Veteran Chinook helicopter pilot Army Lt. Col. Al Niles Jr. changed course and became an Army acquisition officer, and instead of take-offs and landings, he’s working on acquisition and contracting.
Also a maintenance test pilot, Niles has 19 years of flying experience with multiple combat deployments. For the last year he has been a fellow in the Army Acquisition Corps’ Training with Industry program, working with Lockheed Martin in Orlando, Florida, and gaining experience on everything from program management and business development to capture management, finance and contracting.
“I've had the opportunity to participate in the integrated process for several commercial aviation and international programs, for which I was able to provide helpful viewpoints,” Niles said about his experience with TWI. His technical expertise in aviation, he said, provided him the opportunity to work with several teams charged with resolving complex aviation challenges.
TWI is designed to give selected Army commissioned and noncommissioned officers the opportunity to work with industry to see how the private sector works, and to then use that perspective to help improve Army acquisition, Niles said.
“My experience [with TWI] has been very positive,” Niles said. “In this profession, I’m continuously developing my business expertise by being involved in major acquisition programs. I’ve been able to gain an in-depth understanding of the Lockheed Martin organization and how it relates to the Army from a business perspective, and I was also able to participate in domestic and international business operations.”
For Niles, the biggest surprise was “the vast amount of knowledge and support we [the military] get from our national laboratories and collegiate partners. When you’re in the Army Acquisition Corps, you get to see that we collaborate with many organizations to develop equipment for soldiers. There are a tremendous amount of people and other experts outside of the military who put resources into developing a boot, a helmet, a weapon system, et cetera. It’s not just one or two people.”
For those considering the program, Niles had this advice to offer: “Know exactly what you’d like to learn while you’re in TWI. Know what you expect to get out of the year of experience -- there won’t be a program laid out for you when you get there.”
Employing Talents
With a background in special operations forces acquisition, Niles is set to take command in July as the Product Manager for Special Operations Forces Training Systems within the Program Executive Office for Simulation, Training, and Instrumentation, and he plans on taking some of the lessons he’s learned from TWI and his other assignments to his next post.
He highlighted one of those lessons: don’t focus on the equipment, focus on the people who make it happen.
“I had the opportunity to observe talent management techniques from a different perspective during my TWI experience,” Niles said, “which solidified [for me] that finding and keeping skilled talent takes coaching, tracking and investing in the right training and education opportunities for the workforce. People first!”
Niles has served as a company commander for an aviation unit in Iraq, a Chinook aviation operations officer in Afghanistan, the assistant product manager for Product Manager Air Warrior in Iraq and Afghanistan [within PEO Soldier], and as the chief of aviation accident investigations for Afghanistan.
“Through the years and several deployments, I think the acquisition community has gotten better at providing the warfighter with the equipment and services they need anywhere in the world,” he said. “As the mission has transitioned, so has the ability of the Army Acquisition Corps to be more agile, effective and efficient.”
Giving Back
In what spare time he can muster, Niles said he makes sure he finds time to be involved with the Orlando community, whether it’s with veterans’ organizations, schools or youth programs. He has racked up more 250 hours of community service during his time in the TWI program, he said.
“I think that it is very important that we give back to the community and inspire our future leaders, the children, whenever it’s possible,” Niles said. “Many of us have experienced challenges or moments that have shaped us into who we are today. I feel as though the time that I dedicate to give back to could result in another individual to achieve greatness.”
His intent to serve the community didn’t start with TWI. For the past several years, he has taken an annual trip to his alma mater, Tuskegee University in Alabama, to speak to students and ROTC cadets and to connect with junior soon-to-be officers, pointing them to the resources and information he didn’t have as a lieutenant.
What motivates Niles to make community service a priority?
“A sense of duty and responsibility to something bigger than myself,” he said.