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Top AF leaders convene for quarterly council meeting

  • Published
  • By Kathleen A.K. Lopez
  • Air Force Materiel Command Public Affairs
WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio (AFPN) --  With a focus on the execution of the 2008 Air Force Strategic Plan, the Air Force Process Council conducted its quarterly meeting Nov.20 at Air Force Materiel Command headquarters here.

The council, led by Secretary of the Air Force Michael Donley and Air Force Chief of Staff General Norton Schwartz and attended by all major command commanders, discussed the Air Force Strategic Plan and impacts across the major commands to support the Air Force priorities and goals.

"We need to focus on continuing efforts at the MAJCOM down to the wing and across functional levels to streamline efforts, drive down costs and improve capabilities," Secretary Donley said. "We can't be static.

"We continuously put pressure on the operational side (of the Air Force) to improve effectiveness," he said. "We need just as much pressure on the business side. This process is still a work in progress."

In an organization as large as the Air Force, it can be hard to align the missions with core functions, General Schwartz said.

"It's a natural inclination to muscle-up on the mission," he said. "But, it is important to do the same business-wise. Focus on performance in your metrics. Improvement in performance is tied to efficiency. This is performance management for our (Air Force) institution."

MAJCOM commanders were asked to identify their top three to five priorities and goals, and in this forum, commanders discussed how their organizations are aligning their actions with the overall Air Force strategy.

In a test effort, leaders at Pacific Air Forces, or PACAF, headquartered at Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii, were tasked to use a new format for tracking the command's strategic initiatives.

The simplified template outlines priorities and goals, strategies, metrics and tasks for easy monitoring. The template currently is being implemented throughout PACAF, at 11th Air Force, headquartered at Elmendorf AFB, Alaska, and at two wings: the 18th Wing at Kadena Air Base, Okinawa, Japan, and the Hawaii Air National Guard's 154th Wing.

"It is a very useful tool in framing the priorities that commanders want accomplished under their watch," said Col. Cedric George, PACAF's director for Air Force Smart Operations for the 21st Century, or AFSO 21. "And it helps keep goals and strategies in the forefront of discussions."

"Real-time performance management of Air Force operations by the Process Council, along with an operating environment with fully aligned strategic goals and objectives, will result in a much more lethal, agile and effective Air Force," said Brig. Gen. John Posner, Headquarters Air Force AFSO21 director.

The Process Council focuses on ten AFSO 21 key processes, each categorized into one of three categories: Governing, Core and Enabling. It is intended to reduce, if not eliminate, wasteful, non-value added work.

Gen. Bruce Carlson, AFMC commander, was responsible for leading the AFSO 21 core process to develop and sustain warfighting systems until his retirement Nov. 21.

"The D&SWS team is undertaking tremendous efforts to achieve their vision: streamlined and integrated life cycle management...One Materiel Enterprise, and they're making great progress," said General Carlson.