In the PaCER spotlight: Megan Palovchik

COLUMBUS, Ohio — When Megan Palovchik joined the Defense Logistics Agency Weapons Support (Columbus) Pathways to Career Excellence program in February 2025, she was looking for a way to translate a diverse career into public service. The two-year PaCE track is preparing her to graduate in February 2027 as a pre-award contract specialist focused on getting critical parts to U.S. service members quickly and at a fair price.

After years working with students with learning and developmental disabilities and earlier experience as a consultant to high-tech startups, Palovchik said the PaCE program’s structured training made returning to a business-focused role possible. “After several years of working with kids with special needs, I decided to pursue a career more aligned with my business education. However, re-entering the professional workforce was challenging,” she said. “The PaCE program description immediately caught my eye because it offered exactly that: a commitment to training and skill development.”

Palovchik began her career after earning an MBA as a marketing and business development consultant supporting early-stage companies at a Columbus technology incubator, later running her own consulting business part-time while raising a family. She then spent nine years as a paraprofessional in local school districts, a shift she says sharpened “patience, empathy and creative problem-solving.”

The leap into federal contracting has brought a steep learning curve. “The single biggest challenge is managing the sheer volume of knowledge and information required to be an effective contract specialist,” she said, adding that she relies on job aids, collaboration with experienced teammates and feedback from contracting officers. “The key is not just to find information, but to synthesize and analyze it to solve the problems at hand. We want to make sure we’re getting the right parts to the warfighter, in a timely manner and at a fair price.”

Her expectations about a desk-bound role changed quickly. “Before joining DLA, my career was intensely active and hands-on. Honestly, I expected that a contracting job would be the complete opposite – and perhaps a bit boring,” she said. “What I discovered is how genuinely interesting this work can be. The daily challenge of solving complex puzzles to acquire the right items, at the right price, for our service members is far more interesting than most people would imagine.”

Palovchik sees artificial intelligence reshaping how contracting teams operate. “The most influential trend is undoubtedly the proliferation of artificial intelligence,” she said, emphasizing the need to pair AI tools with human judgment. “To ensure longevity in the workforce, we must learn to use AI as an effective tool, positioning ourselves in roles that require the critical thinking and strategic oversight that AI complements, rather than replaces. Thriving in the future will require the agility to grow alongside this technology. Did I utilize AI to polish my answer to that question? I most certainly did.”

Success in her role, she added, depends on curiosity, organization and communication. “An ideal fit for a contract specialist is someone dedicated to continuous learning,” she said, noting that the workload’s volume and complexity make strong organizational skills essential.

When explaining her work to someone unfamiliar with it, Palovchik keeps it simple: “I’m learning how to purchase items within the federal government system with the ultimate goal of supporting those who have dedicated their lives to serving as our nation’s warfighters. It’s my responsibility to help make sure that the warfighters get what they need for their safety and to do their jobs effectively, while acquiring those items in the most timely manner I can, and at the best price I can negotiate to wisely steward taxpayer dollars.”

A recent milestone underscored her progress. “One moment that made me feel very accomplished was signing my first contract after receiving my micro-purchase warrant,” she said. Positive feedback from supervisors, she added, affirmed the effort it took to get there.

The DLA Weapons Support (Columbus) PaCE program is a two-year, Columbus-based development track that combines classroom learning with on-the-job training, cross-training and rotational assignments. Participants start at the GS-7 level and may advance to GS‑11 or GS‑12 upon completion. Candidates can enter through internal hiring, recent graduate pathways or from military service. More information is available at www.dla.mil/Careers/PaCE/.