We provide AEDC a broad range of facilitation services to meet specific organizational change objectives. Facilitation services provided include: Total Quality Management, Six Sigma, ISO 9000, reengineering, benchmarking, Baldrige Assessment, Covey, Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, self-directed teams, teamwork adventures, organizational climate surveys, electronic explicit decision-making, and group collaborative workshops. AEDC Air Force managers, recognizing the importance of facilitating large diverse groups for the rapid resolution of complex problems, dedicated the Gossick Leadership Center (GLC) building and staff to this purpose. The synergy of an award-winning facility, industry-proven facilitation practices, and the Jacobs facilitation staff combines to deliver rapid resolution to myriad complex problems through expertly facilitated group workshops.

Our Approach/Solution – We have participated in joint facilitation of over 200 workshops that could be categorized as strategic planning, problem solving, reengineering, partnering, or teambuilding. Workshops at AEDC and other locations have provided breakthrough organizational change results for AEDC and AEDC’s extended network of stakeholders, suppliers, and customers.

During workshop preplanning, the facilitation staff and the sponsor jointly define and refine the workshop agenda and arrive at appropriate group facilitation interventions and techniques to focus the workshop participants in activities to achieve desired outcomes. Then, staff and sponsors co-create agenda item-specific objectives, approaches, and written or verbal instructions which stimulate group creative energy in accomplishing agenda activities. The staff and sponsors also create and deliver any information just in time to prepare the group establishing the correct context for the workshop or each agenda item.

During workshop execution, the staff facilitates delivery of a safe and comfortable space for group collaboration, dialogue, and creativity. The space includes areas for formal and informal work, areas for plenary sessions and small teamwork and dialogue, and areas provided to visually display results of work in progress. Other workshop facilitation activities during execution include: applying appropriate group intervention tools and techniques; leading dialogue in team and plenary sessions; desktop publishing-type capture of information from discussion and visually displayed work results; scribing to visually display results of plenary or team sessions; computer and audio-visual equipment operation, and logistics support. Staff experience and flexibility also allows timely adaptation to agenda changes according to group or sponsor needs.

Following the workshop, the staff produces and distributes, to all participants, a work product that captures workshop proceedings. If required, the staff continues the relationship and support to the sponsor as follow-on work begins or to plan for subsequent related workshops.

Results and Benefits – Facilitation results include the development of strategic plans for AEDC, joint services, higher AF command, and system program offices. Workshop ideas have produced other significant results at AEDC (estimated at over $50M cost avoidance initiatives) achieving process improvements to deliver products faster, better, and cheaper. Workshop ideas have yielded initiatives significantly reducing engine installation times, devising an integrated logistics and business management system, increasing the AEDC customer base, and developing partner networks with aerospace industry and defense agencies. Workshop experiences also clearly nurture inter- and intra-organizational relationships enhancing collaborative climate, creating opportunities for organizational learning, and developing organizational alignment.

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