From July 29 - 31, the Trinity IT team had the exciting opportunity to directly engage with AFLCMC at their annual Life Cycle Industry Day (LCID) event in Dayton, OH. What better setting to discuss the United States Air Force than the home of the Wright Brothers?
The event opened with Lieutenant General Donna Shipton, AFLCMC Commander, briefing the audience on the reorganization of the AFLCMC, and how this will propel rapid innovation.
“AFLCMC will become Air Force Air Dominance Systems Center (AFADSC) and the Air Force Material Command (AFMC) will stand up the Integrated Development Office (IDO) and Air Force Dominance Systems Center (AFIDSC) as part of the reoptimization plan,” according to AFLCMC.
The Secretary of the Air Force, Mr. Frank Kendall, delivered the keynote address hammering home the idea that the speed of innovation must increase. Mr. Kendall detailed his 50+ years of experience in government before mentioning this is the hardest strategic environment he has witnessed. Mr. Kendall recalled the appointment of Brigadier General Luke Cropsey as one of his best decisions. Brig. Gen. Cropsey is tasked to ensure integration of related programs related to Advanced Battle Management Systems across the USAF.
Later, we heard from Brig. Gen. Cropsey himself. He is the Air Force Integrating Program Executive Officer (PEO) of Command, Control, Communications and Battle Management (C3BM). Cropsey delivered an impassioned speech on how we all need to fundamentally change the way we think. To deliver this message, Brig. Gen. Cropsey’s presentation used cartoon images to depict strategies. Such a tactic deviated from the standard Department of Defense (DoD) presentation and, rightfully so, caught the audience off-guard.
Someone seated next to me remarked “Oh, wow I was NOT expecting that” with a laugh.
The slide deck design captured Brig. Gen. Cropsey’s message perfectly: we need to do things differently. He stated that in order to achieve our desired operational image, we must figure out the 1% of tasks we do that actually matter and have lasting impacts, and then pour all our focus onto them.
Another highlight from the AFLCMC LCID event was the ‘Perspective from Both sides of the Table’ panel. Many of the panelists had previously been on the government side as contracting officials, but now work in industry. This conversation had one major focus: communication. The panelists stressed that government contracting officers and procurement officials must conquer their fear of openly communicating with industry. They stated the government should, in fact, over-communicate to everybody. Thorough and effective communication will not only level the playing field, but it will lower risk and propose more customer-focused solutions. The conversations should flow both ways so there is a fair exchange of ideas, which will result in a better understanding and end product for the warfighter community.
Between the intriguing presentations, we were able to engage with the AFLCMC PEOs one-on-one and learn more about their unique missions and how we can help them achieve their goals. We are fortunate to attend the AFLCMC LCID and represent Trinity IT. The presentations were compelling and insightful; they truly left us with much to think about.
Emily Sims, Marketing Manager
(267) 396-7905
emily.sims@trinityit.biz