Preparing for an Air Force Compliance Inspection

  • Published
  • By Gillous R. Mays
  • 18th Wing Inspector General
KADENA AIR BASE, Japan --  Compliance Inspections, or CIs, go hand-in-hand with the 18th Wing Commander's vision of all 18th Wing agencies to continually demonstrate "conspicuous compliance."

CIs which used to be called UCIs, are conducted to assess areas mandated by law as well as mission areas that are critical or important to the health and performance of organizations. Unit failure to comply with the established directives in these areas could result in legal liabilities, penalties, or mission impact.

CIs use a three-tier rating system of In Compliance, In Compliance With Comments, and Not In Compliance to assess each compliance area. It is not the intent of a CI to specifically rate organizations; the intent is to rate programmatic compliance.

To assist with ensuring your organization is rated In Compliance, Airmen can follow the four steps below to prepare for a CI.

Start Now. Preparation leads to maintaining a culture of compliance and meeting mission requirements. Compliance with applicable directives should not be based solely on an upcoming inspection. The 18th Wing established a unit self-inspection program to internally evaluate compliance in applicable missions areas listed in Air Force Instruction 90-201, Inspector General Activities. Headquarters Air Force functionals published standardized inspection checklists which are available on the Air Force checklist service Web site at https://webapps.afrc.af.mil/afia/home.aspx. The HAF checklists should be the starting point when developing a unit self-inspection program. The 18th Wing has unique missions and units should create internal checklist supplements as needed for their self-inspection program.

Review Inspection Data. 18th Wing units should focus on inspection data from previous inspections. A complete review of the unit's last compliance inspection report will provide insight on problem areas identified by the inspection team during the last visit. Repeat findings reflect on a unit's preparation for an inspection and could negatively impact the severity of the deficiency. Units should also review other unit's recent inspection reports and the semi-annual trend analysis report generated by the IG. Inspection reports provide detailed information about deficiencies.

Perform Assessments. Unit leadership should actively support a unit self-inspection program. Self-inspections should be conducted at intervals allowing program managers to assess their mission areas and provide sufficient time to analyze and correct deficiencies. The Air Force Eight-Step Problem Solving Process should be used to identify root causes and corrective actions.

Have a Reception Plan. With an increase of no-notice and limited-notice inspections, a unit should develop an IG reception plan to be executed at a moment's notice. The plan should identify a suitable area that can be transformed into an IG work center to include, basic communications and network to support the team. Plans should also identify the IG team point of contact and be validated during a unit self-inspection.

Preparing for an inspection is a total team effort. Preparation leads to maintaining a culture of conspicuous compliance and meeting mission requirements.