For 11 days in September, the Defense Logistics Agency Intelligence Personnel Security Office in the McNamara Headquarters Complex was closed due to construction, but through telework, office employees were able to continue supporting customers with no interruption in service.
Construction began Sept. 13 on new walls and a door to make the office more secure, displacing most of the personnel security operations team, said Bridget Pointer, the team leader. But while Pointer remained in the office to handle any immediate needs, most of her team members teleworked for all or part of the construction period, enabling them to fulfill their missions.
“They performed pretty much all the same functions they normally do in the office, and I think we were very successful,” Pointer said.
Members of the personnel security operations team normally provide a host of services to customers, including badge requests, security checks for sensitive positions, and processing background investigations. They were able to complete all these tasks remotely using email, all their regular security databases, and digital signatures on documents, Pointer said.
Telework wasn’t a new concept for Christie Mallon, a personnel security specialist on Pointer’s team. Because most of her customers are located on the West Coast, she regularly teleworks one day a week. But during the construction, she teleworked for eight straight days. Mallon said she was able to perform all her regular duties with no inconvenience to her customers. Having access to all her usual DLA and Defense Department databases and being able to use email and the expanded capabilities of DLA’s new phone system meant she had no trouble getting her work done, she said.
“Teleworking is good for me because I have fewer distractions,” Mallon said. “Working in a customer service office, I feel obligated to get up and help customers who walk in even though my customers are technically all outside the building. So doing that takes me away from my assigned customers.”
Mallon noted she was also glad to be free from the noise and inconvenience of construction, which would have impeded her work.
Though he faced some technical issues while teleworking, another employee that was glad to be free from distractions was Scott Dahme, also a personnel security specialist on the team. Dahme serves customers primarily in DLA Headquarters, but he was still able to meet their needs using technology and remote access to databases, he said. Dahme teleworked for five days during construction. And while he had some issues with network connectivity and equipment malfunction, he estimated he was able to complete about 95 percent of his normal tasks.
“We made it work,” Dahme said. “Some things may have taken me longer than usual to complete, but our customers were understanding.”
Overall, the use of telework ensured the DLA Intelligence personnel security operations team could continue supporting customers with as few interruptions as possible, Pointer said. And now that construction is complete, she said, employees are able to serve their customers in a more secure environment.