Air Force steps up alternative dispute resolution efforts

Air Force officials Tuesday announced seven new initiatives aimed at expanding the service's alternative dispute resolution program.

During the past two years, the Air Force's aggressive alternative dispute resolution (ADR) program has been so successful in resolving issues concerning both its own employees and contractors that officials have decided to expand it. The seven-step expansion plan, crafted by Darleen Druyun, the Air Force's principal deputy assistant secretary for acquisition and management, promotes increased use of ADR and expanded partnerships with contractors.

ADR encompasses a wide range of techniques, including mediation, fact-finding and arbitration. It is designed to cut the time and cost of traditional administrative and legal procedures that are used to resolve personnel and contractual disputes. Air Force officials said their two-year experiment in ADR has resulted in a 97 percent resolution rate of disputes.

"In this period of declining budgets and manpower, we need to find a way to more effectively use the taxpayer's dollar to benefit the war fighter and ADR is a very effective technique to minimize wasted effort and maximize product for the dollar," said Col. Barry Wilson, assistant secretary of the Air Force for contracting.

Druyun's plan includes rewarding contractors for resolving issues in a timely fashion, requiring program managers to report any issues pending for more than a year, creating a system for funding settlements that are less than $10 million, working with the Defense Secretary to facilitate access to a fund that is used to pay judgments, and challenging the contracting and acquisitions industry to train both Air Force personnel and industry officials in the use of ADR.

The plans also calls for recognition of people who have successfully used ADR techniques and a commitment by Druyun to promote ADR throughout the Defense Department.

"These are more than just tools, these are initiatives for problem-solving, to initiate a whole new transformation of the way in which we address business issues," said Joe Diamond, the Air Force's program executive officer for weapons.

The new initiatives were announced at an Air Force ADR Conference in San Antonio, Texas. The conference drew government officials, contracting managers and attorneys. Conference participants lauded Druyun's efforts.

"This conference demonstrates that the Air Force is on the cutting edge of using dispute resolutions processes to make government contracting more efficient for all concerned," said Peter Steenland, senior counsel for ADR at the Justice Department. "I hope other federal agencies will learn from the Air Force commitment and adopt similar programs."

The new initiatives reflect a change in the way the Air Force resolves disputes, according to Joe McDade, deputy dispute resolution specialist for the Air Force.

"It involves a mindset change," McDade said. "We want these talented people to get involved much earlier to achieve a win-win business deal that is more beneficial to all concerned."