ASMC visits ... the naval postgraduate school.

Monterey, California, is a national treasure nestled below sloping hills of pine forest on the shores of Monterey Bay. The waters of the bay are crystal clear and are inhabited by otters, sea lions, and all manner of marine life. The fishing industry thrives, and the ghosts of John Steinbeck and Doc Ricketts (immortalized by Steinbeck in his novel Cannery Row) still walk the streets. The climate is mild, mostly sunny, and extremely pleasant.

To the south lay the village of Carmel and, further south, the cliffs of Big Sur. To the north, the urban center of San Francisco calls. Everywhere the lush agriculture of California is evident in the strawberry and artichoke fields that stretch for miles.

It was to this setting that the Naval Postgraduate (NPS) School relocated from the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis in December 1951, and it was to this setting that I traveled in order to learn about three excellent financial management education programs housed on the NPS campus: the Defense-focused MBA programs conducted by the NPS Graduate School of Business and Public Policy (GSBPP), the Navy's Practical Comptrollership Course, and the Defense Resources Management Institute, a tenant organization of the NPS that teaches advanced resource management skills to United States and foreign students.

Graduate School of Business and Public Policy

I was welcomed to the GSBPP by Dr. Douglas Brook, former Assistant Secretary of the Army for Financial Management, a man well versed in the complexities of Defense management, operations, and financing and the dean of the GSBPP. He briefed me on the role of the school, emphasizing that it is the leading school for Defense-focused graduate-level management education.

In addition to the normal core of business courses included in a traditional master of business administration (MBA) program, there are a series of mission core courses as well as Defense-focused curricular specialization in the areas of financial management, acquisition, logistics, resource planning and management, manpower, contracting, defense systems, and information systems.

The program in residence typically takes a student 18 months to complete: 41 quarter hours in the business core, 17 quarter hours in the mission-related core, and 24 or more hours in one's curricular concentration, capped by a master's application project or a thesis.

The GSBPP School is accredited by the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration and the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business--International. The Naval Postgraduate School carries institutional accreditation from the Western Association of Schools and Colleges.

Of the more than 1,500 enrolled students at the NPS, 430 are in the GSBP, which maintains a low student-to-faculty ratio through a faculty of over 60 members. In financial management there are two faculty groups, Accounting, which has nine members, and Budgeting, which has six. I was able to observe a number of the faculty in action, and in no case were they anything but dynamic, articulate, and extremely well informed about their area of expertise. Observing those classes was a pleasure.

Following my briefing with Dr. Brook, Dr. Larry Jones, my host for the visit, invited me to observe a finance class in session, it was Tuesday, "uniform day" for the students, so it was very evident that all participants in the resident program were very sharp military officers in the grades O-4 and O-5, and all services were represented. The class was completing the second quarter, and students were still in the business course phase of the program. There were about 70 in the amphitheater; Dr. John Shank, a member of the financial management faculty and formerly with Harvard University, conducted a session of Corporate Finance. It was fast-moving, demanding, and seemed to me to be very complex. Dr. Shank said, "This is real MBA instruction--you feel like you're swimming; [it's] hard to keep up."

If you watched the television series several years ago featuring Harvard Law School and the old wise professor who drove the students unmercifully, you would know why Dr. Shank reminded me of him. He asked me later how I liked the class, and I had to admit it was fairly difficult. After the lecture many of the students assured me it wasn't just me. This is a demanding course, and the students were working hard at it.

Nontraditional Formats Focus on the Nonresident Student

The 18-month resident format is not the only way GSBPP conducts the MBA program. There are two other formats currently in use. One is a nonresident MBA called the Executive MBA (EMBA) program. The program is a 24-month part-time program in which students meet once a week in their local area. It is intended for those who cannot break away from their duties full time for 18 months, and it requires 54 quarter hours of graduate study, including a 37-hour business core and 17 hours of DoD concentrated course work.

The delivery is done by a hybrid of distance-learning approaches and can be offered virtually at any location. The program is currently located at Naval facilities at Norfolk, San Diego, Lemoore (Central California for F-18 pilots), and Pensacola, Florida. The GSBPP School will consider establishing a class at any location where there are five or more officers to enroll, and where command support is evidenced.

The hybrid teaching delivery model is interesting, consisting of some faculty visitation (at least one face-to-face class, video teleconferencing--two-way video/two-way audio--and Web-based instruction). It is a common misconception that Web-based instruction is easy once the course is initially in place, Associate Professor Dr. Richard B. Doyle explained.

He gave a demonstration of the budgeting course he teaches using Blackboard software. It quickly became obvious that this tool, while it does overcome distance barriers, does not increase the ability of faculty to manage greater student loads, nor does it decrease work time. Rather, the work for the instructor is increased, for it becomes a seven-day routine as he or she keeps up with student lessons, threaded discussions, student-instructor correspondence, etc. The school recognizes this by giving an instructor credit for one and a half times more work than if it were the same class in residence.

For more information on the EMBA program, visit the Web site at www.emba.nps.navy.mil. The point of contact for the EMBA is Program Director Captain Patrick Flanagan, SC, USN (Ret). He can be reached at [phone]; his e-mail address is [e-mail].

The second nontraditional format offered is a partnership arrangement called the Joint MBA Program, now underway with the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business. It essentially is a cooperative agreement between the GSBPP and the University of Maryland, in which Maryland teaches the core business subjects and the NPS teaches the Defense-focused ones. Taught in the Ronald Reagan Building in the D.C. Metro area, the 33-month program consists of 27 semester hours of business management courses, 21 hours of Defense-focused courses and 6 hours of electives.

Interested personnel can find more information at www.jmba.nps.navy.mil and can apply online at www.rhsmith.umd.edu/mpo/cnpg/applications.html. The point of contact is JMBA Program Director Becky Jones at [phone]; her e-mail address is [e-mail].

Conrad Scholars

During my visit I met with Vice Admiral Tom Hughes, USN (Ret), Distinguished Visiting Lecturer and holder of the Conrad Chair, who had just returned from Washington. Each year, the Graduate School of Business and Public Policy selects as many as four high-potential students as potential Conrad Scholars. in addition to his teaching assignments, Admiral Hughes works closely with the potential Conrad Scholars as they develop special thesis projects for eventual briefing to the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Financial Management and other interested USN headquarters staff.

The demanding thesis project counts as 12 quarter hours (as opposed to the normal master's project of 6 quarter hours). This year's briefings had just been concluded. Two students had gone to Washington with Admiral Hughes. One student briefed on proposed changes to the acquisition process used for buying information technology. The other student briefed on methods to detect and reduce credit card fraud.

Following approval of the briefings and their theses and completion of an additional 5,000-word essay for publication, the coveted Conrad Scholar designation is awarded to the students. This designation distinguishes them as high academic performers in every sense of the word and is very helpful in future assignments and career progression. In fact, the two Conrad scholars in this cohort were also competing for top graduate honors of their entire class. (Students enter the program as a cohort; they take all classes together and complete the program as a group.)

Navy Practical Comptrollership Course

Visiting this two-week course (nine classroom days) was a real treat. Not only was the classroom full of bright-eyed civilian and military financial managers, but I was asked to give a guest lecture on professional development, my favorite topic. I visited early in the next to last day of the course and really sensed and enjoyed the rapport that the course members had built as they worked through the excellent case study designed by the course director designer and implementer, Commander Philip J. Candreva, Supply Corps, USN.

The Navy Practical Comptrollership Course, or PCC as it is called, is an intensive two-week course in Defense financial management under the sponsorship of the Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Financial Management and Comptroller), and it is part of the Navy Civilian Financial Management Career Program. The PCC is specifically designed for individuals who are incumbent in or about to report to responsible positions in financial management. It is open to GS-9 through GS-14 personnel and officers O-2 and above. The students are a good mix of military and civilian personnel with experiences and backgrounds varied enough to allow an exchange of knowledge just through interacting with one another.

The course content covers major topics in Defense financial management, including general governmental financial management and the appropriation process, the DoD Planning, Programming, Budgeting and Execution process, fiscal law, management of appropriated funds, working capital funds, contracting, budget execution, auditing, ethics, and contemporary issues in Defense financial management. Course lectures and discussion are liberally supplemented with guest speakers and case studies; a high level of interactivity is maintained. The course is offered seven times per fiscal year with course schedules; quotas are announced in July each year. The point of contact is Commander Candreva, who can be contacted at [phone] (DSN 756-2884) or at [e-mail].

This course has been highly rated over time by the students who have attended it, and it is exactly the overview many need. This is the kind of training of which many (including myself) have said, "I wish this had been available when I started in financial management."

Every student who attends PCC is given a CD with extensive financial management references on it, which will serve as an excellent daily on-the-job reference. Also, students receive two booklets of case studies illustrative of principles of fiscal law, which are designed to showcase key fiscal legal concepts, in particular, avoiding career-limiting antideficiency violations. Credit Commander Candreva for preparing and distributing these materials that directly enrich the learning experience. Good course!

Defense Resources Management Institute

During my visit, I met with Dr. C. J. LaCivita, Executive Director of the Defense Resources Management Institute (DRMI) and a good friend and former colleague. His administrative offices, some classrooms, and faculty offices have long been housed in one wing of the old Del Monte Hotel, an attractive and a very historic building built originally in the 1880s (Monterey's first real tourist attraction) and rebuilt after a number of fires. It is a very pleasant setting, and the students stay in BOQ (bachelor officer quarters) rooms upstairs. Unfortunately present plans call for moving the DRMI and rebuilding the wing into more modern BOQ space. I'm afraid that a lot of the old charm that DRMI facilities have enjoyed will be lost in the process.

The DRMI, sponsored and supervised by the Secretary of Defense, has conducted professional educational programs in analytical decision making and resource management for military officers of all services and for senior civilian officials of the United States and over 150 other countries since 1965. These regularly scheduled programs are presented at DRMI in Monterey and by specific arrangement at other locations in the United States and foreign countries.

The goals of the Institute are to enable students to understand analytic concepts as they apply to the allocation of financial, logistic, and human resources; to provide courses for foreign countries and international agencies subject to the approval of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (International Security Affairs); and to maintain a research program relating to resource management. Dr. LaCivita stated that his vision is to take experienced technical practitioners in financial management and broaden their horizons so that they become advisors and consultants to commanders.

DRMI offers four basic courses. These are the four-week Defense Resources Management Course, given five times a year; the eleven-week International Defense Management Course, given twice a year; the four-week Senior International Defense Management Course, given once a year; and a number of two-week mobile courses given up to twelve times a year. DRMI faculty are always busy; and usually when you want to contact one of them, he or she is on the other side of the globe teaching financial management (and democratic principles) to students in any one of 150 countries!

Defense Resources Management Course

The Defense Resources Management Course is taught in residence in Monterey and is designed for professional managers working in functional fields calling for resource allocation. It applies the basic concepts and techniques of analysis and is designed to enhance the understanding, competence, and capabilities of students attending. Recommended for mid-managers and above, this course is the one most heavily attended by U.S. students and civilian managers.

Unfortunately, none of the DRMI courses were in session during the week I visited; however, I have observed many of the DRMI Faculty in the past and, again, the quality of instruction and faculty expertise is superb. DRMI has approximately 24 Faculty members, including a number of senior military lecturers, so the "real world" contemporary financial management lessons are readily available. A great majority of the faculty have earned PhDs, and all are part of the Naval Postgraduate School faculty for promotion and tenure purposes.

The course carries a college credit recommendation from the American Council on Education, so students who attend will be able to get their learning experience recognized on a college transcript. It also counts as 116 continuing professional education units for purposes of Certified Defense Financial Manager certification.

International Defense Management Course

The International Defense Management Course, also taught in Monterey, has academic goals similar to those of the shorter U.S. course; however, the course is expanded in its scope and depth. The international students do comparative studies of systems in place in various countries and discuss the applicability of the analytic concepts taught to these systems. Participants study these ideas in the overall context of three principal phases of management activity--strategic planning, implementation, and operations. Participants also normally take at least one field trip during the course.

Senior International Defense Management Course

Once a year there is a Senior International Defense Management Course for general and flag officers and equivalent civilians. Again, the academic objectives are similar to the other courses. The senior course is extremely popular. The last one consisted of representatives of 36 countries.

Mobile Courses

Finally, there are a series of mobile two-week courses taken to countries overseas as part of the International Management Education and Training Program coordinated with the Defense Security Coordination Agency and a two-week analytical decision-making course for U.S. military officers and civilians (GS-9 and above).

Customized Courses

As if all that were not enough, DRMI will also do customized courses for agencies upon request, such as a two-week National Security Agency course presented in Linthicum, Maryland, or the three-day Defense Agency Performance Course sponsored by the Office of the Secretary of Defense (Program Analysis and Evaluation).

International Acclaim

A great deal of excellent international good will has been built through the DRMI international programs. Many very senior influential positions in other countries are or have been filled by DRMI graduates. These include the King of Jordan; Ministers of Defense in Argentina, Honduras, Latvia, Philippines, Romania, and the Slovak Republic; the Vice Minister of Defense in Lithuania; the chairman of the NATO Military Committee; and Chiefs of the Joint Staff in Argentina, Columbia, and Indonesia, to name only a very few. On a recent visit, General Gerts-Valadis Kristovkis, Minister of Defense of Latvia, was quoted as saying, "Latvia is successful in NATO because of what I learned here."

Contact Information

Again, as with other Monterey-based programs, attending any of the DRMI courses is an excellent investment in your future. You can visit their Web site at www.nps.navy.mil/drmi/ or call [phone]/2306 (DSN prefix is 756). The e-mail address is [e-mail].

Postscript

ASMC has formed a tentative partnership with the Graduate School of Business and Public Policy to enable a number of the GSBPP faculty to teach at future regional Professional Development Institutes. This will be another excellent step toward further upgrading the quality of education provided at these events.

Author's note: I am most appreciative of all the support I received from Dr. Brook, his faculty, and the students in all of the NPS programs while I was researching this article and especially of the hospitality and efforts of Dr. Larry Jones, who arranged for the faculty interviews and class observation times. Dr. Jones and his colleague Dr. Jerry McCaffrey have just sent their most recent book to the publisher; it will be reviewed in the next edition of the Armed Forces Comptroller. Titled Budgeting and Financial Management for National Defense, the book concentrates entirely on the financial management process within the Department. We are all looking forward to its release.

John T. Raines is associate director for Professional Development at the American Society of Military Comptrollers. He is currently working on the training portion of the Defense Financial Management Certification program. Previous work assignments include program and fiscal management for the Army Continuing Education System; Appropriation Director for Program 8 (General Personnel Activities), Army Budget Office, Headquarters Department of the Army; Chief of the Financial Management Education and Training Division, CFO Support Directorate, Office of the Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller); and past Acting President of the Defense Business Management University.