Liberty Wing begins using tool to streamline processes

  • Published
  • By Capt. Marnee A.C. Losurdo
  • 512th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Del. --  The Liberty Wing recently began using one of the Air Force's newer initiatives in document management, designed to streamline office work processes.

Enterprise Information Management is a collaborative information tool that provides comprehensive content management and facilitates information-sharing between organizations, said Master Sgt. Tony Harris, 512th Airlift Wing knowledge operations functional manager.

EIM is not new to Dover. The 436th AW has been using this tool since the spring of 2008, and the Air Force has been using it for three years, said Sergeant Harris. However, Air Force Reserve Command began using it this year.

EIM not only provides users with document-sharing capabilities, but it also gives users the flexibility to create announcements, document libraries, meetings sites, survey sites and discussion boards, said Sergeant Harris.

The program is powered by Microsoft Windows SharePoint Server, which is compatible with other Microsoft programs, said Sergeant Harris. This allows users to use the calendar function and other Microsoft applications.

Each 512th AW unit will have their own EIM site, said Sergeant Harris. He is still training site owners. Once individuals are trained, he highly encourages units to begin transferring the information stored on their share drives onto EIM, as the 512th AW deadline to have this accomplished is January, he said.

Sometime in the near future, 512th AW office share drives will go away, he said. In addition, EIM will also take the place of the "O" drives, which are where units store their official office records, but that won't occur right away, he said.

One of the benefits of EIM is an office can organize their site in a way that works for their office, said Sergeant Harris. Units can share their information with the wing, or they can create restricted pages that only their office members can access, ensuring privacy act materials or other sensitive information is secure, he said.

EIM is a great tool to trim down work processes and can allow users to get more out of their work day, because an office can organize their site to benefit their mission, said Sergeant Harris. It can also eliminate duplicated work efforts as it is a one-stop shop for all office documents and required information, he added.

Another aspect of EIM is that it allows users to have their own personal page in addition to the office site.

Tech. Sgt. David Jackson, a fuels specialist and air reserve technician with the 512th Logistics Readiness Flight, has his own personal page and has been using the 436th Logistics Readiness Squadron EIM site for about six months, he said.

"I put my pictures and documents on my site, so I can access this information from any computer and other unit members can go to my site and download them as well," he said. "Plus, since this is the way we are going to do business, by having my own site it gave me the opportunity to get knowledgeable on the system, and then I can train our traditional reservists how to use EIM."

Sergeant Jackson said he uses the 436th LRS EIM site frequently to access their technical orders and policy letters.

"Prior to EIM, we were not able to access the 436th LRS share drive, but now, with EIM, we are able to access each other's information for enhanced collaboration between our two units," he said.

As the wing continues to transition to using the latest document technology, office workers can prepare now by transferring their information off of their share drives and on to their office EIM sites to meet the January deadline.