“This is a key aspect of the AFMC acculturation effort launched last year and was developed in direct response to feedback from newcomers who said that improved communication and more resources could help them to better navigate new work environments and integrate into the workplace much easier,” said Col. Charles Parada, deputy director, AFMC Manpower, Personnel and Services. “This gives our new employees access to fundamental information about their new job on their mobile devices, with the ability to contact our teams directly if they have unanswered questions or issues during the on-boarding process.”
Instructions on how to download the Air Force Connect mobile application and access the newcomer information are now attached to each tentative job offer and firm job offer sent to new civilian Airmen by servicing personnel units. It is available to users of both Android and Apple mobile operating systems.
The feature includes the AFMC mission and vision videos; a welcome video by AFMC Commander Gen. Arnold W. Bunch Jr.; checklists for pre-employment, in-processing and first day, week and month requirements; base maps; helpful websites; contact forms; and a feedback survey to help the personnel team improve the offerings and monitor success.
An important part of the feature is the pre-employment checklist, with includes a direct link Cyber Awareness Training. Completion of this training is a prerequisite for Air Force network access and ensures employees have the ability to get on their computers to begin work as soon as possible after in-processing.
“The impacts of delayed network access were identified as a critical issue during the AFMC We Need initiative this past summer. When new employees complete required training per the app checklist prior to the first day of work, we expedite the network access process and help them to become contributing members of the AFMC team much faster,” said Parada.
Future feature updates will include checklists and information specific to inbound military members of AFMC. However, a majority of the content currently hosted in the application is relevant to all AFMC Airmen, military and civilian alike, said Lindsay McNeely, AFMC workforce development specialist and application lead.
“We worked hard to make sure that we provide answers to all potential questions that a new hire might have when we developed this app, and we continue to modify based on feedback from early users,” said McNeely. “Adding information for our military will round out the offering and help us ease the transition of all new members into the AFMC family.”
For more information on the AFMC Acculturation Initiative, visit http://www.afmc.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/2061055/afmc-standardizes-on-boarding-civilian-acculturation/ . For information on the Air Force Connect mobile application, visit https://www.afmc.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/1731357/.
About the Author