By Alexandra Shelton, NSWC PCD Naval Acquisition Development Program intern

Naval Surface Warfare Center Panama City Division (NSWC PCD) strives to enhance its strategic partnerships with government, academia, industry and allies. One NSWC PCD employee recently personified that pursuit of business excellence by completing a U.S. Navy Insights into Industry Management Course (NIMC) at the University of Virginia (UVA) last month.

Nicholas Sarica, NSWC PCD Logistics Entry Level Employee (ELE), attended this NIMC course held at the UVA Darden School of Business in Charlottesville, Va., and led by professors who teach Master of Business Administration Courses.

The purpose of the course was to communicate to government employees and contract specialists how different industries view the way the Navy does business. This three-week course challenged its participants to navigate this introspective content using a multi-pronged approach full of lectures, activities, and group discussions.

Some of the lectures included industry speakers from Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, and Northrop Grumman who shared their insight on communication, doing business with the government and why industries make certain decisions when balancing the needs of their stakeholders and shareholders. The class also completed activities including participating in a “cost game” that involved successfully managing a small printing company and reviewing private sector related case studies that included companies like Apple and Google. Along with knowledge Sarica gained, he explained his greatest takeaway.

“[Industries] want to build relationships with the government,” said Sarica. “My long-term goal from the course is to lead by example by forming strong working relationships and open communication with our industry partners to inspire NSWC PCD employees to do the same. I think anybody could benefit from [taking this course]. More specifically our contract specialists who deal with industry most often.”

The class was comprised of numerous participants from Naval Sea Systems Command, Naval Air Systems Command, Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command, Naval Information Warfare Systems Command, and the Marine Corps Systems Command, who also worked in a wide range of functional areas: contract specialists, logistics, supply, business financial managers, and approximately 10 Navy officers.

Sarica, entering his third year in the Naval Acquisition Development Program (NADP) as a Logistics Management Specialist ELE, plans to apply this experience into his career moving forward.

“When [I graduate from] the program, I am definitely going to try to build relationships with [industry partners] and have it be less transactional,” Sarica said. “Strengthening working relationships and improving communication with our industry partners will ensure optimal support is provided to the warfighter.”

Darden Executive Education has been providing educational programs to the U.S. Navy for more than 50 years.