Since the beginning of fiscal year 2019, the Aeronautical Center has been striving to avoid costs, and/or to save $20 Million dollars by the end of FY 2020. Early on, Kevin O’Connor, Deputy Director for the Center said, "Everything is on the table – we need all ideas from every level within our organizations. Nothing is too small to include and nothing is too big to tackle… as civil servants we all need to be committed to improving the efficiency and the effectiveness of our federal government, and we have incredibly innovative, creative, and collaborative people across this entire Center. The vision has been set… now we just need to execute to it."
Though the goal seemed unachievable at first, organizations have been making great strides in strategizing their spending. The idea was introduced during a Town Hall as a "Big, Hairy, Audacious Goal," also referred to as a "B-HAG." It was tucked into a four-fold focus approach for the Center using four "C’s" to encourage participation. Beginning with cost effectiveness, organizations immediately began to rally around the goal, collaboratively thinking of ways to watch how funds are spent, and to cut back on unnecessary expenses. In an effort to spread the news about the goal, information was communicated on a monthly basis, which inspired people to keep thinking of ways to operate more efficiently. After seeing tangible results, the "B-HAG" became a thing of the past, and "20M by 2020" gained traction as a way to refer to the new Aeronautical Center culture.
In particular, The FAA Academy (AMA) has been saving money by delivering training virtually to avoid travel costs, consolidating bus routes for students, and eliminating duplicity among IT software procurements among other actions. AMK (Enterprise Services Center) has been contributing to the goal by cutting contract positions, reducing overtime, and bringing in additional revenue by expanding services to a broader federal audience. The Office of Facility Management (AMP) has been contributing to the $20M x 2020 goal by saving energy through reduction innovations, cut-backs in distribution services, and contract reductions over winter months for the Aeronautical Center grounds, to name a few.
It’s hard to believe that a once daunting goal of saving $20 million by the year 2020 is already near fruition. With almost an entire year to go, an even larger savings is being projected by the end of the fiscal year; (if things keep going the way they are going) almost $30 million could be saved. This is a gleaming reflection of the Aeronautical Center’s collaborative culture.
