2011-AP08

Posted by

Earned Readiness

Applications Track

AP08_Presentation_EarnedReadiness_Williams

Abstract:

The Department of Defense (DoD) faces complex challenges in today’s globally strategic and economic environment. During these times of increasing demands and constrained and limited resources, it is imperative that organizations be able to correctly identify the proper alignment and allocation of resources across operational units. The ability to sustain readiness and performance levels over time at lower cost is critical. At multiple levels across the enterprise, leadership must be able to determine solidified readiness and financial goals, as well as have the ability to quickly analyze the readiness and financial performance achieved in meeting those goals. Earned Readiness is an analytical tool that provides decision makers a clear view of their performance and cost effectiveness. As funding becomes strained, the ability to understand the proper balance between cost and readiness is imperative.

Earned Readiness is an analytical capability that applies proven Earned Value Management principles to an operational environment. Financial data, training cycles, and readiness performance are analyzed together in Earned Readiness to build a single, continuous picture in a dynamic environment. Earned Readiness metrics highlight where units may be “over-ready” according to plan and could transfer resources to another unit that may be underachieving, as well as the financial performance of these same units. This enterprise-wide view of readiness and cost highlights areas for greater efficiency and potential savings through proper allocation of resources and improved planning. Earned Readiness metrics enable managers to evaluate the health of the organization, forecast costs, analyze trends, and communicate risks as early as possible. The unique integration of financial and readiness data through Earned Readiness offers an enhanced decision-making capability. Specifically, Earned Readiness allows decision makers to understand their readiness and costs performance at any point in time, taking into account the context of their progress in the training or deployment cycle. This capability allows the organization to focus management on critical resources and share resources between units enabling a more cost effective solution to meeting increasing demands with limited resources.

Projected Readiness is an additional analytical tool that forecasts an expected level of readiness for specific points of time in the future. These techniques are focused on training and deployment cycles but can be applied to a variety of similar situations where real time simulation and understanding of expected behavior are critical to accurate forecasting.

Earned Readiness and Projected Readiness employ various data visualization options to help decision makers identify issues quickly, before implementing decisions that will adversely affect the cost to obtain readiness and performance levels. These techniques highlight how organizations can continue to operate effectively in times of reduced budgets and resources.

This presentation will cover the topics listed below to provide a solid understanding of the concepts discussed in this document:
• High level overview concept
o Compare and contrast Earned Value Management with Earned Readiness
o Define approach and metrics
• Case study
o Detailed review of concepts and current applications
• Flexible application

Author(s):

John Williams
Booz Allen Hamilton
– 2001 Graduate from US Naval Academy
– Served 5 years as a Navy Supply Officer, including shipboard service overseas and Department Head duty as the Supply Officer for Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Mobile Unit Two in Virginia Beach, VA
– For 2 1/2 years, worked with PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Washington Federal Practice
– Since 2009, working with Booz Allen Hamilton’s Business Analytics team

John Scardino
Booz Allen Hamilton
An employee of Booz Allen Hamilton, John Scardino is currently working as a member of the Norfolk Business Analytics team on the Readiness and Cost Reporting Program (RCRP) for the Navy Expeditionary Combat Command (NECC). His duties include the development of Earned Readiness and Cost Analysis support across Personnel, Equipment, Supply, Training and Ordinance (PESTO) pillars.

John graduated Penn State University in 2007 with a Bachelor’s of Science in Information Sciences and Technology and a focus on Integration and Application. While studying at Penn State John worked part time at the Office of the Bursar and also volunteered as a webmaster, team manager, and Assistant Coach for the school’s ACHA Division II hockey program. Prior to joining Booz Allen, John worked for EDS Corporation’s office in Chesapeake VA as a data and systems analyst as well as a small projects manager.