Does Size Really Matter? How Quality Should be Analyzed for the Acquisition Workforce

Abstract

The original purpose of this study was to describe and analyze the success of the acquisition workforce initiative in expanding and improving the quality of the acquisition workforce. Unfortunately, due to lack of data and no clear definition of quality within the acquisitions community, this was not possible. Instead, this study examines and critiques previous notions of workforce quality in the context of government employment. We offer a preliminary framework with which to build and assess workforce quality in the future. We discuss methods used, identify insufficiencies, and provide suggestions for measurement and program evaluation. Furthermore, we provide a conceptual framework behind a generally accepted definition of quality based on the human capital literature and provide recommendations for data collection in order to conduct valid evaluations of the success (or failure) of the Acquisition Workforce Initiative going forward.