News
That Impacts Your Career
NEW
PROJECT AND PROGRAM MANAGEMENT STANDARDS
Several new and revised standards for project and program
management have been issued by the International Standards
Organization (ISO) and the Project Management Institute (PMI).
ISO
21500, “Guidance on Project Management,” has been issued by ISO. ISO
21500 provides a high-level description of concepts and processes
that are considered to form good practice in project management. New
project managers as well as experienced managers will be able to use
the project management guidance in this standard to improve project
success and achieve business results.
Miles
Shepherd, Chair of the ISO project committee that developed the new
standard, states: “ISO 21500 enables people in any organization to
understand how the discipline fits into a business environment. It
is also intended to be used as a basic guide, aimed at the informed
reader without an in-depth knowledge of project management.”
Additional
benefits of ISO 21500 include:
- Encourage transfer of knowledge
between projects and organizations for improved project delivery.
- Facilitate efficient tendering
processes through the use of consistent project management
terminology.
- Enable the flexibility of project
management employees and their ability to work on international
projects.
- Provide universal project management
principles and processes.
Copies
of ISO 21500 may be obtained at http://webstore.ansi.org/ or at
www.iso.org/iso/store.htm.
The
Fifth Edition of the “Guide to the Project Management Body of
Knowledge (PMBOK®
Guide)” has been issued by the Project Management Institute (PMI).
The Guide contains fundamental practices and gives project managers
essential tools for managing all types of projects.
PMI has also issued the Third Edition of “The Standard for
Program Management” and the Third Edition of “The Standard for
Portfolio Management.” The PMBOK®
Guide and the other two Standards may be obtained at http://www.pmi.org/.
A pamphlet, “Comparing PMBOK®
Guide 4th Edition, PMBOK®
Guide 5th Edition, and ISO 21500,” authored by Thierry Labriet of
STS SA, Lausanne, Switzerland can be found at here.
If for some reason this link does not work, search for the pamphlet
title in Google.
NCMA Launches Two New Certification
Programs
The National Contract
Management Association has developed two new certification programs
for industry — the Industry Certification in Contract Management —
Defense (ICCM-D) and the Industry Certification in Contract
Management — Federal (ICCM-F). The ICCM-D parallels the Defense
Acquisition Workforce Act (DAWIA) certification in contracting. The
ICCM-F parallels the Federal Acquisition Certification in
Contracting (FAC).
The
ICCM-D and ICCM-F are certifications awarded by NCMA based on
meeting the same prerequisites and completing all the same courses
required for the DAWIA or FAC-C certifications in contracting. These
two certifications afford industry contracting professionals the
opportunity to be certified at levels I, II, and III in the same
manner as their public sector counterparts.
Further
information can be found under Professional Development on the NCMA
website at http://www.ncmahq.org/.
UPCOMING CONFERENCES
Meet and learn from industry leaders, experts, peers and
suppliers at these notable conferences scheduled for spring and
summer.
NCMA
Aerospace and Defense Conference
Westin San Diego, San
Diego, California
March 14–15,
2013
Held
annually in the Western U.S., this program has been offered for
over 50 years! The conference focuses on a variety of topics
dealing with aerospace and defense contracting, including
procurement; technology; best practices; federal, state, and local
budgets; homeland security; outsourcing; current legislation; and
government trends.
ISM’s
98th Annual International Supply Management
Conference and Educational Exhibit
Gaylord Texan
Resort and Convention Center, Dallas, Texas
April 29–May 1, 2013
Learning
tracks include Best Practices, Leading Supply Chains, Essential
Skills, Risk Management, Services Procurement and Supplier
Strategies.
NCMA
World Congress
Gaylord Opryland Hotel
& Convention Center, Nashville, Tennessee
July 21–24, 2013
World
Congress is a comprehensive training event for contract
management, procurement, and acquisition professionals. With over
20 educational tracks, content is offered for professionals at
each and every stage of their career with over 1,500 attendees.
Write it
Right
Without question, developing strong writing
skills gives you a leg up and increases your chances of success --
in graduate school, on the job, and in many aspects of life. When
you communicate concisely and correctly in writing you set yourself
apart and command a level of respect that reflects positively on
your other skills and areas of expertise.
But
good writing takes work and requires practice and the English
language is well known for a tricky vocabulary and complex grammar.
Here are examples of words and usages that can stump even an AGU
faculty member and President from time to time.
- adverse, averse: Adverse
means unfavorable. Averse means disinclined or reluctant. The
staff members are averse to taking a salary cut.
- advice, advise: Advice is a
noun. Take my advice. Advise is a verb. I advise you not to go.
- affect, effect: The most
common mistake here is to confuse the verb affect with the noun
effect. The verb affect means to influence, while the noun effect
means result.
- among, between: In general,
use between for two items or people and among for more than two
items or people. The money was to be divided between Sophie and
Jonathan. The money was to be divided among Sophie, Jonathan, and
Brian. Among suggests a looser relationship than between.
Therefore, when three or more things are brought into a close,
reciprocal relationship, such as they would be with a treaty,
between is better than among. The treaty between Germany, France,
and Italy was never ratified.
- bad, badly: Bad is an
adjective modifying or describing a state of being, usually of the
subject. Use bad after the verbs feel or look. Badly is an adverb
describing the quality of the verb. She felt bad that the driver
of the car was injured badly.
- beside, besides: Beside
means next to, at the side of. Besides means in addition to. I
don’t want to spend my life living beside the dump. Besides its
convenient office location, my new employer provides good health
and retirement benefits.
- capital, capitol: Use
capital when referring to the city that is the seat of a
government. The capital of California is Sacramento. Use capitol
when referring to the building where a legislature meets.
- cite, site, sight: Cite is a
verb meaning to summon before a court of law, to mention by way of
example, or to officially mention as meritorious. I am citing you
for creating a public nuisance. The young officer was cited for
bravery. Site is a noun meaning location or scene. We drove
quickly to the site of the accident. Sight is also a noun, meaning
the ability to see or something seen. From the hill, the stormy
ocean was a beautiful sight.
- complement, compliment: As a
noun, complement means something that completes or perfects
something else, and, as a verb, to accompany or complete something
else. His creativity was the perfect complement to her
determination. The dessert complemented the dinner. Compliment as
a noun means something said in praise, and as a verb to praise.
Her compliment about his dancing pleased him; he in turn
complimented her on her gracefulness.
- farther, further: Use
farther in referring to physical distance. I walked farther than
you. Otherwise, use further. I will question the suspect further.
- fewer, less: Use fewer for
individual countable items or people; use less for bulk, degree,
or quantity. We expected fewer (not less) people to come.
- forward, foreword: Forward
means ahead, or at or toward the front. Foreword is an
introduction at the beginning of a book.
- its, it’s: Its is the
possessive of it: The tree lost its leaves. It’s is a contraction
of it is: It’s too bad we can’t come.
- lay, lie: These verbs cause
trouble for many people. If you mean recline, use lie. If you mean
set, place, or put, use lay. An easy way to remember which one to
use is to recognize that lie does not take an object and lay does:
I lie down for a nap every day. The dog lies by the fire. I lay
the paper on the table. Chickens lay eggs.
- lose, loose: Lose means to
be unable to find. Loose, an adjective, means unrestrained or
inexact. I often lose the loose change I keep in my pocket.
- principal, principle:
Principal as an adjective means first in importance. As a noun,
principal means the head of a school.
- than, then: Don’t use then
(which means at that time) in comparisons. Use than: He is wiser
than (not then) his father was then.
- their, there, they’re: Their
is the possessive form of they; there usually refers to a place or
is used in impersonal constructions (there is, there are); they’re
is a contraction of they are. Notice the correct uses of these
words in the following sentence: There is no question that their
friends live there and that they’re willing to help.
- themselves, theirselves:
Themselves, which is an emphatic form of them, is correct, as in,
The producers themselves left the movie theater. Theirselves is
not acceptable usage.
- weather, whether: Weather is
the state of the atmosphere; whether means if.
- whose, who’s: Whose is the
possessive of who. Who’s is a contraction of who is. Who’s going
to tell me whose jacket this is?
- your, you’re: Your is the
possessive of you. You’re is a contraction of you are: You’re
certain this is your jacket?
Adapted
from CliffsNotes.com.
Frequently Confused Words Jan 2013.
AGU
Update
AGU HOLDS FIRST ONLINE COMMENCEMENT FOR CLASS OF
2012 AND ALUMNI
For the first time in our history, AGU is
proud to present the AGU 2012 Online Commencement honoring 2012
graduates and alumni. The online commencement launched on January
31, 2013 and is now available for viewing, the web site address is
commencement.agu.edu.
The
University recognizes your hard work and dedication in earning your
graduate degree, and the entire faculty, administration and staff
congratulate you on your achievement. We hope you’ll take this
opportunity to celebrate your accomplishment and share it with your
family, friends and colleagues.
The
2012 commencement was open to all graduates who completed their
degree program in 2012. And because this is our first commencement
and an historic event for AGU, we invited all degreed alumni who
received their degrees from January 1998 through December 2011 to
participate as well.
Once
again, congratulations to all of our 2012 graduates!
AGU AGAIN NAMED MILITARY FRIENDLY
SCHOOL
American Graduate University was named to G.I.
Jobs magazine’s list of 2013 Military Friendly Schools. The
list honors the top 15 percent of colleges, universities and trade
schools which are doing the most to embrace America’s veterans as
students.
Schools
on the list range from state universities and private colleges to
community colleges and trade schools. The common bond is their
shared priority of recruiting students with military experience.
“This
list is especially important now because the recently enacted
Post-9/11 GI Bill has given veterans virtually unlimited financial
means to go to school,” said Rich McCormack, G.I. Jobs
publisher. “Veterans can now enroll in any school, provided they’re
academically qualified. So schools are clamoring for them like never
before. Veterans need a trusted friend to help them decide where to
get educated. The Military Friendly Schools list is that trusted
friend.”
The
list was compiled through exhaustive research. G.I. Jobs
polled more than 7,000 schools nationwide. Methodology, criteria and
weighting for the list were developed with the assistance of an
Academic Advisory Committee (AAC) consisting of educators and
administrators from Carnegie Mellon University, the University of
Toledo, Duquesne University, Coastline Community College, and
Lincoln Technical Institute.
Criteria
for making the Military Friendly Schools list included efforts to
recruit and retain military and veteran students, results in
recruiting military and veteran students, and academic
accreditations.
2012 GRADUATE OF THE YEAR —
GEORGE MACOMBER
 The American Graduate University is
pleased to announce that George Macomber is the 2012 Graduate
of the Year. George completed the Master of Acquisition
Management with a 4.0 GPA and the highest comprehensive
examination score of the 2012 graduates. As Senior Director of
Contracts for AAI Corporation’s largest Operating Unit,
Unmanned Aircraft Systems, George is responsible for all
contract activities for the Operating Unit (an Operating Unit
of Textron), providing guidance and counseling to AAI’s other
3 Operating Units and other Textron entities. George has been
with AAI for 35 years in several capacities, including
finance, project management, subcontract management and
contract management.
George’s
rigorous domestic and international travel schedule, not to
mention family commitments, did not allow for a traditional
program of study. He found that AGU’s program provided the
best combination of availability, applicability and
affordability. The self-paced approach enabled him to
coordinate his schedule with AGU. He was surprised to
discover, despite the distance education approach, that he was
made to feel part of the community with instructors that were
approachable, responsive and helpful, and a friendly staff
always ready to assist him.
While
George found that the general management courses provided
invaluable overall business training, the contracting courses
allowed for in-depth discussions of specific areas. George’s
favorite course at AGU was Course 601, “Federal Government
Contracting.” According to George, “This course and text
provided the best overview from start to finish of the
contracting process.” He was so impressed with the course that
he requested additional copies of the textbook CDs for use by
his staff.
Born
and raised in Dundalk, Maryland, a suburb of Baltimore, he
graduated from Loyola College, now known as Loyola University
of Maryland, in 1977 with a Bachelor of Arts in Business
Administration. He currently resides in New Freedom,
Pennsylvania with his wife, Patricia, and their Australian
Cattle dog. They have two grown sons, Ryan, a chemist, and
Sean, a graduating Music Education major. George enjoys golf
with his friends and coworkers, the Baltimore Orioles and
coaching in youth leagues.
George
will be featured in this year’s DETC Outstanding Graduate
and Famous Alumni publication and will be awarded a
special plaque at the Distance Education and Training
Council’s Annual Conference in San Francisco, California, on
April 16, 2013. |
STAY INFORMED WITH EDALERTS
Stay informed on key university requirements, deadlines,
announcements and need-to-know information by reading the AGU
EdAlerts. They are brief emails sent almost every month, but if
you’ve missed any, you can view them all on the AGU web site on the
Student Center page at www.agu.edu/student_center.
Catch up now!
Advance
Your Career With AGU
AGU COURSE 603 EQUIVALENT TO DAU’S CON
216
AGU’s Course 603 “Government Contract
Law” has received equivalency to
the
Defense Acquisition University course CON 216 “Legal
Considerations
in Contracting”. AGU students
completing Course 603 can now receive
credit from DAU for their course CON 216.
AGU
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