Always room for improvement Published Oct. 30, 2006 By Capt. Brooke Brander 33d Fighter Wing Public Affairs EGLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. -- It's about maximizing value and minimizing waste, not about doing more with less. The doors of the Air Force Smart Operations 21 office opened at the 33d Fighter Wing in building 1363 with an official ribbon cutting ceremony Oct. 10. "We're the place to come to if someone has a project or process that they want to change and improve," said 2nd Lt. Nikole Lensgraf, AFSO 21 office chief. "AFSO 21 is the new Air Force-wide program that is an umbrella for things like LEAN logistics and Six Sigma." The purpose of the AFSO 21 office is to provide assistance, training and expertise in the areas of process improvement to the members of the 33d FW. "We realize processes can be done better and we realize that the people doing the job are the experts in those processes," said Lieutenant Lensgraf. "We want the people doing the job to come up with the ideas. We won't be out there saying, 'this is our idea, this is what you need to be doing.' We're going to be out there asking 'what are your ideas, let us help you implement them.'" AFSO 21 has the attention of the Air Force's most senior leaders with the emphasis being placed on the individuals at the ground level getting the job done day-to-day as the ones that will make AFSO 21 a success. "We are committed to creating a culture within our Air Force that gives each Airman the power to improve processes they are involved with," said Command Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force Rodney McKinley in his Sept. 20 "Enlisted Perspective." "From the newest Airman through our most senior officers, we all have the responsibility to elevate ideas that will make the quality of our work and those we supervise better and relevant to today's fight." The processes used in AFSO 21, including LEAN and Six Sigma, have been a part of the civilian business world for more than 20 years, explained Col. John Powell, 33d Maintenance Group Commander. "We don't want to waste time, effort and energy on processes that aren't going to buy us important im-provements," said Colonel Powell. "When I talk to my leaders in the Maintenance Group, I want them to focus on three things: the three things they do that they do best, the three things they need to do better, and the five most important processes in their organizations. Those things will give them the clues on where they need to focus their efforts." The AFSO 21 office expects to have wing-wide, 1-2 day training events available to all members of the 33d FW starting in the new calendar year. The office staff is also available on a walk-in basis for any Nomad who feels he or she has a better, more efficient way of getting the job done and needs some assistance in making that improvement a reality, said Lieutenant Lensgraf.