By Vicky Falcón
NAVAIR Public Affairs Office

The recent DOD Base Realignment And Closure (BRAC) report was just one of several transformation topics Vice Admiral Wally Massenburg, NAVAIR Commander, discussed at his latest “All Hands” report to the NAVAIR employee population at Patuxent River.

Two briefings were held on June 6 and 7 – the first in the atrium of the RADM William A. Moffett Building on Monday, and then in the base theater on Tuesday. These two events kicked-off what the admiral is calling a “round robin” of visits to NAVAIR sites to share his thoughts on where the organization is presently – and where he sees it going in the future.

Both sessions were packed with military, civilian and contractor personnel who turned out to hear what the admiral had to say on the following topics: Naval Aviation Enterprise (NAE), transformation/BRAC, human capital strategy, and productivity and the workforce shaping issues

Where we are today, according to Massenburg, is leading the way with the NAE.

“In the first quarter, flying hours gained an asset of $100 million,” he said, pointing out some significant results from NAVAIR’s NAE partnership are the reason for that gain.

“Before, we were not managing dollars, but the dollars were managing us,” said Massenburg. “The Naval Aviation Enterprise has given us the opportunity to change this.”

“But we’re not even started down the road yet,” Massenburg added, saying that 30 percent of naval aviation has joined the NAE so far

According to Massenburg, a clear picture of what NAVAIR believes in – a set of values – are aiding in the organization’s transformation.

“We value fleet readiness first,” said Massenburg. “But not just current readiness. At NAVAIR we want to balance current and future readiness.”

Other NAVAIR values include recognizing the worth of the dollar, “time on wing,” speed and people. “We need to value people and what they mean,” he said. “We need to encourage them to build on themselves.”

When it came to a discussion of BRAC, the admiral reiterated that the process is not over.

“Today we are still in the BRAC process. With the BRAC Commission visiting sites – the process continues and will continue until September when the President decides to either approve the BRAC list or not,” he said. However, NAVAIR is working contingency plans to be prepared if the report is approved.

“We don’t yet know the billets or individuals who are affected,” he said. “But I promise we will take the time to personally help those affected. NAVAIR will go the extra step to make sure you are taken care of.”

If the BRAC recommendations are signed into law, Patuxent River will become a “Center of Excellence” for fixed and rotary wing aircraft. There are also proposed realignments involving AIMD and maritime sensors that could impact some base personnel, and two leased spaces outside of Patuxent River will have to be moved to government-owned facilities.

The admiral next turned the discussion to productivity and the workforce.

“People are the source of capability to perform the mission and achieve program success,” said Massenburg. “However, they are the major share of the cost of doing business.”

The admiral described the need for NAVAIR to transform through a process of reducing the cost of doing business by reducing staffing expenses through increased productivity. This can be done, he said, without threatening delivery of end products, thereby optimizing value.

“If we don’t get to this business paradigm we’ll never get to the point where we’ll be able to afford what we need,” said Massenburg. “We’ll be paying for people, not buying the equipment we need.”

That business paradigm also affects contractors, he said. “We’re moving toward performance-based agreements.”

Massenburg also spent several minutes discussing AIRSpeed at the depot and Enterprise level and an AIRSpeed success story within NAVAIR. He then explained changes that are coming through the Navy’s Human Capital Strategy and the opportunities that will become available, illustrating the five-vector model and how it provides more emphasis on qualifications and certifications (both naval and commercial) in developing successful leaders and fulfilling careers.

Massenburg described the National Security Personnel System (NSPS) as pay for performance with performance-based goals and clearly articulated expectations linked to DOD objectives. Those goals facilitate matching civilian personnel to DOD priorities.

“Instead of having a static organization,” said Massenburg, “(through NSPS) we can now be dynamic.”