PEO Perspective: March 2024

Happy Spring (or close enough)! I wanted to start by telling you all how proud I am of this organization and the strides we are making in our Agile and Digital Transformations. Every month, more programs are demonstrating marked improvements in delivering consistent and continuous value using agile, and as of late are driving their decisions with live data dashboards. Our functionals and stakeholders are taking note and very excited by what they see. So, thank you to this entire team of professionals!

I also want to thank the workforce for the class and professionalism you all have shown in dealing with the steady stream of effects from the continuing resolutions. Nothing says more about an organization than the way it handles adversity and you all have shown skill and resourcefulness in keeping your programs moving despite the challenges.

This may actually be our busiest March ever, with lots of events on the horizon:

WORKFORCE ANNOUNCEMENTS

First and foremost, I want to sincerely congratulate Rob Schadey, our acting Deputy Program Executive Officer, who accepted a Senior Executive Service position as the Program Manager, National Background Investigations Services within the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency.

• For the past six years Rob supported PEO EIS at all levels including: Director of Cybersecurity; Director of the Business Mission Area leading cloud migration activities for our enterprise resource planning systems; APEO after being hand-selected out of Senior Service College; and last month, the DPEO. As you might imagine, DCSA is very anxious to get him onboard, but Rob will be here at PEO EIS through mid-March. 

This is a huge step in Rob’s stellar career, and I hope you all will join me in congratulating him!

UPCOMING EVENTS

AFCEA Belvoir Fireside Chat

Sarah Mullins, product lead for Computer Hardware, Enterprise Software & Services (CHESS), will join the AFCEA Belvoir team for a fireside chat at the clubhouse at the Fort Belvoir Golf Club on March 6. The intimate discussion is part of a series of career-focused events for up-and-coming federal careerists, and Sarah was asked to discuss what led her to civil service, her path to leadership and her philosophies on goal setting and mentorship. Please contact AFCEA Belvoir for more information on this engagement.

But wait – there’s more!

I will participate in the Gartner CIO Leader Forum March 11 in Hollywood, Florida, and will join the Cross-Service Summit at Scott Air Force Base March 12. I look forward to continued collaboration with our PEO partners across the services and find these opportunities critical for solving the mutual challenges we face.

On March 15, I will join Washington Technology editor Nick Wakeman for a fireside chat at Washington Technology’s Special Edition Event, “Marketing to the Defense Community,” in Reston, Virginia.

Our regular PEO Offsites will pick back up on March 20, and I really look forward to building on the series of leader offsites we started last year. I find these are valuable opportunities to engage in strategic discussions with leaders across the PMs and staff to help us realize our objectives outlined in our FY24-26 Digital Modernization Strategy, and to move closer to becoming Agile practitioners. 

AUSA Global Force Symposium

I will be attending the annual AUSA Global Force Symposium & Exposition this year and plan to join the data mesh conversation at a Warriors Corner with Jennifer Swanson, deputy assistant secretary of the Army for data, engineering and software; and Mark Kitz, program executive officer at PEO C3T. The symposium takes place March 26-28 in Huntsville, Alabama. You can find more information on our Events page, including a link to for industry partners to request to meet with us. Please be sure to submit your requests by March 13. We hope to see you there!

REVAMPED CAREERS PAGE

Besides continually updating our Events page, we will be posting new job openings at EIS to our newly revamped Careers page. There are a lot of benefits to working here, and we’re on a mission to find the best and the brightest to fill our variety of challenging positions. Make sure to check out our current opportunities!

WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH

March is Women's History Month, celebrating women’s achievements throughout the history of the United States. Women Soldiers, Army Civilians, Veterans and family members are invaluable members of the Army Team, representing 19% of all troops and serving in all fields.

We are grateful for their service!

This month, we will be featuring some of PEO EIS’ excellent women leaders on our social media platforms. Please look for these spotlights on our Facebook and LinkedIn pages.

MEDAL OF HONOR AND VIETNAM WAR VETERANS DAY

The Medal of Honor is the United States’ highest award for military valor in action. This month, our nation recognizes the recipients who have distinguished themselves through bravery, courage and sacrifice.

On National Vietnam War Veterans Day, the Army honors all United States Veterans who served on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces from Nov. 1, 1955, to May 15, 1975, regardless of location. This year marks the seventh anniversary of the Vietnam War Veterans Day. The Vietnam War Veterans Recognition Act was established in 2017, designating March 29 as a day to honor and thank Vietnam Veterans.

Thank you sincerely to all who have served — we are forever in your debt.  

Bill Hepworth, Program Executive Officer, PEO EIS

Every Soldier. Every Day.