RANDOLPH AIR FORCE BASE, Texas –
Randolph Air Force Base houses more than 30 mission partners, including Air Education and Training Command, Air Force Personnel Center, Air Force Recruiting Service and 19th Air Force to name a few. Each organization conducts a unique operation, essential to the Air Force mission. These units, along with the 12th Flying Training Wing, are what make Randolph Air Force Base the "Showplace of the Air Force." This column focuses on one of these very special mission partners.
A new leader and additional responsibilities have meant some changes for the Air Force Manpower Agency as it continues to arm the Air Force with the best men and women suited for its unique missions.
Col. Daniel Badger, Jr., who took command of AFMA on July 10, said the unit's new duties related to manpower solutions and programs fall in line with its main job of determining the manpower requirements for all sectors and areas of the Air Force.
"From the base gym to a flying squadron to a joint command, we determine the right skills and number of positions needed for all Air Force agencies, units and organizations," he said.
AFMA is made up of five squadrons located at Randolph and four other locations. The 1st Manpower Requirements Squadron and Headquarters at Randolph has more than 200 personnel, while the MRSs at Scott AFB, Ill., Tinker AFB, Okla., Buckley Annex, Colo. and NASA-Langley Research Center, Va., have 230 personnel combined.
Besides assessing manpower requirements for jobs, units and organizations, AFMA performs other functions related to the distribution of personnel in the Air Force including developing manpower programming, overseeing performance management programs, running a competitive sourcing program, conducting special studies and supporting the Air Force functional community.
These programs allow AFMA to assess the functions and amount of work each unit or organization is expected to do, said Colonel Badger. Data from the programs are then put together to determine the allocation of resources in the Air Force and distribution of grades, or officer positions, in the service. The distribution of officer positions is based on legislative and Air Force limits set for each rank.
"For example, we develop estimates for how many support people are needed for a combat unit," Colonel Badger said. "We also factor in training, education and leave in determining the productivity of military and civilian members in a unit or organization. This data is then used to determine manpower requirements."
Providing cost analysis of who can efficiently perform the best work for the Air Force on various projects is the job of AFMA's Competitive Sourcing Division, Colonel Badger said.
The competitive sourcing process works this way. If a road needs to be paved on a base, AFMA will lead an installation through a study to determine whether it would be more cost effective for base members or a private contractor to do the job, the colonel said.
To track the results of competitive sourcing studies and decisions, AFMA maintains the Air Force portion of the DoD Commercial Activities Management Information System.
When the Air Force needs guidance on certain performance and manpower issues, AFMA conducts special studies that allow the agency to give the best recommendations possible to Air Force leaders and commanders, Colonel Badger said.
Being a separate agency that reports directly to Headquarters USAF and is not attached to any one Air Force organization allows AFMA to give fair and balanced recommendations to all units and organizations, the colonel added.
With the Air Force's emphasis on centralizing tasks and functions, AFMA is undertaking some new and important responsibilities, Colonel Badger said.
"We are picking up new missions that were previously done at the major commands," the colonel said.
One of the new tasks AFMA is taking over is the civilian classification function, which was realigned from the Air Force Personnel Center to AFMA in October 2006. The civilian classification function sets the appropriate number of civilian positions and grade structure for the Air Force.
AFMA has shown it can administer the civilian classification function without missing a beat, Colonel Badger said.
"We have had tremendous success so far in our early involvement in classifying civilian positions in determining their manpower requirements for each mission," he said.
Personnel surveys that were once handled by AFPC are now being administered by AFMA. One of the well-known surveys that is now overseen by AFMA is the Air Force Climate Survey, which is conducted every two years and questions workers and managers on the working environment in the Air Force.
AFMA is also hard at work streamlining another Air Force personnel program - the Innovative Development Through Employee Awareness program, or IDEA. IDEA allows Air Force personnel to submit their suggestions and ideas on how to improve workplace conditions. Airmen can also receive monetary rewards for money-saving submissions to the IDEA program.
Because of Air Force streamlining initiatives, responsibilities for the administering of the IDEA program are being transferred from the major commands to AFMA, Colonel Badger said.
In the future, AFMA is expected to take in another new task by taking a more direct role in the management of the major commands' cost analysis studies.
In the Global War on Terror, AFMA has deployed staff to the front lines to assess Air Force manpower requirements, Colonel Badger said.
Through studies, research and analysis, Colonel Badger said AFMA will continue to give independent advice to Air Force leaders on manpower solutions and find ways that the Air Force can use its personnel in the most efficient and cost-effective way.
"The savings we find can help modernize our forces for today and in the future," the colonel said.
Whether its the dining hall or a fighting squadron, AFMA will be there when it comes to making sure the Air Force puts the best people in the right places.