JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash.  -- In 2010, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz tasked the Air Force inspector general to give the Air Force inspection program a major overhaul. You may have noticed a few changes as a result, such as the implementation of the Consolidated Unit Inspection. The overall goal of the CUI was to combine and integrate multiple inspections, thereby freeing up 'white space' on the calendar to allow commanders more time to focus on training and readiness.
 
Another significant change was the adoption of the Management Internal Control Toolset. MICT is a program that takes self-assessment to a whole new level. As units complete compliance checklists in MICT, they are required to not only self-identify deficiencies, but they must also develop and upload corrective action plans in order to demonstrate compliance.
 
Just when you were getting used to the idea of CUIs and MICT, the Air Force inspection system is evolving yet again. Air Force leadership is finalizing plans to implement another major change to the inspection system. The new system, called the Commander's Inspection Program (CCIP), is designed to ensure units are mission ready at all times.

Under CCIP, the wing will undergo a continuous evaluation cycle, thereby eliminating the need to ramp up inspection prep every few years. The new philosophy is "mission-ready is inspection-ready." At the local level the wing IG will continually validate and verify data input into MICT through a combination of scheduled, short notice, and no-notice inspections. The major command IG will virtually inspect a sampling of units and programs within MICT, and only visit our wing one week every two years to conduct a hands-on inspection. This inspection, called the Unit Effectiveness Inspection, will replace all compliance and readiness inspections altogether.

So what does this mean to you? Greater emphasis will be placed on commanders and supervisors to ensure units are mission-ready at all times. Simply put, you will no longer take extraordinary efforts to prepare your office for an inspection, because you should assume that your unit is always being looked at!

There is still a lot to be revealed about the new inspection system, and you can expect more information to come in the following months. Ultimately, the focus will be on obtaining more 'white space' on the calendar, eliminating inspection prep, and achieving steady-state mission readiness.