SAN JOAQUIN, Calif. — Eric Hilinski was looking for a promotion when he left his job as a police officer at Defense Logistics Agency Distribution in San Joaquin, Calif., for an entry-level position at DLA Disposition Services in San Joaquin. The starting pay was less than he already made, but the Air Force and Army National Guard veteran had a plan.

“I learned that 30 to 50 percent of DLA Disposition’s workforce will be eligible to retire in the next few years, so it seemed like a good opportunity for me to get in and work my way up,” he said.

With just four months on the job as a material examiner and identifier, Hilinski deployed to Kuwait in July 2010 to process excess and damaged equipment for troops serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. Co-workers there told him about DLA’s Corporate Intern Program, and in November 2010 he submitted an online application.

“This was the avenue of career progression that I was looking for,” he said 10 months into the program.

Hilinski is one of more than 180 interns who started the two-year developmental program in February 2011. DLA has interns at 21 locations in more than 20 career fields – including contracting, engineering, finance, information technology, property disposal, supply, and quality assurance – with progression from GS-7 to GS-11.

“A major reason people apply for the Corporate Intern Program is they know that it’s structured, that they’re going to develop in a career field and obtain what they need to be successful at the journeyman level. After interns complete the program, they have a variety of career options,” said Pam Latker, who administers the program for, DLA Training, part of DLA Human Resources Services in Columbus, Ohio.

DLA corporate interns are brought on board in February and July, and there are about 350 new interns each year. During the week-long orientation, interns learn about DLA, its mission and how the agency’s various activities work together to support warfighters and other customers.

“From day one, we instill an enterprise view so our interns understand the DLA structure, its operations and how the pieces of the DLA puzzle fit together to create and sustain a cohesive, high-performing organization,” Latker said.

Her staff provides program oversight, coordinates and schedules training requirements, collaborates with activities to address personnel matters, and partners with staff members at local intern centers. Team members provide job-specific training and local oversight of interns. Career advisory groups for each career field create programs of development and ensure they align with the DLA Strategic Plan, the DLA Director’s Guidance and enterprise initiatives. Intern training includes on-the-job assignments, cross training, rotational assignments and formal education that includes classroom and online training, conferences and seminars.

DLA trainers make the program successful by keeping curricula up to date and addressing changes in DLA’s mission, systems and processes, Latker said. “If changes occur in a specific career field, we work with our instructors to revise training to meet the new objectives,” she added.

When the agency modernized its technology backbone with the Enterprise Business System in 2002, for example, DLA Training updated the intern program to incorporate the new tools and processes. “With the EBS transformation, the agency transitioned from having inventory specialists to demand planners, supply planners, etc., so we adapted the career programs and training to capture the new business environment,” Latker said.

New training has also been created to address new missions DLA assumed at military industrial sites as a result of Base Realignment and Closure 2005 recommendations. The training is occasionally used to update the skills of seasoned employees.

“If a DLA activity’s leaders recognize there’s a need to train their employees in a skill area such as long-term contracting, they have the flexibility and resources to bring employees into their intern center and train them along with the interns,” Latker added. “It’s a benefit to the entire workforce.”

More than 2,100 interns have graduated from the program since it began in 2000. “Our interns have become mentors and supervisors, serve in overseas assignments and work at DLA Headquarters creating policy,” Latker said. “Several have also become instructors and train current interns. We are pleased that our graduates have contributed so much to our DLA organization.”

Keyla Alvarado began the intern program in 2005. She has since climbed to the grade of GS-12 and has gone from working in DLA Land and Maritime’s Customer Operations Division to being a career program administrator for DLA Training.

“The intern program gave me an overview of the government and how we operate, and a big-picture perspective of what DLA does to support the warfighter. The best part is the growth that you experience,” she said. “The program enriched my career development. I was able to apply what I learned, and I feel like it’s helped me progress quickly.”

Having a degree in business helped Alvarado qualify for the program, but Latker said qualifications vary according to career field. Some positions have education requirements such as a bachelor’s degree and coursework in a related field.

The program attracts a diverse workforce to the agency, Latker added. Applicants generally include college students, veterans, and people with disabilities.

“It’s great to see the diversity of people with multiple skill sets and different perspectives who enter careers with DLA through this program. The interns complement the agency, and as they progress in their careers, you’re going to see them playing a major role in moving DLA forward and shaping logistics support to the warfighter,” she said.

Connected Media