Wing prepares for CUI

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Wesley Wright
  • 442nd Fighter Wing Public Affairs
WHITEMAN AIR FORCE BASE, Mo. --  The 442nd FW is scheduled to undergo a consolidated unit inspection in October 2012.

A CUI consists of a compliance inspection (CI), health services inspection (HSI), and a program evaluation.

The purpose of the CI, said Maj. Catherine Roberts, 442nd Operations Group executive officer, is to make sure the unit's processes and paperwork are compliant with regulations and law as detailed in AFI 90-201, which requires that certain items must be reviewed to ensure they do not impact the mission.

In preparation for the inspection, the 442nd FW is going through a round of self-inspections, checklists, and internal and external evaluations to identify and correct deviations from established procedures and standards. Once these items are identified, solutions will be in place or in the process of being implemented by the time the inspectors arrive.

Roberts said the CI is different in scope than the operational readiness inspection the wing recently accomplished. An ORI focuses on completing the big-picture mission of deploying ready reservists, she said, while a CI focuses more on the paperwork and the day-to-day details of the mission.

Roberts also said while the unit should always be compliant with regulations, some day-to-day details can get lost in the shuffle of wing-wide efforts. Compliance inspections can help the unit get back on track and manage the processes.

Lt. Col. Roxane Williams, 442nd FW operations officer, is helping make sure the unit is ready by using a web-based tool called management internal control toolset (MICT.)

According to Williams, MICT is a "virtual notebook" that evolved from continuity binders to the less paper-intensive form it is today. Using this program, discrepancies can be documented and up-channeled, suspenses can be set, documentation can be uploaded and unit progress can be measured.

One of the advantages of using an online program, Williams said, is that the inspection team can be granted access to the data contained in MICT, which can be viewed remotely by members of the inspection team. This reduces the need for a large physical presence of inspectors, which in turn saves the government money. Also, by transitioning to a mostly paperless system, the carbon footprint can be lessened.

Williams said the MICT is a very useful tool and is used to make sure reservists have the correct checklists, but simply completing the checklists is not enough.

"The more honest a reservist is on the self-assessment, the better off they are when the actual inspection comes up," Williams said. "Look deep, know where discrepancies are, fix them and up-channel them to supervisors so everyone is aware."

Roberts said the CI affects many different people and unit operations, including many personnel programs, air reserve technicians, first sergeants, and commanders' programs.

While there were some opportunities for improvement with the last inspection in 2007, Roberts stated as long as the unit learns from mistakes and does not repeat them the unit is progressing.

"Communicate issues, use critical self-assessment, set suspenses, be prepared and be knowledgeable," Williams said. "If there are discrepancies, document them and the steps taken to address them."

Roberts said the inspection is helpful in that it ensures things are running smoothly and that continuity is maintained.

"At the end, someone should be able to come in, look at the books and continuity folders and know exactly what is going on." Roberts said.