Career Development Gateway
Career Development Framework
The foundation of the development process for project managers and systems engineers is the career development framework. The framework represents a progression through four levels of increasing responsibility and performance expectation over the course of an individual’s career. The framework can be used to describe the appropriate job assignments, education, coaching and mentoring, training and other development activities necessary for each level of performance capability. These guidelines, in conjunction with the identified priorities of each field center, enable individuals to play an active role in defining their career paths.
The Academy’s four-level career development framework is the basis for determining what training, work assignments, and developmental activities are right for you.
The career development framework represents a progression through four levels of increasing responsibility over the course of an individual career:
- project team member or technical engineer
- small project manager or subsystem lead
- large project manager or systems manager
- program or very large project manager
The four career levels have been fully integrated with the competency model to determine the professional experiences and development activities that demonstrate the ability to perform at a given level.
| Program or very Large Project Manager | |
| Core course: Executive Program Mentoring Leadership by example in knowledge sharing | Manages complex program or set of projects with tightly coupled interfaces |
| Large Project Manager or Systems Manager | |
| Core course: Advanced Project Management & Systems Engineering Mentoring In-depth courses Participation in knowledge sharing activities | Manages complex project and/or contributes to leadership of larger project/program management |
| Small Project Manager or Subsystem Lead | |
| Core course: Project Management & Systems Engineering In-depth courses Participation in knowledge sharing activities | Performs simple project/subsystem management or contributes to complex management |
| Project Team Member or Technical Engineer | |
| Core course: Foundations of Aerospace at NASA Developmental learning assignments and on-the-job training Attendance at technical conferences or knowledge sharing activities | Performs and/or contributes to fundamental, basic and routine project activities |
Career Development Gateway
APPEL's Development Approach
APPEL’ development approach provides a basis for enhancing the capabilities you will need in the future while at the same time strengthening competencies required for current assignments. Embedded in APPEL’s philosophy is the assumption that the curriculum is only a portion of the preparation necessary to produce successful program/project managers and systems engineers. Much of the preparation lies in the time and duration spent gaining professional experiences in the real world of NASA projects in conjunction with access to current and previous generations of individuals that share their project management and systems engineering talents by serving as mentors, coaches and subject matter expert guides.
APPEL Curriculum
The core curriculum offers NASA technical community with a knowledge base of the highest quality and a wide range of project management and systems engineering approaches and practices. APPEL also sponsors in-depth courses in a number of topic areas to augment development where more in-depth coverage of an area is necessary. Individuals and their managers should review course content, competency development needs, and current and future work requirements to determine at what point in a person’s career a course should be taken. The course descriptions provide recommendations on who should attend the course.
Outside the Classroom
Developmental activities are structured work/training experiences agreed to between employee and supervisor and that have well-defined objectives intended to enhance job knowledge and skills. Some developmental experiences are designed to broaden an employee’s knowledge and understanding of the Agency through a combination of expanded work experiences and formal training. Others may be particularly related to specific job requirements when skill enhancement is required to properly perform a task.
Rotational assignments are a traditional type of developmental experience. Rotational assignments can occur within a Center, between NASA Centers, on an interagency basis, between the public and private sectors, as well as between segments of the public sector (federal, state and local). Consideration should be given to identifying rotational assignments that involve realistic individual goals consistent with anticipated NASA requirements and Center priorities.
Mentor-protégé relationships provide the protégé with access to experienced NASA leaders who can provide guidance and advice in an informal, non-supervisory setting. Individuals can work with their managers to identify mentors and document developmental needs and mentor program plans in his/her IDP.
Knowledge Sharing Activities
As individuals plan and discuss developmental opportunities with their supervisors and managers, consideration should be given to knowledge sharing activities such as:
- Attending Center-based “Fast Forums”
- Participating in Communities of Practice
- Participating in APPEL’s Biannual Masters Forums
- Attending or speaking at the annual PM Challenge
- Writing articles for ASK Magazine
Center Forums
APPEL Center-based Forums (Fast Forums) represent a collaborative effort between NASA HQ, Contractors and NASA Centers to identify and deliver targeted, “just-in-time” learning solutions to project teams. The goal of this knowledge-sharing event is to accelerate capabilities of practitioners and project teams to successfully solve problems, make decisions, and improve performance by tapping into and effectively integrating and applying the explicit and tacit knowledge that already resides across the Agency.
Expert local community resources shall be used as needed to ensure that Fast Forums provide high quality, high impact solutions to challenges identified as critical to the team’s performance.
Fast Forums will be 4-8 hrs of customized “share-and-learn” opportunities featuring case studies, lessons learned, interactive technology workshops, and stories highlighting challenges most relevant to each Center’s work context, interests, and needs. In this setting, project teams will uncover and reuse knowledge essential to the team’s success.
Centers
- Johnson Space Center
- Ames Research Center
- Kennedy Space Center
Center Forums
Johnson Space Center Forum
A successful Constellation Program at NASA will require the application of superb system engineering competencies. Currently, we face unique system engineering challenges that must be addressed to effectively design a complex manned space vehicle, develop new sub-systems and integrate existing elements that were designed for other missions.
To address some of these challenges, Johnson Space Center (JSC) Director Michael Coats is sponsoring a 4-hour Systems Engineering (SE) Forum. The forum is being presented in collaboration with the NASA Academy of Program/Project Management and Engineering Leadership, and it will feature a panel of distinguished experts in SE design who will share their insights and lessons learned from similar challenges.
Panelists include: Dennis Mays, Director, System Engineering and Integration, Missile Defense Agency; Brian Persons, Engineering Director, Naval Sea Systems Command; Michael Gaydar, Chief Systems Engineer, Naval Air Systems Command; Brian Muirhead, Program Systems Engineer (PSE), Constellation Program; Richard Ryan, Technical Specialist, Chief Engineer’s Office, Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC); Wayne Hale, NASA Deputy Associate Administrator for Strategic Partnerships; and Dale Thomas, Deputy Program Manager, Constellation Program. The panel will be facilitated by Steve Kapurch from the Office of the Chief Engineer at NASA Headquarters. Opening remarks will be given by Bobby Watkins, Chief of Staff, Office of the Director, JSC.
Due to an overwhelming response, only those individuals whose names have been provided by their organizations will be guaranteed seats at the forum, and all personnel must register upon arrival. Those members of the JSC community who are unable to attend the event in person are encouraged to participate via WebEx / Teleconference or view the broadcast on JSC TV on Friday, August 22, 2008.
Participants should use the following URL to join the SE Forum WebEx meeting: https://nasa.webex.com.
To obtain the WebEx meeting number and password, as well as the Teleconference phone number and passcode, please contact the JSC Center Director’s Office @ 281-483-5309. WebEx participants are urged to assemble in conference rooms for this event to minimize the number of WebEx connections needed and to foster group discussion of the topics presented.
This is a reminder that members of the SE community at other NASA Centers, who were not able to attend the recent JSC Systems Engineering Forum via WebEx / Teleconference, will have an opportunity to watch the rebroadcast of the event on the NASA TV Space Operations Channel (Cable TV Channel 95) on Friday, August 22, starting at 11:00 AM (Central).
Event Details
DATE: Thursday, August 21, 2008
TIME:1:00 pm - 5:00 pm CST
PLACE: JSC Gilruth Center, Alamo Ballroom
NASA TV: Friday, August 22, 2008
Career Development
Competencies
The Academy’s development framework is based on a rigorous set of competencies that project managers and systems engineers should have in order to perform their jobs. The Academy seeks to help practitioners build their competencies in order reach the highest level of performance. A key step for NASA project managers and systems engineers is to understand the requirements of their roles and the related competencies.
Project Management Competencies
| 1.0 | Project Conceptualization | 6.0 | NASA Environment |
| 1.1 | Project Proposal | 6.1 | Agency Structure and Internal Goals |
| 1.2 | Requirement Development | 6.2 | NASA PM Procedures & Guidelines |
| 1.3 | Acquisition Management | 6.3 | International Standards and Political Implications |
| 1.4 | Project Planning | 7.0 | Human Capital Management |
| 1.5 | Cost Estimating | 7.1 | Position Management |
| 1.6 | Risk Management | 7.2 | Recruitment, Hiring and Retention |
| 2.0 | Resource Management | 7.3 | Team Dynamics & Management |
| 2.1 | IT and MIS | 8.0 | Safety, Security, & Mission Assurance |
| 2.2 | Budget and Full Cost Management | 8.1 | Environment and Ecology |
| 2.3 | Capital Management | 8.2 | Workplace Safety |
| 3.0 | Project Implementation | 8.3 | Mission Assurance |
| 3.1 | Systems Engineering | 8.4 | Security |
| 3.2 | Design and Development | 9.0 | Professional & Leadership Development |
| 3.3 | Contract Management | 9.1 | Mentoring & Coaching |
| 4.0 | Delivery, Operation, and Closeout | 9.2 | Communication/Decision-Making |
| 4.1 | Logistics Management | 9.3 | Leadership |
| 4.2 | Stakeholder Management | 9.4 | Ethics |
| 4.3 | Technology Transfer and Communication | 10.0 | Knowledge Management |
| 5.0 | Project Control and Evaluation | 10.1 | Knowledge Capture & Transfer |
| 5.1 | Tracking/Trending of Project Performance | 10.2 | Knowledge Sharing |
| 5.2 | Project Control | ||
| 5.3 | Project Review and Evaluation |
Career Development Gateway
Your future at NASA depends on a number of factors. Participation in professional development activities that complement and enrich your work experience is particularly important. The Academy of Program, Project and Engineering Leadership (APPEL) provides NASA’s technical workforce with guidance on the competencies, professional experiences, and educational opportunities needed at each level of their NASA careers. It offers a systematic approach to professional growth and self-improvement, and is designed to build competency and support career-planning activities for program/project practitioners.
The Planning Process for Practitioners
Tools You'll Need
APPEL’s Development Approach (overview of The Academy’s development philosophy and key components of Technical Development Model)
PM/SE Four-Level Development Framework
(what you need to know and be able to do at each level)
Development Planning Matrix (training and development requirements for each level)
Individual Development Plan (constructing your roadmap)
Project Management Competency Model and the Systems Engineering Competency Model (competencies and performance level descriptors)
The cornerstone activity in the career development process for project managers (PM) and systems engineers (SE) is the creation and execution of an Individual Development Plan (IDP). The IDP includes self-assessment, goal setting, and planning development strategies, and will assist you in developing the knowledge, skills, and competencies needed for success. In addition to the IDP, each individual should create a Personal Development Portfolio (PDP). This will serve as a record of all of your development accomplishments and can be used to assist you in tracking your progress through the career development framework. An important part of the process is working with your manager or supervisor to identify and agree upon planned strategies that can help you achieve your development goals.
Career Development Gateway
Files
The PM Development Framework outlines the experience requirements and examples of what individuals should know for Levels 1 through 4.
The Development Planning Matrix sets out recommended APPEL courses for each level
Videos
Masters Forum 16
| Video Summaries | Video Links | |
|---|---|---|
Project Management: Are You Using the Right Stuff? |  Click to Play Video | |
Steve Goo, Boeing Integrated Defense Systems Steve Goo describes the Boeing Program Management Best Practices, an integrated management system the company has refined over the past ten years to enable programs of all sizes achieve high levels of performance and customer satisfaction. He discusses the importance of staying focused on the fundamentals, sharing lessons learned, and balancing new technologies with proven methods of program management as well as the essential elements of leadership and creating a culture of success. 24 minutes running time | ||
Learning from Space Entrepreneurs | Click to Play Video | |
William Pomerantz, X PRIZE Foundation On October 4, 2004, Brian Binnie piloted SpaceShipOne above 100 km, marking the third time ever—and the second time in as many weeks—that a civilian astronaut had taken a privately built craft to outer space. In doing so, Binnie and SpaceShipOne captured the $10 million Ansari X PRIZE for Mojave Aerospace Ventures. Prizes like the Ansari X PRIZE and later efforts like the NASA-funded Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander Challenge and the $30 million Google Lunar X PRIZE exist to focus public attention and apply innovative new ideas to targeted technical problems. Equally, if not more, important are the innovative program management practices that come into play when extremely small and motivated teams put their own money on the line to win a prize. Program mangers at NASA and other government agencies can take important cues from the teams competing for prizes. 53 minutes running time | ||
Applying the Secrets of Hubble’s Success to Contellation | Click to Play Video | |
Frank Cepollina, Goddard Space Flight Center Frank Cepollina is known as the “Father of On-Orbit Servicing” for his decades of leadership in repairing and upgrading satellites in orbit. The most famous of these is the Hubble Space Telescope. He is responsible for the on-orbit servicing and the development of new science instruments and replacement hardware that allow Hubble to stay on the cutting edge of technology throughout its long life, and he discusses how these experiences can help NASA better prepare for future missions and its Vision for Space Exploration. 1 hour running time | ||
Jump-Starting the FutureApollo Legacy, Shuttle Lessons | Click to Play Video | |
G. Lee Norbraten, Johnson Space Center The current NASA strategic initiative to return to the moon and go beyond has its heritage in both the Apollo and the Space Shuttle programs. The legacy of Apollo lies in the physics: the shape and size of the spacecraft and the path to the moon and back remind us strongly of Apollo because the laws of physics have not changed over the past forty years. The lessons of the shuttle lie in the programmatics—the delicate balancing of cost, schedule, and technical constraints in an environment where consensus is hard to reach and even harder to maintain. G. Lee Norbraten examines how the heritage of both the Apollo and shuttle programs provides a proper foundation for the future of human space flight. He also reviews the current status of the Space Shuttle program, including the issues presented by its planned retirement in 2010. 1 hour 3 minutes running time | ||
Masters Forum 16
Graphics
Group Work Pictures
How We Learn—Group Exercise
Ed Hoffman, Academy of Program/Project & Engineering Leadership
Ed Hoffman asked Masters Forum 16 participants, “How do you learn?” Participants separated into nine groups to discuss the various ways they learn as individuals and teams, then captured those myriad ways on white boards. Many overarching common themes and approaches surfaced from the different groups, and the visual representations also demonstrated the different ways we assimilate and distribute information, from bulleted lists to creative artwork. Images from the group discussions are available below.
Masters Forum 16
Graphics
Group Work Images
How We Learn—Group Exercise
Ed Hoffman, Academy of Program/Project & Engineering Leadership
Ed Hoffman asked Masters Forum 16 participants, “How do you learn?” Participants separated into nine groups to discuss the various ways they learn as individuals and teams, then captured those myriad ways on white boards. Many overarching common themes and approaches surfaced from the different groups, and the visual representations also demonstrated the different ways we assimilate and distribute information, from bulleted lists to creative artwork. Images from the group discussions are available below.
