BACKGROUND

Transportation asset management (TAM) professionals are facing increased professional demands due to the challenge of managing deteriorating transportation infrastructure with budget limitations and new regulations such as those contained in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA). These professionals are also expected to possess technical knowledge and personal and communications skills to lead their agencies' TAM efforts. These skills and knowledge areas include data collection, filtering, and analysis; visualization; multi-criteria decision-making; optimization; communication; change management; and leadership. Non-academic organizations have created educational and professional development opportunities in asset management to address this demand, but these offerings are often not targeted to applications in transportation and can be viewed as expensive, time-consuming alternatives that only offer partial solutions to specific gaps in knowledge.

Research is needed to determine the competencies and skills expected from TAM professionals and to identify needs for the development of new curriculum and/or new accreditation programs for workforce development in TAM. By specifically identifying educational needs evidenced by the gap between required competencies and available offerings, this research will be the first step in improving TAM professionals’ capabilities and, subsequently, state department of transportation (DOT) and other transportation agency TAM performance.

OBJECTIVES

The objectives of this research are to develop (1) a gap analysis of TAM education and implementation practices within state DOTs and other transportation agencies; and (2) a research roadmap identifying opportunities for curriculum development and other professional development avenues for the current and future TAM workforce.

Accomplishment of the project objectives will require at least the following tasks.

TASKS

PHASE I: Planning and Initial Outreach

Task 1. Conduct a review of literature and practice relevant to state DOT and other transportation agencies on TAM curriculum and workforce development practices. The review should examine publicly available practices; TAM training programs; university offerings; science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), trade, and high school education programs; linkages to related fields such as engineering, planning, data science, geography, geographic information systems (GIS), finance, construction management, and change management; resources that teach general asset management principles; and other relevant sources. 

Task 2. Develop a targeted outreach plan with an emphasis on the identification of intra-agency TAM resource gaps. The plan will detail the strategy for eliciting participant feedback on current practices, limitations, and desired improvements. The outreach will  examine trends in TAM job description and requirements, transportation agency career paths in TAM, and the dynamics of interaction between the workforce and management. Submit a technical memorandum #1 including the results of Task 1 and the plan developed in Task 2. NCHRP approval of the technical memorandum #1 is required before work on subsequent tasks may begin.

Task 3. Administer and summarize the stakeholder outreach. Submit a technical memorandum #2 summarizing the results of the stakeholder outreach. NCHRP approval of technical memorandum #2 is required before work on subsequent tasks may begin.

Task 4. Propose a method to achieve the research objective to be fully developed in Phase II. At minimum, the method should:

• Define, describe, and delineate the characteristics of asset management within the overall transportation community
• Identify the competencies and skills needed to develop and implement successful TAM practices 
• Identify awareness of asset management at the executive level
• Identify gaps between current TAM capabilities and desired competencies for the state DOT and other transportation agency workforces, from entry-level employees to executives
• Summarize these gaps and needs in furtherance of the development of new curriculum and/or accreditation programs for the development of TAM competencies 
• Provide a short summary of benefits that may accrue future study of application to STEM and trade school programs
• Provide an annotated outline of TAM gap analysis
• Provide an annotated outline of a research roadmap. Informed by the above analysis, the roadmap will propose a logical progression to realize the development of a modern TAM curriculum and other resources. 

Task 5. Prepare Interim Report No. 1 that documents Tasks 1 through 4 and provides an updated work plan for the remainder of the research. The updated plan must describe the process and rationale for the work proposed for Phase II.

PHASE II: Execute the Method and Produce Final Deliverables

Task 6. Execute the research method according to the approved Interim Report No.1.

Task 7. Develop the gap analysis and research roadmap. The draft gap analysis and research roadmap shall be submitted for NCHRP approval no later than 6 months before the contract end date.

Task 8. Conduct a follow-on stakeholder outreach effort, with the goal of eliciting practitioner feedback on the draft deliverables. Summarize the outreach in an online debrief with the NCHRP, including any recommended changes to the deliverables. Any proposed changes must be approved by the NCHRP.

Task 9. Prepare the final deliverables, which shall include the following:

• A conduct of research report that documents the entire research effort
• The final gap analysis and research roadmap
• Public outreach materials, including a PowerPoint presentation with speaker notes
• A stand-alone technical memorandum entitled “Implementation of Research Findings and Products”

STATUS: Proposals have been received in response to the RFP. The project panel will meet to select a contractor to perform the work.