Photo By Chelsea Smith | U.S. Air Force Senior Master Sgt. Michael Fillinger, Chief of the Continuous Process...... read more read more
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You’ve heard it before – there’s always room for improvement. It’s why Chief of Staff of the Air Force Gen. Charles Q. Brown, Jr. leads with his Accelerate Change or Lose action order that urges Airmen to innovate at all levels of the organization.
Yet funneling ideas and process improvements through the command structure of the military has historically been a barrier to quickly enact change.
Under Gen. Brown’s directive, the organizational culture is swiftly changing to solicit and implement process improvements that will enable Airmen to operate more efficiently in the growingly complex defense environment.
Through the 125th Fighter Wing’s Continuous Process Improvement and Innovation (CPII) office, or Innovation Cell, Airmen will have the opportunity to innovate and create solutions for everyday problems that can end in transformative change for the unit and potentially, higher headquarters.
The CPII serves to advise and assist commanders and Airmen with process improvement and innovation ideas objectively, and develop best courses of action based on rigorous research and proven best practices, said Senior Master Sgt. Michael Fillinger, Chief of the Continuous Process Improvement and Innovation office.
“We are here to mentor and build up Airmen and practitioner skills to support process management, process improvement, and innovation,” he said.
The CPII office needs driven and poised Airmen to train and certify in CPI, a process that can span anywhere from two weeks to three months, depending on the method of training, Fillinger said.
“An Airman must become Green Belt Trained either via in-residence or online,” he said. “Once you pass the course, you will perform CPI duties for six months, full-time, or one year, part-time, and complete a process improvement event that will be graded by the National Guard Bureau for certification.”
Airmen can also earn Black Belt (BB) certification which requires two weeks of in-residence training, followed by CPI duties for one year, full-time, or two years, part-time, and complete a BB project that would be reviewed and approved by The Deputy Under Secretary of the Air Force, Management (SAF/MG), he said.
Airmen from all air force specialty codes can receive training and certification in CPI or be part of an improvement or innovation team.
“All that is required is your leadership’s support,” Fillinger said. “Just be open-minded, flexible, and have the passion to see your particular task through completion.”
Outside of training opportunities, Airmen can also submit an idea or process improvement to the CPII website https://unum.nsin.us/flang where it’s routed to the CPII office for review and archival. All suggested ideas and improvements will be shown to at least the Vice Wing Commander, and depending on the level and force impact, the improvement could be reviewed by the SAF/MG.
For improvements that have far-reaching impacts across the total force, a Special Experience Identifier for Innovation could be awarded, and a member or team could compete for the Air Force’s General Larry O. Spencer Innovation Award, which recognizes Airmen who share creative and efficient ways to save money and time, said Fillinger.
No matter the scale of the solution or potential impact, all suggestions are appreciated.
“Gen. Brown says that an idea that is never presented is worse than an idea that does not work,” said Fillinger. “The ultimate reward is being proud that you took a moment to make an improvement.”
For more information on training opportunities or how to submit a suggestion, please visit the CPII office in Bldg 1002, Rm 120, call 904-741-7052 or send an e-mail to 125FW.CPII.InnovationsCell@us.af.mil.
| Date Taken: | 12.01.2021 |
| Date Posted: | 12.02.2021 08:29 |
| Story ID: | 410294 |
| Location: | JACKSONVILLE, FL, US |
| Web Views: | 91 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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