Finance office proves best in Air Force Reserve Command

  • Published
  • By 1st Lt. Lucas Morrow
  • 914th Air Refueling Wing

The 914th Air Refueling Wing military finance management office won Air Force Reserve Command’s best team award for their work in fiscal year 2021 and move on to compete at U.S. Air Force level.

Why it matters 

When strategic deterrence depends on being the fastest in the enterprise, speed with zero errors is critical. The team’s dedicated leadership, training, customer service, resiliency, and esprit de corps ensures the 914th Air Refueling Wing accurately processes travel vouchers almost nine times faster than their peers keeping our wing in the mission.

-- Not only excelled at home, but also spent a combined 1,200 days augmenting seven installations and four major commands.

-- One of two U.S. Air Force teams selected to support U.S. Army Reserve exercise Diamond Saber. Developed off-station contingency training, a rare training opportunity for finance specialists.

-- Finance leadership pays close attention to the development of their traditional reservists. Ensure even the most junior airmen are given major programs to manage which builds competency, leadership, confidence, and resiliency.

-- The reservists run a robust training class every drill weekend sterile training period which keeps their skills sharp, no matter their duty status.

-- In true excellence in all we do fashion, they will not process tickets unless they are perfected. They ensure every ticket is right before closing and that’s what keeps the processes moving quickly.

Room for improvement

A few tips to help members and mangers process tickets for a faster return.

-- All sales are final: When you and your supervisor sign your orders or voucher you are financially liable for what’s paid by finance. Make sure you carefully review before submitting your final ticket.

-- The devil is in the details: Finance will not finalize a voucher unless it’s correct. Avoid an overdue voucher by paying attention to the small stuff before submitting. File the perfect voucher with online guides and tutorials.

-- Self-help or ask online: Reservists no longer must wait until next drill to see when their orders or voucher are expected to be processed. All pay inquiries, inquiry tracking, and self-service actions are managed through the CAC-enabled Comptroller Services Portal. Be sure to check myPay to confirm that you have been paid.

-- Death by 1,000 cuts: Timely processed orders and vouchers keep appropriated funds flowing smoothly from a numbered air force to a wing. Although your unpaid order or voucher may seem insignificant, it adds up quickly. The wing can’t allot new funds until books are zeroed. Close out open orders and vouchers as quickly as you can to keep the mission going.