DON CIO Congratulates Award Winners
Published, February 19, 2014
The Department of the Navy Chief Information Officer is pleased to announce the winners of the 2014 DON IM/IT Excellence Awards, the John J. Lussier Electromagnetic Spectrum Leadership Award, and the new DON Cyberspace/IT Rising Star and DON Cyberspace/IT Person of the Year Awards. There were also seven information technology leaders from the DON among this year's Federal 100 Award winners.
In addition, the DON CIO website was recognized for Outstanding Achievement in Web Development by the Web Marketing Association.
The annual DON IM/IT Excellence Awards recognize exceptional IM/IT projects, teams, and individuals helping to transform the Navy and Marine Corps through information technology.
The John J. Lussier Electromagnetic Spectrum Leadership Award is given to an individual who demonstrates superior achievement in Navy and Marine Corps electromagnetic spectrum management and use. This award is named for the former DON Principal Deputy Chief Information Officer, who was an advocate for protecting the DON's equities in the electromagnetic spectrum and advanced the DON's strategic vision for spectrum.
The DON Cyberspace/IT Rising Star of the Year and Person of the Year Awards were established to acknowledge senior and junior level individuals who strive to deliver significant management efficiencies and cost savings to the department, through visionary thinking, innovation, and superior leadership skills.
The following individuals and teams were selected as the 2014 winners.
DON Cyberspace/IT Person of the Year Award Winner
Randall Cieslak, USPACOM Chief Information Officer (CIO) for his astute planning and management of information resources which provided improved information technology and enhanced operational capabilities to the warfighters of the Pacific theater. The IT Portfolio Management System developed under Cieslak’s leadership - which provides a single data source to link multiple perspectives of budget execution and forecasting, certification and accreditation, and vulnerability management – coupled with a joint cost model to predict IT consolidation and transition savings is optimizing USPACOM’s ability prioritize IT funding in a resource constrained environment.
The strategy he proposed to collapse multiple networks into a shared infrastructure and enhance security with the implementation of Internet Protocol v6 is a model of modernization and transformation activity to be emulated by others. Cieslak also provided exceptional executive oversight and direction of technology demonstrations and advanced network architecture development implementing a layered Commercial Solutions for Classified (CSfC) capability to protect national security information with agility, security, and efficiency. The proof-of-concept architecture he developed provides combatant commanders with the ability to manage risk to command and control and to rapidly stand up mission environments in support of contingency operations, Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief, or peacetime information sharing with any combination of mission partners.
DON Cyberspace/IT Rising Star of the Year Award Winners
Chris Ferguson, Lead Applications Developer, Department of the Navy Assistant for Administration (DON/AA) for establishing himself as the go-to expert for the Secretariat’s systems and applications. Ferguson expertly meets every challenge presented to him, most notably during recent cyber operations. His DoD application security skills have proven crucial to ensuring the safety of the network. Chris was also the key technical advisor/lead developer for the DON/AA Public Portal, the first public website to receive full authority to operate in a commercial cloud environment. Ferguson consistently develops innovative solutions to complex information technology issues.
Anthony Winns, Customer Support Lead for the Department of the Navy Assistant for Administration (DON/AA) for his focus on customer satisfaction, creative approach to problem solving, and drive to produce results, which has drawn attention and praise from the DON’s top leadership including the Secretary of the Navy and the Chief of Naval Operations. Winns’ recent accomplishment in completing a complex, high-visibility network configuration issue marks him as an innovative thinker who has the potential to become a leader in the department’s information technology enterprise.
John J. Lussier Electromagnetic Spectrum Leadership Award Winner
Mark Johnson, Director for Electromagnetic Environmental Effects/Spectrum Policy and Programs, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations for his superior performance as the U.S. Navy Director for Electromagnetic Environmental Effects/Spectrum Policy and Programs. His unparalleled technical expertise and exceptional leadership provided the Department of the Navy with the insight necessary to balance National defense and economic priorities in association with the Federal Communication Commission’s National Broadband Plan. Johnson’s efforts identified 210 MHz of spectrum, worth over $20B, for potential reallocation or sharing while maintaining viability of the Navy’s 30-year shipbuilding plan. Johnson led the development of the Information Dominance Directorate's Electromagnetic Spectrum Usage Roadmap, identifying the way forward in attaining increased spectrum efficiency and operational effectiveness while ensuring warfighter access to critical electromagnetic spectrum resources.
DON IM/IT Excellence Award Individual Winners
Rebecca Chhim, Computer Scientist, Lead Information Assurance Advisor for Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division, Newport, Undersea Warfare Combat System Department for process improvement and development of standard operating procedures and processes that led to efficiencies in IT operations. Her efforts decreased the configuration management burden of operations manual development and distribution; significantly supported improvements expected to lower the total process time for IT procurements for technical projects by up to 50 percent; and devised a standard process for assessing changes to Programs of Record to determine if security re-accreditation is required, which resulted in substantial cost avoidance.
2014 DON Fed 100 Award Winners
Seven information technology leaders from the Department of the Navy were among this year's Federal 100 Award winners. Federal Computer Week magazine annually presents the award to 100 government, industry, and academic leaders who have gone above and beyond their daily responsibilities and made a difference in the way technology has transformed their agency or accelerated their agency’s mission.
The winners' accomplishments will be recognized in a March issue of Federal Computer Week magazine, and the awards will be presented at a black-tie gala held on March 20 in Washington, D.C.
The 2014 DON Fed 100 Award winners are:
- John Bergin, Contract Support to the Department of the Navy Chief Information Officer, Efficiencies Team
- Randy Cieslak, CIO, U.S. Pacific Command
- Ivy Estabrooke, Program Manager, Office of Naval Research
- Kathleen Kaluzienski, DCIO for NMCI, Naval Sea Systems Command
- Lynda Pierce, Chief of Staff/Director of Enterprise IT Policy and Communications, Department of the Navy Chief Information Officer
- VADM Michael Rogers, Commander, U.S. Fleet Cyber Command; Commander, U.S. 10th Fleet
- Susan Shuryn, Efficiencies Branch Head, Department of the Navy Chief Information Officer
- LT William Walders, CIO, Walter Reed National Military Medical Center
Outstanding Achievement in Web Development
The DON CIO website was also an award recipient. It was recognized for Outstanding Achievement in Web Development by the Web Marketing Association, and received the Government Standard of Excellence award. The Web Marketing Association's annual WebAward Competition has been running since 1997, and is known as the premier award recognition program for web developers worldwide.