Depot Maintenance Workforce Shaping

In the early 2000s, the US Air Force (AF) realized that the capability of their organic depots was declining for a number of factors, aging workforce being one of the most significant. To determine what factors were inhibiting depot performance, the AF launched the Depot Maintenance Reengineering and Transformation (DMRT) effort. Over time, this effort was absorbed into a more comprehensive Depot Maintenance Transformation (DMT) program.The depot workforce was one of the main areas where the DMRT placed their focus. They identified several initiatives to solve the problems brought to the forefront during the DMRT campaign. These initiatives focused on training, career development, hiring and the appraisal system. Some of these initiatives continued to move forward after DMT began, and other workforce shaping models were developed after the initiation of DMT.In 2002, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) developed a workforce shaping model intended for federal agencies to use to develop workforce plans. The model contains five steps and walks an organization through the workforce shaping plan development process. Air Force Materiel Command's (AFMC) depot maintenance workforce initiatives were compared to the OPM model to evaluate if they are adequately developing their workforce to handle future workloads. Many of the OPM model steps are achieved by the separate initiatives in AFMC. However, one single comprehensive plan that addresses the model as a whole does not exist.AFMC is on the right track towards a solid depot maintenance workforce plan and have several initiatives underway to develop and shape their workforce. In order to maximize the effect of these individual efforts, AFMC should consolidate them into one plan that goes through the OPM model step by step. The resultant strong and highly skilled workforce will ensure the long-term viability of the organic depots.