NEWS LINKS
May 1, 2006
Columbus – The Ohio Army National Guard (OHARNG) has been selected by
the Department of the Army as the Fiscal Year 2006 Army Communities of
Excellence (ACOE) Special Category Winner. The ACOE award recognizes the
OHARNG’s effort in improving their overall performance and capabilities.
Maj. Gen. Greg Wayt, adjutant general for Ohio, and Brig. Gen. Matthew
Kambic, assistant adjutant general for Army, will accept the award from
Army Chief of Staff General Peter Schoomaker at a May 4th ceremony at
the Pentagon to recognize winners in the competition.
“We are extremely proud of this accomplishment,” said Wayt. “It
recognizes years of hard work and effort by every Soldier in the OHARNG
and our goal of maintaining an effective, quality organization.”
In addition to the award, the Ohio Army National Guard will receive
$750,000 to be used toward improving the “quality of life” of the
employees and Soldiers of the OHARNG. The Ohio Army Guard successfully
competed against 27 other National Guard states and installations to win
the “Special Category,” a separate category to allow the National Guard
to compete in the ACOE.
The ACOE Program uses the Army Performance Improvement Criteria (APIC)
as the basis for evaluation and submission in the ACOE awards
competition. The APIC provides a framework for in-depth organizational
assessment and measurement for continuous improvement efforts and is
closely aligned with the Malcom Baldrige National Quality Award
Criteria. The criteria include several modifications to reflect the
military environment.
“This recognition shows that we are not only listening to our Soldiers,
but we’re taking their suggestions on how to run this organization and
putting them into action,” said Kambic.
The announcement comes on the heels of the Ohio Guard’s recent
announcement that it had met its recruiting goal for FY06 a full six
months ahead of schedule. “It is that kind of commitment to quality by
leaders at every level that has led to our success in recruiting and
sustaining readiness during arguably the most challenging times in our
organizations history,” added Kambic.
The OHARNG’s ACOE submission was evaluated by a team of APIC certified
examiners. The submission explains how the OHARNG functions and presents
the results achieved using recognized business practices. The APIC
examiners evaluated and scored the submission in the seven APIC
Categories (Leadership; Strategic planning; Customer Focus; Measurement,
Analysis, and Knowledge Management; Human Resources; Process Management;
and Business Results). Based upon the examiners recommendation and
review of Ohio Army Guard practices Ohio was selected for a site visit.
Only those organizations that show success in the APIC are selected for
a site visit. During the three day site visit, a team of examiners
investigated areas most difficult to understand from the submission and
verify self-assessment accuracy. Upon conclusion of the site visit, the
results were submitted to a Board of Senior Examiners who validated the
entire process and made the final award determination.
The OHARNG has submitted an ACOE submission (self-assessment) annually
since 2002 and has received numerous awards. The organization was
recognized as the National Guard Bureau (NGB) “Rookie of the Year” in
2002. The organization was recognized as the NGB’s overall winner in
2003, 2004 and 2006. In 2005, the organization was awarded First Place
Gold Division as the NGB’s entrant to compete in the Department of the
Army competition. The organization was awarded the Department of the
Army’s Special Category winner in 2003 and 2006.
The Ohio National Guard’s motto, “We Respond When Called with Ready
Units” recognizes the organizations commitment to providing ready units
and Soldiers to support homeland security, domestic, and contingency
missions in addition to support the Global War on Terrorism. With a
proven track record over the past fours years of sustained performance
and improvement the Ohio Army Guard has achieved the number one ranking
in readiness amongst the 54 states and territories.
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: The Ohio National Guard Public Affairs Office at 614-336-7000 or visit www.ohionationalguard.com.