Wanted to let our DoD Product Support Managers (PSM) and senior Life Cycle Logicians know about EXE 4000 Problem Solving for Tomorrow's Defense Leaders, a new executive level leadership course for DoD acquisition professionals that powerfully complements our LOG 465 Executive Product Support Manager’s Course.

According to our Defense Systems Management College (DSMC) colleagues, “in this course you will:

• Add a broad range of thinking models to your leadership arsenal.
• Develop diverse problem-solving skills to transform your team into a high-performing organization.
• Gain dynamic mastery of decision-making tools to improve future plans and strategies.
• Understand your thinking preferences and how they affect your team’s ability to problem solve.

This course is designed to increase the ability of leaders to leverage thinking models and take yourself and your organization to new levels of success. With the tools and skills provided, you will be able to pivot to meet the challenges leaders often face within defense programs and portfolios. You will be able think and act decisively in an age of volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity. During this one-week offering, you will:

• Sharpen your critical thinking tools and decision skills set by adding an arsenal of thinking models to provide capabilities to the warfighter.
• Develop a brain trust of service/agency and industry peers to support you as a future DoD leader.
• Master techniques that enrich and optimize the diversity of a cross-functional team.
• Identify personal biases and techniques to strengthen decision making.
• Be fully equipped with thinking and problem solving best practices and gain insight into critical supporting program information.

A team of faculty and experts from diverse business disciplines provide in-depth knowledge in core areas including Thinking models, Capability Integration and Acquisition Leadership. Class sessions capture the years of experience in the room. Synergistic dialogue throughout this course will result in career-spanning, cross-DoD relationships.” Note: EXE 4000 requires Level III DAWIA certification in any acquisition career field, including Life Cycle Logistics.

See also the article “Problem Solving Tools for Executives Starts with EXE 4000” for additional details.