The Air Force Financial Services Center (AFFSC) is a

Field Operating Agency This is a list of Field Operating Agencies (FOA) in the United States Department of the Air Force The United States Department of the Air Force (DAF) is one of the three military departments within the Department of Defense of the United States ...

of the

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. The center is located at Ellsworth Air Force Base in

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, South Dakota. Its mission is to centrally process all military pay and travel pay transactions for the Air Force, and to answer financial services questions from Air Force personnel 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The commander of the Air Force Financial Services Center reports to the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Financial Operations in

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History

The Financial Services Center was opened on 14 September 2007 by

Secretary of the Air Force A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a wh ...

Michael Wynne Michael Walter Wynne (born September 4, 1944) is an American politician and business executive and was the 21st United States Secretary of the Air Force. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates asked for and received his resignation (and that of Chief ...

. The ribbon-cutting ceremony was attended by

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, Congresswoman

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, senior Air Force official, and Rapid City civic leaders. The center's first commander was Colonel Judy Perry.Petersante-Gioia, Martha (Capt, USAF)
"Financial service center opens doors at Ellsworth"
Air Force Print News, Ellsworth Air Force Base, 17 September 2007. The Air Force selected Ellsworth Air Force Base as the site for its finance center from more than 80 candidate locations.Dean, John C., "Centralizing Air Force financial services: centralization will dramatically transform the majority of Air Force financial services", ''Armed Forces Comptroller'', American Society of Military Comptroller, January 2007. It was chosen because the base had existing facilities with of available floor space as well as good force protection and communications infrastructure. In addition, the area's cost of living, low risk for natural disasters, and generally friendly atmosphere also were considered in the site selection decision.United States Air Force, "Information Paper on the Air Force Financial Services Center", Town Hall Briefing, Rapid City, SD, 18 June 2006.

Personnel

An initial cadre of approximately 50

non-commissioned officers A non-commissioned officer (NCO) is a military officer who has not pursued a commission. Non-commissioned officers usually earn their position of authority by promotion through the enlisted ranks. (Non-officers, which includes most or all enli ...

, arrived in April 2007. When fully manned, the center had 775 Airmen and civilian employees. The current personnel makeup is 80 percent military and 20 percent civilian. However, the Air Force plans to slowly shift the manning mix to achieve a majority civilian work force by 2014. All military personnel assigned to the center are trained for contingency operations and support expeditionary Air Force deployments.

Facilities

The center consists of three buildings located on Ellsworth Air Force Base. The main building houses the financial transaction processing operations group and the customer service contact center (which will be officially activated in October 2008). This building was originally the base military education and testing center. The finance center also includes a separate state-of-the-art technology facility and a small military headquarters building adjacent to the main building. This building was the base community center prior to being gutted and remodeled.

Financial Operations

Activation of the Financial Services Center was the largest financial management transformation initiative in Air Force history. The Air Force consolidated financial services into a single center to increase efficiency and reduce operating costs needed to deliver the financial services to Airmen. The center's centralized transaction processing and customer service contact center reduces these tasks from 93 base finance offices located at Air Force installations around the world. This reduced the total number of Air Force personnel needed to process pay transactions and respond to customer inquires by 600.Randolph, Monique (Staff Sgt, USAF)
"Air Force to transform financial services"
Air Force Print News, 12 September 2007. The center is modeled on

private sector The private sector is the part of the economy, sometimes referred to as the citizen sector, which is owned by private groups, usually as a means of establishment for profit or non profit, rather than being owned by the government. Employment The ...

customer service operations. Its streamlined transaction processing will save the Air Force $210 million in basic operating costs over a ten-year period. Contact center personnel are trained to resolve a multitude of common finance issues. This allows Air Force personnel to make inquiries and resolve pay issues at the customer's convenience. More complicated pay matters are routed to the appropriate department within the center so functional experts can research and resolve the problem. This approach ensures each problem is effectively addressed.

References

{{reflist

External links

United States Air Force

Assistant Secretary of the Air Force (Financial Management and Comptroller)

Ellsworth Air Force Base
United States Air Force Field operating agencies of the United States Air Force Centers of the United States Air Force Military in South Dakota United States military pay and benefits