https://challenge.gov/a/buzz/challenge/86/ideas/top
ABOUT THE COMPETITION
NSF has a hypothesis.
Technology is changing the way we do our work, and the work itself. To keep up, the National Science Foundation (NSF) plans to invest in its most critical resource – the workforce. And it’s not just NSF. The need for an adaptable and ready workforce extends to other Federal agencies and beyond. No industry will be immune to the way advances in technology change the nature of work. As a pressing example, we are facing critical gaps in matching people with data science and cybersecurity skills with the right mission needs. NSF believes that, along with other agencies and organizations, the best way to maintain a workforce ready to carry out its mission is to encourage a culture of continuous learning, and to empower each person to refresh and modernize their skills toward future work. We want to spark the thinking of the best and brightest to co-create a solution that can enable individual skill-matching and tailored training for the Workforce for the 21st Century.
COMPETITION OVERVIEW
The different types of roles and opportunities the Government offers the Federal workforce are more diverse than they have ever been, and the way federal staff work is changing. Federal employees no longer stay on a linear career path in the same field for most of their careers. Instead, many employees are branching out by making lateral moves into different fields. In addition, the pace of changes to the types of work that employees do, largely because of the ever-changing pace of technology, has increased dramatically over the past few years. It is difficult for agencies to identify and provide training for the workforce at the same rate of those changes. And it’s likely that the Federal Government is not alone. The winning solution will:
- Describe the proposed solution, explain how it works, and clearly identify how it will solve the problems articulated in the challenge description
- Address individuals as the end user for the solution, starting with NSF employees
- Explain the competitive advantage of the approach
- Include a comprehensive workflow for the proposed solution
- Provide an example use case (“Part 1”) or working prototype (“Part 2”)
- Include a visual representation of the solution, such as a drawing, architecture diagram, or framework
Part 1 (November 9, 2018 – December 31, 2018)
In Part 1 of this challenge, solvers are asked to submit a concept white paper that describe a solution to the challenge of continuous workforce reskilling and the desire for increased mobility within and between NSF and other Federal agencies (and perhaps even the private sector), as an example. Solvers are asked to think creatively about methods that go beyond the traditional “career path” thinking and “strategic workforce planning” methodology when exposing future skill needs or opportunities for an individual’s consideration when choosing a development path. Solvers are also asked to consider relevant research on adult cognition and reskilling, particularly for those that must “work” and “learn” simultaneously. A panel of judges will evaluate the concept paper submissions, and up to five may be selected as Part 1 prize winners. The winning concepts will then be made available for solvers interested in participating in Part 2 of this challenge.
Based on the quality of submissions received, between one and five white papers will be selected to win the award purse for “Part 1”. Each winner or winning team will receive a one-time prize of $5,000.00 to be issued in the form of an electronic direct deposit payment. Winners will be responsible for providing the NSF Division of Financial Management with banking information (must be a U.S. bank account) in order to facilitate the electronic payment (i.e. direct deposit).
For a participant’s concept submission to be eligible to win “Part 1” prize monies, the submitter must agree to have their winning concept materials posted on Challenge.gov and for the “Part 2” solver community to be able to leverage the concept materials for prototype development.
Part 2 (February 25, 2019 – June 28, 2019)
In Part 2, solvers are encouraged to leverage and build upon winning concepts to develop a working prototype for Government testing and evaluation. Solvers will have approximately one month to register to participate in Part 2 of the challenge, either as individuals or as teams. NSF will host an entrance conference with Part 2 registered solvers to:
- Understand the solver community’s ideal needs for data, NSF staff subject matter expertise, etc.
- Set a cadence for regular interaction with the Part 2 solver community for the duration of the Part 2 competition timeframe.
- Answer questions the Part 2 solver community may have related to winning concept papers.
The intent of the Government is to hold webinars and/or teleconferences with all Part 2 potential solvers simultaneously, to the extent that the solvers are interested in participating. All engagement between the Government and the Part 2 solver community will be open to all registered solvers who wish to participate, and any information shared during these times will be made available to all Part 2 registered solvers.
Based on the quality of submissions received, up to one successful prototype will be selected to win the award purse for “Part 2”. The winner or winning team will receive a one-time prize of $75,000.00 to be issued in the form of an electronic direct deposit payment. Winners will be responsible for providing the NSF Division of Financial Management with banking information (must be a U.S. bank account) in order to facilitate the electronic payment (i.e. direct deposit).
For a participant’s prototype submission to be eligible to win “Part 2” prize money, the submitter must make the prototype available for live testing and evaluation by the Federal government.
From: NSF ERA Forum <nsferaforum@nsf.gov>
Sent: Thursday, November 15, 2018 10:47 AM
To: NSF ERA Forum <nsferaforum@nsf.gov>
Subject: Help the National Science Foundation Shape the Future Workforce!
Dear Colleagues,
The ERA Forum Team wanted to share this exciting opportunity with you. The National Science Foundation (NSF) has just launched a cash prize competition, totaling $100,000, called the NSF Career Compass Challenge. Entries are being accepted now at https://challenge.gov/a/buzz/challenge/86/ideas/top
NSF is looking to spark the thinking of the best and brightest to co-create a tool that can be tested on a small scale, for NSF, but is intended to be useful to a broad range of employers in both the public and private sectors. Join this opportunity for the general public, research communities, private sector and other interested stakeholders to assist with creating a solution that will invest in the future of the U.S. workforce!
For questions regarding the challenge please contact the NSF Career Compass Challenge team: CareerCompassChallenge@nsf.gov
Best,
NSF ERA Forum Team
National Science Foundation