BUCKLEY SPACE FORCE BASE, Colo. -- The Air Reserve Personnel Center hosted the Center Immersion Program on July 28th and 29th, offering Force Support Squadron personnel across the Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard an opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of ARPC’s operations, culture and the impact of its work on units across the force.
Designed to bridge the operational knowledge and cultural gap between the organizations and ARPC, the two day program provides participants with first hand exposure to ARPC’s Lines of Production, Continuous Process Improvement practices through EVOLVE and direct engagement with subject matter experts and leadership.
“There's so many processes that either we touch or ARPC reaches out and touches the base on, I thought it would be beneficial to see it from stakeholders side who have such a big impact on it,” said Maj. Trevor Boyd, Director of Manpower, Personnel and Services for Nebraska Joint Force Headquarters.
Maj. David Briggs, program manager for the ARPC Center Immersion Program, said the program was built to provide participants with insight they might only develop after an extended assignment at ARPC.
“This program is an avenue for people outside ARPC to see how we operate and what drives our processes,” Briggs said. “Often, there’s a perception that we have all the answers or special tools we’re holding back, but this is about transparency, showing how our teams work, explaining our responsibilities and breaking down those assumptions.”
The program emphasizes interactivity, blending structured briefings with open conversations. Participants have dedicated opportunities to ask questions during leadership panels, directorate briefings and a final subject matter expert session.
“We want people to leave with every question answered,” Briggs said. “We even keep a whiteboard for questions we can’t get to immediately. Afterward, we follow up directly with directors to make sure every concern is addressed. This way, nothing falls through the cracks.”
Briggs described how the informal atmosphere helps break down barriers.
“We lay out how ARPC works so participants see the bigger picture. Then, when they bring up friction points or assumptions they’ve had, it comes from a place of understanding,” said Briggs. “It’s not just, ‘why isn’t this fixed?’ It’s, ‘okay, I see what you’re doing, how can we tackle this together?’”
The program doesn’t shy away from tough realities, such as system challenges or process delays.
“I tell people upfront, we’re not waiting for a hero to come in and fix everything,” Briggs said. “Systems can take years to fully improve. Instead of waiting, we focus on what we can do now, how leadership and tools like Gemba boards help us create solutions today.”
For Briggs, this leadership mindset is central to the program.
“There’s always going to be problems, systems, manning, funding,” he said. “But leadership is the difference. We can’t wait for someone else to solve it. This program gives people the tools and perspective to take charge and improve their own work centers.”
One key takeaway is how ARPC’s EVOLVE practices can be applied beyond its walls.
“I've heard a lot about CPI, but I've never seen it done well,” said Boyd. “This is my first example of it making an impact on an organization, it's not something that the leaders just talk about, I've never seen anything like this.”
“These tools work anywhere,” echoed Briggs. “If an MPF or FSS started tracking their Lines of Production and resource allocation like we do, they’d see opportunities to reposition their teams and improve throughput almost immediately. It relieves uncertainty, and uncertainty is what really drives anxiety in our work.”
“People aren’t in the pursuit of happiness—they’re in the pursuit of relieving uncertainty,” Briggs said. “This program does that. It helps our partners understand what’s happening behind the curtain and equips them to create that same clarity in their own organizations.”