TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. -- What are you doing to promote a Cost Conscious Culture? I have always believed that the best ideas on how to save and become more efficient lie within the hands of workers at all levels. The creative ingenuity and time-saving methods are often spurred on by members doing the work on a daily basis and their leaders empowering them to make changes.
It still amazes me how many great ideas are developed, but not shared. Often, members are influenced by the stigma, "this is how we have been doing it for years," and may fear their voices will not be heard. Well, changes are coming at the highest level in Air Education and Training Command. They will include the removal of creativity barriers, allowing for a free flow of cost-conscious ideas.
Gen. Edward A. Rice Jr., AETC commander, recently identified the need to develop a command-wide cost-conscious culture (C3). C3 will focus on achieving savings at all levels, requiring senior leadership to lead by example and encourage workers to balance value in cost against mission necessity.
We will still have enough resources to accomplish the mission in world class fashion, but we may have to rethink how we normally do business.
I don't spend time hand-wringing about the tight financial environment we are in today. I believe that if we empower individuals to make the right buying decisions for their jobs, everything will work out. Benchmarking on great ideas from others and rewarding individuals for cost savings methods is the first step.
The C3 idea submission form can be found at
http://www.aetc.af.mil/library/costconsciousculture.asp. Any individual can access the site in order to submit ideas about ways to save. There is also a discussion forum on the site that allows the free exchange of ideas and information about cost savings.
So, if you came up with an amazing way to save big money for not only the command, but also the Air Force, your voice can be heard. Don't sit back and complain about how we can't make the needed changes, let your voice be heard.
I started off the article about what you can do to promote C3. Hopefully, now we have progressed to another question. What did you do with that amazing cost-savings solution? Are you still knocking it around waiting for someone else to implement it? Check out the website and see for yourself how you can play a part.
We will continue to be the greatest Air Force even in spite of tight fiscal times ahead. But, whether or not it is a painful transformation or a smooth ride depends on the ingenuity of the smartest and most creative individuals I have ever had to the luxury to be around.