IMMEDIATE RELEASE
WASHINGTON -- Recently, Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment Ellen M. Lord met with the five Department of Defense and five private sector participants of the inaugural DOD Public-Private Talent Exchange.
The Public-Private Talent Exchange program arranges for the temporary assignment of high-performing, mid-career DOD civilian employees to a comparable private-sector organization, or an employee of a private-sector organization to the DOD. Participants of this acquisition-focused will gain a better understanding of each other's business operations, and share innovative best practices.
The participants, currently midway through their six-month exchange assignments, shared highlights of their experience as well as ideas for improving the program for those who follow. The key highlights participants shared included being quickly engaged as part of their new teams, gaining exposure to a new business culture, operations and challenges, and the DOD and industry's approaches to decision making. Participants will take these valuable insights back to their home organization when they complete the program.
Ms. Lord emphasized the importance of leveraging this unique exchange experience to improve DOD-Industry partnering and communication.
"This department is driven by our people, and by their ingenuity, innovation and integrity," said Lord. "This program presents an incredible opportunity for development and growth, I strongly recommend those interested step up and take advantage."
The next cohort of exchange participants will begin in January 2020. For more information on this program, please visit http://www.hci.mil/PPTE.html.
