Manpower, personnel functions merging Published June 23, 2004 By 1st Lt. Elaine M. Larson Air Education and Training Command Public Affairs RANDOLPH AIR FORCE BASE, Texas (AFPN) -- Manpower, personnel, and education and training functions will merge and realign under mission support squadrons at installations throughout the Air Force beginning July 1."Manpower and personnel have been separate disciplines throughout the Air Force's history," said Col. Douglas V. Bell, Air Education and Training Command's manpower and organization chief. "Merging them will provide cradle-to-grave processes for human resource management."As part of the realignment, mission support squadrons will now be responsible for both manpower and personnel actions, Colonel Bell said. "The new organization will better align both military and civilian resources with manpower requirements for mission accomplishment," he said. "The increased emphasis on force development demands a better linkage between manpower requirement determination and resource development and employment," according to the Program Action Directive signed by Gen. John P. Jumper, Air Force chief of staff.Currently, people in separate Air Force specialties manage the three functions. "Unfortunately, actions often happen within the separate stovepipes that hinder their overall efficiency," according to the directive.The merger may involve a physical move to mission support squadron locations, but should otherwise be invisible to the customer, said Bill Friday, the deputy chief AETC’s manpower and organization. (Courtesy of AETC News Service)