Career enhancement: logistics civilian career enhancement program logistics career broadening program - Special Feature

Air Force Journal of Logistics, Fall, 2003 by Lynda Lowin

Logistics Civilian Career Enhancement Program--has met a multitude of challenges with regard to the logistics workforce, while providing management with quality service when filling positions. Through the Base Realignment and Closure in 1995 to implementation of the air and space expeditionary forces to the current Chief's Logistics Review and combat wing organization changes, it has supported the Air Force by providing well-educated, prepared civilian employees and leaders. The program was created to provide central management of developmental and training opportunities for the logistics civilian workforce and provide a central means of referring qualified candidates to management.

Logistics Career Broadening Program--provides aircraft maintenance, munitions and missile maintenance, logistics readiness, contracting, acquisition, and finance officers a chance to gain specialized knowledge in acquisition logistics and life-cycle sustainment support, but in practice, it is much more than that. The program not only provides unique instruction in logistics but also lends opportunities to grow as a leader and manager. Through the course of the program, the career broadening officer works in various disciplines, learning the functions and challenges of other logistics career fields and earning professional certification in Level I Program Management and Level I Acquisition Logistics. Finally, the participant has an opportunity in the final phase of the tour to concentrate in one area in order to fine tune what was learned in the first phase. This job assignment is usually related to the person's primary logistics specialty.

Logistic Civilian Career Enhancement Program

LCCEP Charter: To encourage and manage the development of employees to their fullest potential to meet the logistics needs of the Air Force.

Many employees probably have heard of the Logistics Civilian Career Enhancement Program (LCCEP) but do not realize the impact it has on the logistics civilian workforce. Since LCCEP's inception in October 1980, it has met a multitude of challenges with regard to the logistics workforce, while providing management with quality service when filling positions. Through the Base Realignment and Closure in 1995 to implementation of the air and space expeditionary forces to the current Chief's Logistics Review and combat wing organization changes, LCCEP has supported the Air Force by providing well-educated, prepared civilian employees and leaders.

LCCEP was created to provide central management of developmental and training opportunities for the logistics civilian workforce and provide a central means of referring qualified candidates to management. The LCCEP PALACE Team at Randolph AFB, Texas, conducts the day-to-day operations of the program.

There are 19 functional civilian career programs within the Air Force, with LCCEP being the largest. In 2003, more than 3,000 positions were covered by LCCEP, with more than 500 referral certificates issued each year. The LCCEP Team is provided management oversight by a policy council composed of senior logisticians. Each career program has a policy council, similar in structure but different in the nature of program activities, to meet mission needs according to its functional requirements.

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LCCEP Policy Council

The LCCEP Policy Council oversees the program to ensure requirements are reflected in the development and selection of employees. It has representatives from all major commands (MAJCOM) and air logistics centers and has four executive panels that assist in providing oversight of the program's day-to-day operations (Table 1). These panels work to design, implement, and maintain operational procedures.

LCCEP PALACE Team

The LCCEP PALACE Team conducts the day-to-day operations for the logistics career program. It consists of logisticians from across the Air Force, from a variety of occupational areas, who work with a servicing team of permanent personnel specialists. The team, through its operational programs, provides quality referral certificates, administers the career development program, assesses the logistics workforce, and provides career counseling to logistics employees.

Career Program Positions

General oversight procedures for the civilian career programs are contained in Air Force Manual 36-606, Volume 1. Positions identified and approved by the Policy Council are managed centrally through the career program office. LCCEP covers all GS-13 through GS-15 positions in the series shown in Table 2. Approximately 50 percent of the GS-9 through GS-12 positions are also covered. Requests to fill Career Program-covered positions are processed through the LCCEP Team.

Fill Actions

Implementation of the Defense Civilian Personnel Data System (DCPDS), during the last 6 months of 2002, presented a tremendous challenge to the personnel community and the PALACE Team. During this period, LCCEP experienced an increase in the number of requests. A large number of the corresponding referral certificates had to be produced by hand because all installations had not fully implemented DCPDS. The result was an increase in overall processing time. However, once the system was fully implemented in September 2002, certificate-processing time improved greatly, particularly with the internal certificates, to the point they are now averaging 27 days process time from the date the request is received in the LCCEP office. Figure 2 shows the processing time over the last 2 years. Process improvement is continuing, with the objective to significantly reduce processing time to less than 2 weeks.