We recently spoke with Traci Walker, Executive Director of the Digital Services Coalition, who served as the former Founding Procurement Director of the USDS and one of the original creators of the Digital IT Acquisition Professional (DITAP) curriculum, to talk about an exciting new chapter for the program: DITAP for Product Thinking and Acquisitions.
Traci shared how this streamlined adaptation, part of the DITAP Refresh, introduces fresh product thinking tools and mindset into federal acquisition training. It helps participants break out of rigid procurement cycles and embrace more adaptive, iterative, and human-centered ways of working. The course gives teams fast, practical insight into how product management principles can shape smarter acquisitions and strengthen collaboration between program offices, technologists, and contracting professionals.
She also highlighted how this new approach fits into FAI’s credentialing and renewal pathways, helping acquisition professionals stay ahead as technology and federal IT needs rapidly evolve. Through hands-on learning and real-world application, participants gain the confidence to bring product thinking into their own work, creating a growing community of problem solvers who are helping agencies deliver better outcomes for the public.
As one of the original DITAP creators, how do you see DITAP for Product Thinking and Acquisitions bringing product thinking into federal acquisition training?
When I envisioned the original DITAP Program, it was always to expand it beyond contracting officers to include program managers and CORs. At the time, that opportunity didn’t materialize, but this new Product Thinking adaptation finally fulfills that vision. It bridges the gap between acquisition strategy and product delivery by helping program teams, technologists, and contract administrators better understand how modern procurements drive mission outcomes. This extension of DITAP emphasizes the link between product management practices and acquisition execution by reinforcing principles like modular contracting, iterative delivery, and repeatable procurement cycles that result in working products and measurable return on mission. It’s a direct way to operationalize product thinking within acquisition practice, ensuring that teams speak the same language from solicitation to delivery.
How do you see DITAP for Product Thinking and Acquisitions fitting into FAI’s credentialing process, especially for DITAP alumni who need renewal options?
Whether through the new adaptation or a future DITAP Refresh course, it’s essential that FAC-DS credential holders continue to evolve their skills beyond their original certification. The technology landscape is advancing rapidly to include new areas like AI, data engineering, and zero-trust security reshaping federal IT requirements, which means acquisition professionals must be equipped to respond. This course helps bridge what was built in the early DITAP framework with the realities of today’s digital service ecosystem. While the adaptation focuses more on CORs and program managers, it complements the ongoing need for DITAP alumni to update their knowledge and apply modern, mission-aligned approaches to procurement and oversight. It can help acquisition professionals enhance their lens of the entire acquisition life cycle to fully anticipate outcomes and build the strategies for them.
How can DITAP for Product Thinking and Acquisitions help acquisition professionals not just learn product thinking, but also drive culture change in their agencies?
One of the most valuable aspects of this program is its blend of traditional instruction with experiential learning. Adult professionals learn best by doing, and this course provides practical labs where they can apply concepts directly to their own agency challenges. By embedding product thinking into acquisition training, participants don’t just learn a new framework — they practice it. They develop confidence in applying user-centered design, iterative delivery, and stakeholder collaboration techniques to real procurement scenarios. This kind of hands-on, reflective learning helps acquisition professionals move from compliance-based roles to leadership roles that drive culture change by modeling the very product-focused, mission-driven mindset that agencies need to sustain long-term transformation.
If you’re ready to level up your procurement practice and help shape the future of digital government, learn more about advancing digital acquisition and procurement training through DITAP.