[vc_row css_animation=”” row_type=”row” use_row_as_full_screen_section=”no” type=”full_width” angled_section=”no” text_align=”left” background_image_as_pattern=”without_pattern”][vc_column][vc_column_text]Six individuals and a team of Business Management experts from the Program Executive Office for Intelligence, Electronic Warfare and Sensors (PEO IEW&S) received 2014 Excellence in Federal Career Awards during a May 2 event sponsored by the Baltimore Federal Executive Board (FEB).
The purpose of the program is to honor outstanding federal employees, who have performed exceptional and meritorious work with high standards of performance in the Federal government. Bronze level awards from the FEB were awarded to Willie Jackson, Greg Pisani, Laura Stephenson, Patricia San Agustin, and the PEO IEW&S HQ Business Management Division team (Robin Albert, Karen Foley, Bob Huff, Kathy Kneten, Kim Howard, Ashley Rogers, Rachel Tomlinson and Tina Cote), while Mardel Wojchiechowski was honored with a Silver level award and Andrew Kramer received a Gold level award. This group was amongst the more than 200 Federal employee recipients throughout the greater Baltimore are that were honored.
“Receiving these seven awards from the Baltimore Federal Excellence Executive Board is a great reflection on the caliber of federal government employees that support PEO IEW&S and the greater Army as a whole,” said Stephen Kreider, Program Executive Officer for IEW&S. “The awards recognize the significant contributions of each of those that were honored; but more importantly the final result of their commitment to providing our Soldiers with the critical systems they need to complete their mission .”
Jackson, an Assistant Product Manager, earned a Bronze Award in the Outstanding Professional Technical, Scientific & Program Support category. During the award period he was recognized for managing all aspects of development, manufacturing, technological relevance and sustainment of the mounted Counter Radio Controlled Improvised Explosive Device (RCIED) Electronic Warfare (CREW) systems. His actions ensure that when vehicles go on missions in Afghanistan and other locations throughout the world, the Soldiers on-board are protected from RCIEDs. Jackson and a small team managed all tasks associated with keeping over 30,000 systems current and able to beat the ever changing threat.
Pisani, garnered a Bronze Award in the Outstanding Professional Administrative, Management & Specialist category for his work as a Program Analyst. During 2013, he was recognized for the formulation, justification and execution of the budget for multiple programs. Pisani manages a yearly budget of over $300M and coordinates efforts with the Army Staff as well as other agencies such as Special Operations Command, PEO IEW&S, and the PEO for Aviation in Huntsville, AL. Pisani also assumed management of Fiscal Year 11 Procurement funds expiring that were released on May 30, 2013, and fully executed those funds prior to year-end. This resulted in the obligation of $46.1million for two significant efforts that directly support combat operations in Afghanistan.
Stephenson, a Program Analyst, earned a Bronze Award in the Outstanding Professional Administrative, Management & Specialist category. During the award period she for was selected as the PEO IEW&S lead for high visibility submissions required by the Army for Should-Cost Management. This effort required her to enter all of the programmatic information, the cost initiatives for each program, the year that savings are to be realized, and the approvals received for the initiative for every program under PEO IEW&S of which there are 39.
San Agustin, Management Analyst, received a bronze Award in the Outstanding Para-Professional Administrative/Management Analyst category. She showed great initiative when she took on the task to increase the number of certified Acquisition professionals within the PEO. She reviewed and analyzed the records, to ensure they were accurate and that certification requirements in the database were aligned to the employees’ career field. When she identified errors, she researched the cause, and then coordinated corrections with the Human Resources team lead and HHQs on corrective actions. Her efforts not only ensured the PEO was compliant with Department of the Army requirements, but also ensured managers and supervisors were informed on how to handle incidents of sexual harassment, that employees were knowledgeable about their rights and know where to turn to for help if they need it.
The BMD team was recognized with a Bronze award in the Outstanding Para Professional Technical, Scientific & Program Support Team category. The team executed $3.3 Billion for Fiscal Year (FY) 13 covering multiple appropriations to include: Research, Development, Test and Evaluation (RDTE), Other Procurement Army (OPA), Aircraft Procurement Army (ACFT) and Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) and Operations and Maintenance Army (OMA). PEO IEWS is the third largest PEO to receive OCO OMA for execution. The team’s effort ensured more than 80 systems, (both) Programs of Record (PORs) and Quick Reaction Capabilities (QRCs) were sustained, operated and maintained in Afghanistan. BMD team’s customer relations and communication with Acquisition Supporting Command resulted in PEO IEWS getting funding for a Master Black Belt and 20 additional authorizations as part of congressional mandate to grow the acquisition workforce.
Wojchiechowski, a Business/Industry Specialist, was honored with a Silver level award in the Outstanding Professional Administrative, Management & Specialist category. During 2013 she was lauded by higher headquarters for creating a prioritized 1-N contract list, which captures the entire year of contract actions sorted by appropriation and PM. The PEO IEW&S submission is considered the standard for all others in tracking to execution. It was used by ASAALT, the Army Contracting Command community and the PEO. Utilizing the list, PEO IEW&S executed more than $1 billion in Operations OMA for the fiscal year.
Kramer, Chief of Business Management Division for Project Manager Electronic Warfare, came away with the Gold level award in the Outstanding Supervisor GS-13 and above category. As the Business Management Division Chief of the Army Project Manager for Electronic Warfare, he provides the strategic direction necessary for resolution of mission critical problems, policies, and procedures that enable the organization to develop, field, and sustain agile, affordable and holistic materiel solutions by integrating Electronic Warfare, Cyber Warfare, Electro-Magnetic Spectrum Operations, and Signals Intelligence capabilities to provide the Warfighter freedom of maneuver on the battlefield. Kramer’s span of control includes five Product Manager/Product Director Offices plus his staff to manage and execute a budget totaling over $150M in FY13 budget execution authority, and planning/programming/budgeting for $184M in FY14, and an additional $533M in extended forecasts from FY16-20.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]