I understand that in the past 10 years, CAP has shifted dramatically from a quasi-militarty mentality to a corporate mentality.

The story of how this came about is too long to tell here, but basically the high-ranking CAP officers who actually wanted CAP to be more corporate than military got their wish because the Air Force allowed it to happen.

CAP went from being the full-time auxiliary to the part-time auxiliary, and also there is now more emphasis on the corporate aspect of CAP than ever before. For goodness sake, there's a professional development school called Corporate Learning Course, and even uniforms are now CAP distinctive uniforms being branded as "corporate." Gag me with a spoon!

Is there any way to get rid of the corporate mentality and go back to the way things were before, where CAP was the Air Force Auxiliary first and the CAP, Inc. second?

Sure....stop being a corporation.

We are ALWAYS the Air Force Auxilary...even when we are not covered by USAF insurance....and we are ALWAYS CAP Inc.

There is no dicotomy.....nor is there a major shift.

20 years ago we had corporate uniforms as we have had the CLC.

Nothing has changed except you and your perception of the organization.

When you were a cadet playing at being in the USAF you did not notice all the things you are complaining about....but now you see that the play ground is not like you remember and you want to try to change it. Good luck.

As for the "corporate mentality"...for the most part I just don't see it. Most everyone I know in CAP are dedicated to the mission just like anyone in the military. Some are "fat and fuzzy" and some are hard core bullet spitters....most fall in somewhere between.

quote:

Reply

How do you differentiate between the fat & fuzzies and the bullet splitters?

The point is...I don't differentiate between the two.

I only care about what a person does and how well they do it.

quote:

Originally posted by Guardrail256:
I understand that in the past 10 years, CAP has shifted dramatically from a quasi-militarty mentality to a corporate mentality.

The story of how this came about is too long to tell here, but basically the high-ranking CAP officers who actually wanted CAP to be more corporate than military got their wish because the Air Force allowed it to happen.

CAP went from being the full-time auxiliary to the part-time auxiliary, and also there is now more emphasis on the corporate aspect of CAP than ever before. For goodness sake, there's a professional development school called Corporate Learning Course, and even uniforms are now CAP distinctive uniforms being branded as "corporate." Gag me with a spoon!

Is there any way to get rid of the corporate mentality and go back to the way things were before, where CAP was the Air Force Auxiliary first and the CAP, Inc. second?

I like how i read something on CAPtalk, and a day or 2 later that same topic gets posted here by you as if you thought of it.

In large part the change was not due to CAP, it was the downsizing of the Air Force. No longer were Air Force bases available for encampments, as they were full. Airlift for cadets to the Air Force Museum for example disappeared. And keep in mind the 1990's Gulf war and the current conflicts are streching the Air Force thin. The Air Force support has lessened and the CAP Corporation has filled the void.
Granted the "corporate mentality" has expanded, but this has been to a large part to "protect" the corporation from lawsuits. Add to that the politics of CAP on the National and Regional level and it's obvious where the corporate mentality comes from.

quote:

Originally posted by MCO85:
I like how i read something on CAPtalk, and a day or 2 later that same topic gets posted here by you as if you thought of it.

Well, since I never presented the topic as though I though of it, your agrument against me falls apart.

I didn't even use the same language as the author of the topic on CAPTalk which is about the same subject.

What you are doing, sir, is assuming I plaigarized a topic from CAPTalk without actually reading the thread. If you put the two threads together, you will find different language between the two.

quote:

Originally posted by Lordmonar:
Sure....stop being a corporation.

I don't know if CAP has to stop being a corporation... I'm not sure if that's even legally possible... but all the "protect the corporation" and "the corporation comes first" stuff has to stop. It only drives CAP further away from the Air Force.

quote:

Originally posted by Lordmonar:
We are ALWAYS the Air Force Auxilary...even when we are not covered by USAF insurance....and we are ALWAYS CAP Inc.

CAP is always the Air Force Auxiliary in name, but legally it is only the Air Force Auxiliary when AFAM's are being conducted. That is why I call it the "part-time auxiliary."

quote:

Originally posted by Lordmonar:
There is no dicotomy.....nor is there a major shift.

I beg to differ, sir. There has been a major shift in focus in CAP from being a military auxiliary to being a private corporation and this has led to a dichotomy. This dichotomy has separated those who want to preserve CAP's heritage and retain the military atmosphere of CAP, and those who want to make CAP into something it was never designed to be and give it a 'makeover' as a corporation in both atmosphere and status.

As a cadet, I found that the majority of those who want to preserve CAP's heritage and retain the military atmosphere in CAP have military experience, cadet experience, police/fire/EMT experience, or government experience.

I found that many who only had corporate experience fell right into the category of those who want to give CAP a corporate atmosphere and make it into something it was never designed to be.

quote:

Originally posted by Lordmonar:
20 years ago we had corporate uniforms as we have had the CLC.

Nothing has changed except you and your perception of the organization.

True. I was a cadet for 8 years, and for the majority of that time I had no clue CAP was a corporation. And when I finally found out, I did not care (as is the case with most cadets). Most cadets (at least all the ones I knew) do not care about the corporation and frown upon those who want to give CAP a corporate atmosphere.

quote:

Originally posted by Lordmonar:
When you were a cadet playing at being in the USAF you did not notice all the things you are complaining about....but now you see that the play ground is not like you remember and you want to try to change it. Good luck.

Well, I am not alone. Cadets are trained to focus on the military aspect of CAP, not the corporate aspect.

quote:

Originally posted by Lordmonar:
As for the "corporate mentality"...for the most part I just don't see it. Most everyone I know in CAP are dedicated to the mission just like anyone in the military. Some are "fat and fuzzy" and some are hard core bullet spitters....most fall in somewhere between.

You have to look at the upper levels of the organization, sir. The reason why there is all this emphasis on the coporation and the "protect the corporation" mindset is so CAP can be protected from lawsuits.

They put emphasis on CAP being "The official auxiliary of the USAF" when it is convenient, and "CAP, Inc." when it is convenient. It is a matter of selective identity, and it changes very often.

If the corporation goes away, fine. If it stays, fine. This is about the coporate mindset and how it is ebbing away at CAP's heritage as a military auxiliary.

The Air Force says that the people are the #1 asset. CAP is teaching its officers that the corporation is the #1 asset. The focus needs to shift back to the people, and when it does I am confident that a more military atmosphere will follow.

Or I can ignore the upper leadership and do my job at the squadron level.

That is your problem...and a problem of a lot of people who are upset about the "direction CAP is going".

I am here to do a mission.

That mission is to mold young people into good citizens and leaders (Cadet Programs), Educate people on the important of aircraft and the aircraft industry to their daily lives (Aerospace Education) and to serve my community, state and nation in time of need (Emergency Services).

If I have to do that from a corporation with dockers and a polo shirt uniform and every one is called by their first name.....so be it. I prefer to do it as a para-military organisation...but I am married to the mission.....NOT the organization.

It's called service before self.