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Show 2 Hilltop Times June 27, 1996" Lightning Bolt Initiatives Editor's note: Information shown here is based on Update No. 10 of the A ir Force A cq uisition Lightning Bolt Initiatives from the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force (Acquisition), June 12, 1996. All initiatives listed have been implemented or are in the process of being implemented However, the list is being revised constantly so interested individuals should periodically check the World Wide Web Home Page for updated versions of the list. The Internet address is: http:safaq.hq.af.milsafaq. 1. Ettabliih a centralized request for proposal support team to scrub all RFP, contract options and contract modifications over $10 million. All RFPs started prior to the initiation of the Lightning Bolts have been reviewed. Support teams are now involved in the development of RFPs from their inception. The centralized team continues to scrub RFPs greater than $10 million while local RFP teams at each product and logistics center review RFPs over $ 1 00,000. Metrics continue to reveal great strides in the Air Force move to performance-base- d RFPs by eliminating military specifications and standards. 2. Create a standing Acquisition Strategy Panel (ASP) composed of senior level acquisition personnel from the office of the assistant secretary of the Air Force for acquisition (SAFAQ), Air Force Materiel Command (AFMC) and the user. SAFAQ signed policy memo 95A-00- 9 establishing a ASP system on Nov. 7, 1995. Members of the Service Acquisition Executive and Senior Panels have been identified. The new ASP process is designed to provide consistent advice to program managers on their program three-tiere- d strategies. 3. Develop a new system program office (SPO) manpower model that uses the tenets established in the management of classified-- or selected acquisition report-lev- el programs. SAFAQ approved the SPO sizing tenets report on Nov. 6, 1995. The report provides a toolbox of tenets for program managers to use to dramatically reduce military, civilian and contracted support program office staff. A SAFAQ-HQ-AFMreview of the total acquisition workforce (military, civilian, contracted held on Dec. 1 9, 1 995 at Wright-Patterso-n support) was AFB, Ohio. This review laid plans for the acquisition workforce reduction through the year 2000. 4. Cancel all AFMC center-lev- el acquisition policies by Dec. 1 , 1 995. SAFAQ signed a memo on Nov. 1, 1995 canceling all center-levacquisition policies and FAR (federal acquisition regulation) supplements. This followed a careful review to weed out redundant and outdated policy. Crucial policy and FAR supplements were elevated to a level that provides consistent direction across Air Force acquisition programs. The New Policy Review Team now reviews all proposed new policy to prevent policy creep. 5. Reinventing the Air Force Systems Acquisition Review Council (AFSARC) through integrated process team (IPT). The AFSARC process is reploced with a streamlined, team-base- d Air Force IPT that mirrors the overarching integrated process team (OIPT) for Acquisition Category II (ACAT) programs for the Office of the Secretary or Defense. This new oversight and review process is incorporated into the new enhanced Air Force corporate structure. The working level teams that support the OIPT are functioning. A policy memo is in final coordination. 6. Enhance the role of past performance in source selections. A new performance collection system has been designed and regulatory guidance for source selection is forthcoming. Air Force Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement Appendices AA and BB, Source Selection Procedures, were updated and reissued effective May 1, 1996. 7. Replace acquisition documents with the Single Acquisition Management Plan (SAMP). SAMPs are nearly complete for all ACAT I (Acquisition Category I) programs. The final version of the SAMP policy was signed on April 29, 1996. The SAMP guide and policy are available on the SAFAQ World Wide Web Home Page. 8. Revise the program executive officer (PEO) and designated acquisition commander (DAC) portfolio review to add a section that deals specifically with acquisition reform. All PEO and DAC acquisition reform portfolio reviews have been completed. Metrics proposed in the reviews for measuring acquisition reform will be presented by the proportfogram managers ath their lio reviews. 9. Enhance our acquisition workforce with a comprehensive education and training program that integrates acquisition reform initiatives. The near-terTraining Implementation Plan is finalized. Major command acquisition reform training is almost done. In other activities, the AFMC Guide for Acquisition Reform is nearing completion, and the Acquisition Acquisition community must change way it does business, says I ft n ' Air Force acquisition chief rt by Frances Kosakowsky Hilltop Times editor Money specifically diminishing amounts of it and how to get more bang for the buck is what's on DOD leaders' minds. And, it is the engine that is driving the Lightning Bolt Initiatives which are aimed at fundamentally changing government acquisition practices, some of which date back to the Civil War. Coincidentally, Money (Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition Arthur L. Money) came to Hill AFB to talk about acquisition reform at the Air Force Association's 14th Annual Focus on Defense Symposium June 19 at the Officers Club. In a Hilltop Times interview, Money said the No. 1 acquisition reform issue is getting everyone involved to buy into the proposed reforms. "We need to make a cultural change that involves everyone Congress, the Department of Defense, the Air Force, employees at the air logistics centers, contractors," he said. He said that, as with any major change affecting people, it is difficult to get everyone "on board" at the same time. "Some people go into denial telling themselves, 'This isn't really happening' or 'This too shall pass and I'll outwait whoever' or 'Well, this is the thing leadership expects so I'll just give them some lip service,' and then there are others who will try as hard as they can," he said. Money said his job is to get everybody on board and pulling together because like it or not the Lightning Bolt initiatives and the changes they will make are permanent. "Costs have to come down because we can't afford to do things the way we have in the past. We don't have the money and, we have just as much need for new weapon systems as we've ever had," he said. more competitive in the world marketplace. Contractor deliverable items He said DOD asks for too many contractor deliverable items. "We need to ask ourselves what it is we really want and need and not ask for anything more than that," he said. That alone will eliminate waste and low value items. 66 We need to make a cultural change that involves everyone Congress, DOD, the Air Force, employees at the air logistics centers, contractors. 99 Aittstont Secretory Arthur L. Money of the Air Force for Acquisition my Jit - Arthur ' ' zT' k What will it take to fix it? The major stumbling block to acquisition reform, Money said, is getting everybody to consistently act in the new way of doing business. "Then, we'll have gotten where we need to be," Money said. He said that only when today's reforms become permanent, established practice will the goals of the Lightning Bolt initiatives be reached. - ' .V, L. it Money financial management system at the same time we are trying to become industry or commercially oriented in the way we do acquisition," he said. "Those two are out of phase and we have to get them aligned." Acquisition and sustainment He also said that there are some things DOD does in acquisition and sustainment that are out of line with the new acquisition reform program. With budgets continuing to come down and requirements for modernization going up, processes need to be aligned. Using the 6 as an example, he said, "We're running the wheels off where we've had 250,000 sorties a 1 million a year over Iraq quarter and we need to bring down the costs of maintenance and sustainment processes," he said. Keeping in mind that roughly a third of the budget is investment and about a third is sustainment, Money said that "if we can reduce cycle times in giving the warfighters what they need quicker, we can save money and, time is F-1- F-1- money. "To me, there's a natural thing that's going to happen. Most of the modernization of weapon systems isn't going to Other changes Acquisition is driven by warfight-e- r be starting something new, it's going to "Acquisition doesn't be modifying and modernizing existing requirements alone here. stand It ties in with the systems. So what goes on at a depot is just said. he Collectively, going to be extremely important in this requirements," effort, and to me there's a real blurring DOD is a requirement driven organization, so when the warfighters say they of acquisition and sustainment. They're need something, "it's our job to figure becoming almost one and the same. how to go and get it (acquire it, build it, "Right here at Hill the 6 SPO (system program office) is buying new develop it, whatever)." that are 20 years For that reason, acquisition reform at the same time must be totally consistent and in phase old are being maintained. And, at the with requirements. "The requirements same time, there are foreign military process now, in some cases, takes longer sales being made. So to me the SPO than the acquisition process," Money covers the whole gamut and it's all acsaid. quisition. "The real work is done not by people Money management changes needed Money said, "We need to in the Pentagon or command headquaralign the financial ways we do business. ters, the real work is done by the people The way the government now does finan- actually doing the tasks. They're the cial management is totally onerous to ones who have the ideas and who know, some of the things we're trying to do in what can be done to modernize tie line acquisition reform." He said that some and quicken the processes," Money said. "So what everybody can do is share of the money management procedures go back to the Civil War timeframe. In that their ideas and every day wake up and s year period every time there ask themselves, 'How can I do the job was an abuse, a new regulation or restricbetter, faster and cheaper?' If nothing tion was put in place, making financial else, all of us can reduce the cycle time management of any acquisition more of whatever we're doing. Everybody can do that." cumbersome than is really necessary. "We're dealing with a very arcane See rtlattd story, pag 5. F-1- F-1- What bos to change? Money said there are numerous changes that will be made under the Lightning Bolt initiatives, but two stood out in his mind. Getting away from the "how to" mindset He said many military specifications are being done away with. "We were telling our contractors how to do things and now under Lightning Bolt No. 1, we're getting the 'how to' out of our requests for proposal and are instead telling contractors the result of what we want how it gets done is not our business." Since the Department of Defense is no longer a predominant buyer, switching to commercial standards makes sense. Money believes DOD ought to come in line with commercial practices to cut costs and help U.S. industry become Excellence Course has been finalized. The long-terplan for developing the skills of the future acquisition workforce (the 'Renaissance person" and core competencies) is in planning. See the SAFAQ IB 9 WWW page for more information. 10. Reduce time from requirement definition to contract award. Reduce by SO percent the amount of time to award contracts that meet our customers' needs. This time begins with receipt of a validated user requirement and funding commitment, and ends with contract award. Lightning Bolt No. 1 0 applies to efforts to develop andocquire systems, and support their operational readiness. Our customers include operational users and our partners in industry. This Lightning Bolt is currently under way. The Lightning Bolt No. 10 team has finalized the state F-1- 100-plu- ment and scope, developed an action plan, and obtained SAFAQ approval in May 1 996. The team is in the process of collecting cycle time reduction ideas and technique through interviews, conferences and research. The results of Lightning Bolt No. 10 will be a final report and a best practices guide. The data collection phase of Lightning Bolt No. 10 will end Aug. 31, 1996, and the deliverables will be completed by Sept. 30, 1996. The summer will be full of activity, so the best place to stay current is with the SAFAQ WWW Home Page. 1 1 . Enhance the capabilities of our laboratories by adopting improved business processes learned from our weapon system acquisition reform efforts. Improved business processes and lessons learned in acquisition of weapon systems will be applied to our science and technology efforts. These improved processes will result in better communications with customers, streamlined solicitations, more efficient source selections, a downsized workforce, meaningful policies, and a workforce trained in the latest reform initiatives. Common processes will become the standard across all laboratories. This Lightning Bolt in currently under way. Teams have been assembled to examine all science and business processes. The teams technology-relate- d generated over 90 potential initiatives which were then evaluated during senior-levreviews. From these a family of initiatives hove been synthesized under the theme: "Better, Faster, Cheaper." The Lightning Bolt No. 1 1 plan was briefed to SAFAQ on June 10, 1996; ft was approved, and implementation will proceed as soon as possible. |