Evaluating the Effectiveness of the Air Force Enlisted Skills Management System: Recommended Changes to Meet Future Demands
Abstract
This report documents findings and recommendations from a RAND Project AIR FORCE (PAF) project to explore options for modifying or changing the U.S. Air Force (USAF) enlisted skills management system. The report begins with a review of the history and current state of the structure of enlisted occupations (known as Air Force Specialties, or AFSs), and how that structure undergirds the skills management system. It then describes perceived strengths and weaknesses of the current skills management system based on interviews with USAF unit leaders and experts (system customers), enlisted assignment teams, and process experts in the system. It follows with a review of modern skills management practices, primarily focused on artificial intelligence applications, used by other organizations. The report goes on to describe findings from our use of natural language processing to demonstrate how well they can infer skill requirements from USAF occupational data. It then details findings from literature and a workshop on implementing an advanced technical track for enlisted technical talent management. The report concludes with findings and recommendations for options to improve or change the enlisted skills management system.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- May 20, 2024
- Accession Number
- AD1229276
Entities
People
- Annie Y. Kleiman
- Barbara Bicksler
- Chaitra M. Hardison
- Devon Hill
- Grace Falgoust
- John A. Ausink
- Maria. C. Lytell
- Mark Toukan
- Sean Robson
Organizations
- RAND Corporation