professional development.
Issue link: https://engineer.epubxp.com/i/145930
By Lieutenant Colonel Jason L. Smallfeld "The Engineer Regiment faces a future in which our leaders must all be engineer warriors (Sappers) and be technically skilled and credentialed engineer practitioners in order to deliver all of the effects our Army, joint military forces, and nations require from us. Credentialing programs, such as the one highlighted in this article, are important tools to help us pursue, develop, and maintain our technical edge. Engineers operate in small groups within vast agencies and formations distributed in commands and lodgments around the globe. To succeed, we must be capable of technical as well as tactical engineering; and we will all execute 'Apollo 13 engineering' practices, drawing on our operational experiences and technical depth." —Brigadier General Peter A. (Duke) DeLuca1 T he U.S. Army Profession Campaign began on 27 October 2010 with guidance from the Secretary of the Army and Army Chief of Staff to execute a review of the Army profession in an era of persistent confict.2 The campaign developed and included four key conceptual developments: certifcations. These certifcations will result in seven new Army engineer skill identifers, including— ■ Revised typology for the Army profession. ■ W4 for degreed engineers. ■ Essential characteristics of the Army profession. ■ W5 for project management professionals. ■ Leader attributes and competencies. ■ W6 for project engineers. ■ W1 for facilities planners. ■ W2 for geospatial engineers. ■ W3 for professional engineers. ■ Criteria for professional certifcation. ■ W7 for environmental offcers. Three criteria to identify those who have attained the status of "Army professional" include— In the September–December 2011 issue of Engineer, Major Kelcey R. Shaw described the background of professional certifcation, the reasons that it is important, and the options available to Army offcers.7 While his article focused on why to certify, this article is focused on how to certify in the specifc area of facilities management. Other certifcations, however, also help to support the Army, USACE, and Engineer Regiment campaign plans even though they will not result in the award of an additional skill identifer. One of these certifcations is the certifed facility manager (CFM) certifcation. The CFM is a competency-based, civilian certifcation process that requires a high level of facility management experience, skill, and education.8 The certifcation is granted to those who pass a comprehensive examination covering all facility management core domain areas. 3, 4 ■ Competence. ■ Character. ■ Commitment. Objective 4a of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) campaign plan—to identify, develop, maintain, and strengthen technical competencies5—nests with the greater U.S. Army campaign plan in urging professional certifcation to maintain and strengthen technical competency. The second Engineer Regimental line of effort—to develop engineer leaders6—further nests with the U.S. Army and USACE campaign plans and culminates in professional May–August 2013 Engineer 9