Air Force speech, Deming and Quality

[Jim Clauson <jim@jclauson.com>]

DENizens,

Robert Ferrell passed along the following transcript of a recent speech
given at a graduation ceremony for Senior Non-Commissioned Officers.

It refers to both Deming and the Quality Air Force (QAF).  The latter
was a process with mixed results (as others have recently pointed out). 
I believe it was Deming that said something about the effects of trying
to copy...  ;-)

It is a bit long for a DEN post - but seeing quality, Deming, and the
QAF through the eyes of a General is interesting.

jc

BEGIN QUOTED SPEECH:
====================

SNCO Academy speech General John P. Jumper
Senior NCO Academy Graduation
Maxwell AFB, Ala., 27 June 2001
 
 Thanks for that introduction Sergeant Davis (SMSgt Johnny Davis). Thank
you Don (LtGen Donald Lamontagne, Commander, Air University), for your
interest in furthering the interests of Aerospace Power. And thank you
Chief Ball (CMSgt Ball, Commandant, SNCO Academy), for the invitation to
speak here tonight.
 
 On this date in 1950, President Harry S. Truman committed US Air
Forces, along with Naval Forces, to their first major conflict following
the establishment of our separate service. We stand ready today, as we
did over half a century ago, to protect American values at home and
abroad. You graduates are already committed to your nation, and are the
true leaders of the force. To you falls the responsibility of sustaining
the best Air Force on the face of the earth.
 
 Tonight I am going to tell you about heroes -- small heroes, but heroes
nonetheless; heroes that have been beacons of inspiration in my life and
career. My first memory is when I was two years old -- sitting in my
Dad's lap in the cockpit of a P-51 Mustang. He was a second lieutenant
just after WWII. We were stationed at a small base near Tokyo during the
occupation of Japan. His job was to take fighter planes that had arrived
by barge, and after all the preservatives were removed, to test fly them
and ferry them inland to their permanent bases. Before I was 3 years old
I had time in all the great WWII fighters: P-51, P-43, P-38 and British
Spitfire. I just wish I could remember more about them than the noise
they made.
 
 I grew up in an era of heroes; my Dad's contemporaries were all heroes,
like Chuck Yeager who was the first to fly faster than the speed of
sound. My Dad commanded an F-106 interceptor squadron at Langley AFB,
Virginia and we lived on Eagan Avenue. On the same street were several
of the Mercury 7 astronauts. I was captured in the world of flying, and
heroes from an early age. They were larger than life; I knew that even
then -- but there were other heroes not so large. 
 
 When I was the commander of the 33rd Tactical Fighter Wing, Eglin Air
Force Base in Florida we were in the final day of an ORI. We already had
achieved an Outstanding, and had generated 71 of 72 jets. I was sitting
back in the command post, ready to knock it off, when the DCM (we had
DCM's back then) came in and said, "Boss, before we knock it off, you
need to come out and see this." So we jumped in a truck and went down to
the flightline, and there was a group of about 5 people pushing a jet
down the taxiway. There was that 72nd jet, a jet with an engine
write-up, being pushed over to the trim pad, trying to get the last
check done to run up the engine and generate the jet. On the way, the
towbar had broken, but these folks were doing what they needed to get
the airplane ready to fly. See, it was a matter of pride with that last
crew chief that his jet was going to be generated for the ORI. So the
DCM and I jumped out, and we started pushing the jet too. And more folks
along the flightline started to join in. People in buildings all around
the base started filing out to help get this jet to the trim pad. By the
time that the last check was done, and the chief signed off the
checklist, there were probably 3,000 people gathered in the area
-- allot of them probably had no idea what was going on ---and when he
signed it off, a cheer arose that was better than anything you have ever
heard in the Super Bowl.
 
 When I was commander of the 457th Fighter Wing at Nellis AFB in Nevada,
I got an unusual call. The Chairman of the racing division at General
Motors called and asked to come out and take a look at our operations. I
agreed, and he and some of his folks came out to look around. We had an
aircraft out on the flight line and some of our maintenance troops there
to talk with the GM team. The Chairman asked the young NCO out there if
the aircraft was ready to fly. He said "No, see if you look up here, you
can see that the power supply is burned out, but I've got the part over
to Sgt Smith in the repair shop, and he'll get it fixed and get it out
here; If he doesn't get it out here, I'm gonna go over and kick Sgt
Smith's butt. We'll have it installed and ready at about 1400 so it can
fly this afternoon." The GM folks were amazed that this young man would
place such personal interest in the mission status of this aircraft. He
asked the young Sergeant why he
was so motivated to make it happen. And this crew chief replied that
"Well, sir, that's my name on the side of the airplane." It's that kind
of professional pride that we have in the Air Force, and you don't
always see in the outside world. 
 
 Next, I'd like to talk to you about something that happened during
Operation ALLIED FORCE. Specifically, let me describe a single night
from ALLIED FORCE that I'll never forget, 27 March to be exact. In fact,
some of you may also remember this night, because it was the night we
lost the F-117 near Belgrade. Now those of us that were in Vietnam
learned very early to dread the sound of an aircraft emergency beacon.
And as I sat in my office at Ramstein AB, through the marvels of modern
technology, I could hear that beacon and knew that we had lost one of
our own. An F-117 had been hit, right over the center of downtown
Belgrade, and managed to glide to the outskirts of the city before the
pilot was able to eject. Well, soon after this, a young Captain named
Cherry - an A-10 pilot -- scrambled his aircraft and began to organize
the search and rescue effort. And I sat there and listened to him do
exactly what our nation had trained him to do: direct planes to the
tanker, position surveillance aircraft, and coordinate with the
helicopters to set up for a very difficult effort to save his fellow
airman. 
 
 While this was happening, I had one of those red phones you see in the
movies, with all the buttons -- the first one being the President, and
the rest all the way down the chain of command. Well, this thing was
ringing off the hook! All the lights are flashing at once, and everyone
with the same questions: "Why aren't we in there?" "When are we going to
pick him up?" and so on. In the background, that young Captain Cherry
was calmly continuing to marshal the forces, ensuring that every piece
was in place prior to executing the rescue. Well, my answer to some high
officials in our government was "Sir, the very best thing we can do is
let Captain Cherry do his job. There's nobody better equipped to do what
needs to be done." When the time came, it was incredible to see a
package of 75 aircraft converge on downtown Belgrade, just waiting to
pounce on the smallest move from the Serbians. There wasn't a peep! The
helicopters then worked their way into the area, picked up a very
grateful pilot, and brought him out safely, followed by the rest of the
package. It was truly inspiring to watch the spirit, dedication, loyalty
and patriotism all come together 
 
 But what do these stories tell us? What do they mean? These are
demonstrations of character -- manifestations that attend the character
of those able to transcend preoccupation with self -- that virtue within
us all which elevates the human spirit, compels us to reach beyond our
meager selves -- commands us to seek more -- to attach our spirit to
something bigger than we are.
 
 When I was a Rat at VMI, entering in 1962, the cadet Regimental
Commander was a fellow named Josiah Bunting. Si graduated in the class
of 1963, was a Rhoades Scholar, served in the US Army in Vietnam and has
since devoted his life to higher education, having been a professor at
the United States Military Academy and President of several colleges. He
is now the Superintendent at VMI and a noted author. Si Bunting lectures
widely on value-based education. I recently heard him render the finest
definition of character I have ever heard. He said, "character is
integrity projected over time." And then he reminded his audience that
the Indo-European root of the word integrity is "tag" -- to touch.
Literally translated, the word integrity means "that within us that
cannot be touched."
 
 But we went through a period in the decade of the 90s where the AF lost
some of its character as an institution. We once had a quality Air Force
that was ruined by a concept known as Quality Air Force. During the
early '90s, I was in the Pentagon on the Joint Staff and in OSD while
the Air Force was taking up something called the Quality Air Force.
 
 When I was going to take command of 9th Air Force, the QAF had taken
root. Now, I had read about Deming and Baldridge, and some of what they
said made sense -- common sense. The management tools they talked about
were good in some cases. We were using them as well -- we didn't talk
about it though, we just did it. 
 
 When I arrived at Shaw, the first guy to meet me was the Quality guy.
He said we needed to have an off-site -- get the staff together and come
up with our "mission, vision and goals" for the future. I understand the
off-site idea, get folks focused on planning and get away from the
distractions of the office. Then he started talking about how we needed
to break down barriers. And this was a little curious, so I asked him
how we were going to do that. He said, "Well, we're not going to wear
our uniforms -- and we are going to call each other by our first names."
It was all about breaking down barriers in his mind. It was bulls***. My
plan was a little different. We went off station, but we wore uniforms,
and we used ranks and were professional in all we did. We used no
coaches, no timekeepers, and we were able to accomplish everything we
set out to do, and more.
 
 We were told to believe that big business had all the answers.
"Quality" was used as a substitute for leadership. It let words and
slogans guide our behavior. Words like 'empowerment,' 'break down
barriers.' We stopped mentoring our people. We lost touch with the fine
art of chewing ass.
 
 An example of this is the Blackhawk shootdown. We screwed up with those
F-15 pilots. The essential nature of our business is to gain and
maintain air superiority by shooting down bad guys. When you visually ID
an aircraft and shoot it down, and it's one of ours, you have failed in
your primary mission. It's worse than a doctor taking out the wrong
lung. Something should have been done. Then Gen Fogleman made his video
about accountability. He sat there as chief, on the edge of his desk,
and with an angry tone talked about how we were going to be accountable
for our actions. Scared a lot of people in the fighter community. He
said we needed to have our flyers take responsibility for their actions.
For starters, a good butt-chewing would have worked.
 
 Another example is the Lieutenant Kelly Flynn situation. You remember,
she was the one who was caught messing around with an enlisted member's
husband. Now, the press tried to make it into an adultery issue. It was
never an issue about adultery; it was about lying. Lying, and taking
responsibility for your actions. Now her squadron commander had the
opportunity to stop the problem before it got out of hand. If he would
have brought young Lieutenant Flynn into his office and said, "I don't
know if the stories I'm hearing are true or not, and frankly, I don't
care. But I'm giving you one chance, and one chance only to knock it
off!" I guarantee that would have been the end of it. That's what our
young people today need: a little personal attention and counseling.
 
 So this virtue of character is about institution, but it's also about
individuals. The character we seek to define is the fire of conscience
that burns within us and superintends our conduct over a lifetime. But
character is out of vogue in this world whose standards are set more by
the culture of Beavis and Butthead, or the Simpsons, than by the
standards of, say, our founding fathers: John Adams, Thomas Jefferson or
James Madison. These men were truly unique. They transitioned easily
from the pulpit to the plowshare to the musket. They wrote the history
of their time with powerful words that will live forever: The
Declaration of Independence, The Constitution, The Federalist Papers.
And they used words we don't hear today -- Words that describe the
supreme traits of virtue and character that inspired them. Words like
Continence: "Self-restraint; the ability to refrain from impulse." Also
Disinterested: "Free of selfish motive;" - intellectual curiosity in the
lifeblood of real civilization." Thomas Jefferson once said of John
Adams that he was "as disinterested as the being who made him." It was
the supreme compliment for one who was totally devoted to crafting the
framework of a new nation. It is that same dedication we see in the F-15
crew chief, or the A-10 pilot who is determined that we won't leave one
of our own stranded deep in enemy territory. 
 
 Bunting describes the "death of shame." It is the propensity that
exists in today's society to reward the most unconscionable behavior
with a "tell-all" book or a movie contract. To hate the sin but love the
sinner; to turn the perpetrator into the victim; to deflect blame and
responsibility anywhere but on me. But this is not a diagnosis of
despair -- these traits of culture are turned around by generations that
seek the path of higher standards. Such a generation sits before me
tonight.
 
 You, here, have chosen such a path -- the path of most resistance
instead of least resistance. The path that can forge the very character
we seek to revive. And it will be tested -- again and again -- as you
exercise the power of your choices: To do the right thing and to make it
prevail at whatever cost; to always speak the complete truth; to assume
responsibility; to be accountable for your mistakes as well as rewarded
for accomplishments; and, to make these choices without calculation of
risk or reward. It is the sum of that power which gives strength to this
nation, and will define the character and integrity of your generation
of senior NCOs. You, as future Air Force Leaders, must earn the right to
lead our heroes.
 
 Finally, here are a few practical tenets that have served me well for
more than 35 years in uniform. Jumper's Rules of Life:
 
 Number 1. Your most meaningful memories will be the times when your
character, integrity, endurance, stamina or fortitude were most
challenged and you had the courage to do the right thing.
 
 Number 2. The things that make you feel best about yourself will not be
things you do for yourself, but the good things you do for others.
During the Kosovo war one member of my staff went to a refugee camp
where twenty thousand or so Kosovar Albanians were living in tents. As
he entered the front gate with several other people they were
immediately surrounded by a huge throng of people -- none of them could
speak English but soon a chant began to arise from the people: "NATO,
NATO, NATO." The people were grateful; they were alive because NATO was
protecting them from the Serbian military that had tried to eliminate
them.
 
 Number 3. I can tell you exactly how to get ahead -- the unfailing key
to success: Always do the best at the job you have right now -- the rest
will take care of itself. How remarkable it is that prosperity, good
luck and fortune come to those who work hard.
 
 Number 4. The experiences in your life that truly elevate the human
spirit will not come from material rewards, but from moral and spiritual
rewards that attend virtues of sacrifice, duty, honor and courage. 
 
 So, as you sit here tonight you are ahead in the marathon of life and
your goal is to finish. You have already demonstrated the virtues of
hard work and success that shape character. Stay on that path -- remain
the same person that got you where you are today -- listen to the wisdom
that surrounds you: your seniors, your peers, your spouses, your
children all contribute to that wisdom. They have walked the path you
are on and they do understand. They are beside you here tonight because
they care. Remain united with them into your future.
 
 Thank you, and God bless the United States of America and the US Air
Force.

-- 
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