In Above and Beyond, Dennis L. Richardson, an experienced naval officer, shares the true story of how as newly appointed manager of Assault Craft Unit FOUR's Fleet Maintenance Activity, he was responsible for the bottom-up reorganization, culminating more than three hundred sailors at the only East Coast-based maintenance organization facilitating thirty-five Landing Craft Air Cushion (LCAC)--from 2014 to 2017. In this arduous environment, the organization was crippled by a broken maintenance philosophy, broken repair processes, and the worst maintenance readiness in years. Richardson fundamentally changed the way they did things through aggressive initiatives, visionary leadership, and key process changes centered on a comprehensive reform of the maintenance philosophy. He then helped navigate the organization by elevating readiness from 37 percent up to as high as 72 percent through innovation and smart maintenance practices--the most successful readiness in a decade. While guiding the organization through epic changes, Richardson empowered the workforce and created a culture of continuous process improvement, excelling at routine day-to-day maintenance completion to complex depot-level repairs on time with zero production delays. In 2016, they executed 769,000 production hours and saved over $23.2 million in contractor cost avoidance for depot maintenance requirements. The leadership and management efforts of Richardson's team were validated by winning the US Navy's nomination for the prestigious Secretary of Defense Maintenance Award (2015). The accomplishments achieved were earmarked as the best maintenance practices of any platform in the navy to sustain the highest level of materiel and combat craft readiness to meet operational commander tasking, which led them above and beyond. Above and Beyond Leading and Managing Organizational Change By Dennis L. Richardson AuthorHouse Copyright © 2017 Dennis L. Richardson All rights reserved. ISBN: 978-1-5246-9009-0 Contents Preface, xiii, Acknowledgements, xv, Disclaimers, xvii, CHAPTER 1: Take Responsibility, 1, CHAPTER 2: Accept Responsibility, 17, CHAPTER 3: Build a Successful Team, 25, CHAPTER 4: Work as a Team, 34, CHAPTER 5: Provide Quality Leadership, 45, CHAPTER 6: "Let's Get It!", 62, CHAPTER 7: Go Above and Beyond, 77, CHAPTER 8: Success Is Yours, 88, Afterword, 99, Glossary, 101, References, 107, CHAPTER 1 TAKE RESPONSIBILITY I was serving onboard the USS San Antonio (LPD 17), the lead ship of her class of amphibious transport dock ships, when I received transfer orders from my new command: Welcome Aboard and congratulations on your assignment to Assault Craft Unit FOUR, where the Navy's newest and most advanced amphibious assault craft are located. You are about to embark on one of the most challenging and rewarding tours in your naval career. Designed to operate from every well deck configured amphibious ship, the Landing Craft Air Cushion's (LCAC) main mission is to deliver a 60-ton payload to a designated beachhead at speeds in excess of 35 knots. Combining high speed, exceptional maneuverability, and long-range qualities with the ability to travel over land, the LCAC provides added versatility to our Amphibious Forces ... Welcome Aboard. After researching the command's history on the Internet, I learned that the LCAC employs air-cushion vehicle technology, combined with state-of-the-art marine gas turbine propulsion. The craft flies on a cushion of air contained within a flexible skirt of synthetic rubberized nylon. This design allows the LCAC to conduct high-speed, over-the-horizon, ship-to-shore movement of Marine Corps assets from amphibious ships to over 70 percent of the world's beaches, compared to only 17 percent using conventional landing craft. In an overload condition, it is capable of carrying a Marine M1A1 Main Battle Tank. It can operate over marshes, reefs, and other areas inaccessible to conventional landing craft. I thought, WOW! I am going to be the maintenance department head and senior engineer of ACU 4's Fleet Maintenance Activity. In my excitement, I reviewed the ACU 4 website to find its mission: "To provide combat ready craft that fully meets operational tasking worldwide, on time, every time." I knew then that I was about to be challenged like never before. I had seen the LCAC while embarked in San Antonio's well deck. With two fully loaded LCAC, the ship was able to transport and land marines with their equipment and supplies from its well deck. The embarked LCAC supported amphibious assault, special operations, or expeditionary warfare missions and served as secondary aviation platforms for amphibious-ready groups. The ability of San Antonio to carry LCAC helped sea warriors execute expeditionary missions throughout the world; this was amazing to watch as I performed my duties as debark control officer and ballast control officer. I had heard some wonderful things abou