From weapons to workforce, digital centricity is the Air Force's new motto

 The Air Force wants to jettison its analog ways and go digital in everything from talent management to aircraft manufacturing and design.

Matthew Donovan, the Air Force's undersecretary for personnel and readiness, said revamping talent management to focus on adapting to "digital native" airmen is the crux of the service's digital modernization plan.

The Air Force needs to "appeal to expectations" of the youngest airmen to establish military service as an equally viable career path as corporate America, Donovan said at the Air Force Association's virtual Air, Space, Cyber conference computer science degree jobs.

That means increasing "career flexibility" so personnel can rotate in and out of Air Force components and the private sector (and alternate between active and reserve duty), Donovan said. Making sabbaticals, which could be used for family or elder care, education and training, "the norm" so that service members can come back to active duty without penalty, should also be included.