NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
DATE: June 13, 2012
CONTACT: Beth Lucy-Speidel
703.284.5916
beth.lucy-speidel@marymount.edu
Winners of the 11th Annual HR Leadership Awards of Greater Washington Announced
ARLINGTON, VA – Winners of the 2012 HR Leadership Awards of Greater Washington were announced at the
tenth annual awards ceremony at the Crystal Gateway Marriott on Tuesday, June 12.
2012 HR LEADERSHIP AWARD WINNERS BY CATEGORY
Established in 2001, the HR Leadership Awards of Greater Washington honor HR executives for outstanding
contributions to their organizations and to the field of human resource management through organizational leadership,
risk-taking, innovation, vision, mentoring, community service, and ethics.
LEADERSHIP (companies with 1,000 or more employees)
Honors a senior human resource professional whose influence and leadership enables their organization to
achieve improved business performance.
WINNER: Mary Santiago, Director, Veterans Employment Services Office, Department of
Veterans Affairs
Mary Santiago is credited with establishing the Department of Veteran Affairs dynamic new career
program, VA for Vets, which was created to address the full employment lifecycle for veterans and
military Servicemembers and was launched on Veterans’ Day, 2011. VA for Vets is a high-tech, hightouch platform unlike any other in the federal government. It has actively assisted veterans in translating
their military skills, assessing their professional strengths and interests, and building resumes with
language civilian employers can understand. It also helps keep deployed Servicemembers connected to
VA during their deployments.
The impressive statistics for the VA for Vets in its short history are a testament to both its success and
Mary’s leadership abilities. After running pilot events in a handful of cities, Mary organized VA for
Vets’ first major hiring event, the Veteran Career Fair and Expo in Washington, DC. Over 4,100
veterans attended the 13-hour career fair and to date, more than 500 veterans have received tentative job
offers and other job offers may follow. In addition, there have been more than 128,000 visits to the VA
for Vets website, more than 9,000 registered new user accounts, and more than 8,600 career and
reintegration coaching cases in just six months.
Especially in light of the important mission of helping integrate veterans and Servicemembers into the
civilian workforce, Mary’s success at the Department of Veteran Affairs demonstrates why she is truly a
leader in the HR profession.
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Finalists:
J. Jane Cohen |Volunteers of America
Laura Viehmyer, | DAI
LEADERSHIP (companies with fewer than 1,000 employees)
Honors a senior human resource professional whose influence and leadership enables their organization to
achieve improved business performance.
WINNER: Kay Curling | Senior VP HR, Salient Federal Solutions, Inc.
Kay Curling is described as a valuable asset to Salient’s executive leadership team and demonstrates an
uncanny ability to develop strategic plans around which to build successful HR infrastructure practices
and policies. Less than 18 months after forming and leading a new HR team, Kay transformed Salient
from a “go through” to a “go to” employer for a variety of reasons. Among other things, Kay and her
team:
• rolled out a complete Human Resource Information System;
• launched a new set of employee benefits plans with more robust benefits and decreased costs to
employees;
• created and implemented a company-wide performance management system;
• designed and implemented a new compensation program and merit structure;
• implemented employee service and performance awards;
• significantly enhanced the lines of communication through a monthly HR newsletter; and
• launched Salient University -- a Salient-wide online learning platform aimed at developing business
and technical skills throughout the organization.
Kay’s contributions to Salient have shown measurable business impact; particularly in proving the
organization is a great place to work. Through fostering a high performance culture, the voluntary
attrition rate at Salient decreased from almost 40% to 25%, ultimately saving the company more than $3
million. Kay’s ability to inspire and drive high performance teams and to champion collaboration proves
her leadership abilities have fostered growth and a positive business environment.
Finalists:
Dana Smith, Senior | CapitalSource
Denise Watters | CSSI, Inc.
STRATEGIC ALIGNMENT - individual
Honors an individual for developing and delivering human resource solutions that strengthened the
organization’s ability to achieve its strategic business objectives.
WINNER: Holly Kortright, SVP HR, Deltek
As Senior Vice President of HR at the innovative, fast-growing Deltek, Holly Kortright is recognized as
being the driver behind Deltek’s company culture and employee engagement as well as a trusted advisor
to the executive team.
While Deltek has been successful at driving financial and product transformations, a culture
transformation was essential to support the growth. Holly was entrusted with the difficult task of
unifying an employee base that hailed from three separate recently acquired companies. To do so, she
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assembled a cross-functional Culture Alignment Group to serve as the steering/ working committee for
the culture effort, which ensured employee representation and kept culture efforts at the top-of-mind
with management.
Of course, for the cultural realignment to be successful, the company needed to meet the great demand
among Deltek employees to understand the company’s strategy. Holly drove this conversation between
management and employees through town hall meetings, business unit strategy sessions and employee
focus groups. These shared stories resonated with employees in a way that prior communications had
not.
Holly’s focus on collaboration, communication and culture has been a cornerstone of the organization’s
continued success. After the culture transformation in 2011, revenue has increased 22%, Deltek’s stock
value has increased 35% and operating margins have grown from 7.6% to an impressive 21.3% from Q1
to Q4. Clearly, these statistics demonstrate how Holly’s leadership abilities epitomize the essence of the
key HR goal of strategic alignment.
Finalists:
Carrolyn Bostick | Intelsat, S.A., Inc.
Tina Bailey | VSE Corporation
STRATEGIC ALIGNMENT - team
Honors a team for developing and delivering human resource solutions that strengthened the organization’s
ability to achieve its strategic business objectives.
WINNER: CACI Employee Mobility Program
Tara Winesett and Doug Greene
CACI itself characterizes minimizing employee attrition as one of the company’s greatest challenges.
The company’s response to this challenge was to establish the CACI Employee Mobility Program,
which connects employees who are losing coverage or searching for new job opportunities with CACI
open positions.
Within a year of its debut, the Employee Mobility Program was undoubtedly a success. CACI
experienced a record low 13.7% attrition rate and 19% of its open positions were filled with internal
candidates – a 14% increase over the previous year. Notwithstanding the great initial success of the
program, the team quickly identified areas for improvement and incorporated them into the Program.
Since its inception, the number of Mobility Board participants has increased 257%. However, the size of
the Employee Mobility Program Team has remained constant due to the innovative, cost-saving
processes and technologies it employs. The Employee Mobility Program‘s success has also contributed
to the Recruiting and Workforce Planning team’s ability to fill 4,400 positions in an average of 26 days
– which represented a 13% cost reduction over the previous year and delivered over $2 million to
CACI’s bottom line.
Finalists:
Intelsat, S.A., Inc. HR Talent Management & Operations Team
MHM Human Resources Team
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INNOVATION - individual
Honors an individual for thought leadership in creating and implementing new ideas, methodologies, or
approaches that improve organizational performance.
WINNER: Susan Coe | Senior Director HR, American Nurses Association
Upon assuming the role of Senior Director of Human Resources at the American Nurses Association
(ANA) in 2010, Susan Coe began implementing organization-wide HR solutions. Within a four-month
period, the ANA introduced and rolled out a completely overhauled HRIS system.
In addition to being lauded for the functional benefits brought to the ANA by the new system, Susan’s
approach to her role is credited with radically improving the organization’s performance with its new
methodologies and approaches, which are now deeply embedded into the company’s culture.
Susan also set out to transform enterprise-wide meetings from one-way reports to dynamic experiences
that foster discussion. As a result of the changes that were made, time in meetings decreased 30% while
enhancing overall the quality and effectiveness. In praise of Susan’s innovations in this area, one
employee commented to the ANA’s CEO that “This year’s enterprise-wide meetings have been the best
I’ve participated in in ten years. They have become more meaningful, social, and professional.”
It is clear that the creative approaches and cultural transformations that Susan has introduced into the
ANA have set the stage for positive dialogue and future innovation. Susan’s accomplishments, attitude
and approach to her role as an HR professional demonstrate why she truly is a leader in the area of
innovation.
Finalists:
Laura Gordon | Curam Software
Mary Santiago | Department of Veterans Affairs
INNOVATION - team
Honors a team for thought leadership in creating and implementing new ideas, methodologies, or approaches
that improve organizational performance.
WINNER: CACI Recruiting & Workforce Planning Technology Team
Tara Winesett, Katie Moore, Jonathan Vincent, Moira Welsh, John Hoey,
In an organization in which hiring is the essential component to growth, CACI’s Recruiting &
Workforce Planning Team’s lead the drive to stay ahead of the competition.
The team united the company’s Recruiting Technology and Marketing teams and in doing so
integrated cutting-edge technology and strategic marketing to maximize the performance and ability of
the company’s recruiting solutions. The team members focused their efforts on improving two key
recruiting functions: attracting and engaging candidates, as well as matching them to the right positions.
To do so, the Recruiting & Workforce Planning Team enhanced the company’s mobile technology,
search engine optimization, talent community marketing and social media marketing.
CACI’s innovative fusion of recruiting technology and marketing has returned several
measurable outcomes. For example, over the past year, the company’s mobile visitors doubled and they
are outpacing their competitors. In addition, through the use of Search Engine Optimization, hires
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through the platform increased 169%, and candidate applications through job aggregators increased by
340%.
Capitalizing on the capabilities and uses of various technological channels while enhancing
internal capabilities at matching candidates to appropriate positions has enabled CACI to fill positions
successfully at a historic low cost per hire. This success is a testament to the CACI Recruiting and
Workforce Planning Technology Team’s creativity and innovation.
Finalists:
Ascom Team, ACDI/VOCA Team, Kaiser Permanente Learning & Organization Team
MENTORING
Honors an individual who demonstrates leadership, dedication, and support to the professional growth and
development of others.
WINNER: Jennifer Djouadi | HR Consultant, Paychex HR Solutions
Throughout her career, serving as a mentor has been a priority in Jennifer Djouadi’s personal and
professional plan. Jen played an important role in the development of the mentoring program at Paychex
when it was in its initial stages, with her focus being on ensuring that new employees receive jobspecific training that prepared them for success when working with clients. After the comprehensive
mentoring program was set in place, Jen set out on her personal mission – to cultivate, develop and
nurture incoming employees.
Meeting with mentees weekly, Jen assists employees in preparing for the rigorous entrance exam as well
as in identifying areas of strength. Further, she helps improve employee understanding of HR
compliance.
Her presence as a leader and mentor at Paychex is felt throughout multiple levels in the organization.
Perhaps even more notably, it is felt outside the organization, too. Not only has she received praise from
fellow employees for whom she has served as a formal mentor; clients of Jen’s also have commented
that they have learned so much from her in her role as a service provider that they feel she has been a
mentor to them as well. Clearly, Jen’s capacity and passion for teaching and nurturing make her a leader
in the area of mentoring.
Finalists:
Jim Kemp | Northrop Grumman Corporation
Steve Fuller | Ernst & Young LLP
THE SISTER EYMARD GALLAGHER AWARD FOR CORPORATE SOCIAL
RESPONSIBILITY
Honors an individual, team, or organization for leadership, dedication, and achievements that help create
positive change in the community.
WINNER: Kelly Wing, Senior Manager HR, American Systems
As Senior Manager of HR at American Systems, Kelly Wing has been recognized for her leadership,
dedication and achievements in creating positive change in the communities in which the organization
operates. Kelly has led numerous American Systems initiatives in the community service arena. Among
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other efforts:
• Kelly has driven the growth of American Systems’ partnership with Deep Park Elementary School in
Centreville, VA – a school with special challenges.
• She is the company’s liaison to the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association
Educational Foundation.
• Through Kelly’s leadership, American Systems earned the distinction of being named “Top Corporate
Team” in Fairfax County by the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
• Each holiday season, Kelly initiates a matching donation program to support wounded veterans. In
2011, donations supported the Wounded Warrior Project and, due to Kelly’s leadership, far exceeded the
company’s target and a resulted in a company record donation.
Astoundingly, these initiatives are merely a few of Kelly and American Systems’ efforts to give back to
the community. One colleague noted that “I’ve never met anyone like Kelly Wing. Not only does she go
above and beyond to assist managers and employees here at American Systems, she is passionate about
so many organizations and is always rallying support to help someone or something.”
Finalists:
Jeana Foster | MorganFranklin Corporation
Bernadette Channer | DAI
THE DR. J.P. LONDON AWARD FOR PROMOTING ETHICAL BEHAVIOR
Honors the outstanding individual who demonstrates a considerable and enduring commitment to ethical business
practices in the field of human resource management.
WINNER: ACDI/VOCA Team
Marsha Moulton and William Sparks
ACDI/VOCA is an economic development nonprofit organization that fosters broad-based economic
and social development in the least developed countries. Based in Washington, DC, ACDI/VOCA has
worked in 145 countries since 1963. Its annual revenues of $140 million are spread over the five practice
areas of agribusiness, food security, enterprise development, financial services and community
development. ACDI/VOCA currently has over 1,500 employees working on 92 projects in 40 countries.
As a mission-oriented organization, ACDI/VOCA pursues three primary values while striving to
promote positive economic and social change worldwide. These values are the commitment to its
overseas beneficiaries, wise stewardship of development resources and a knowledgeable, experienced,
diverse and effective team.
Through the AchieVe performance management program, the ACDI/VOCA team communicates ethics
and values not only as high-level expectations, but also as specific daily behaviors that can be described,
encouraged and recognized.
The team created the AchieVe program, in part, to ensure that critical values were reinforced and
followed. As a nonprofit organization working with government resources provided by the American
taxpayer, ACDI/VOCA recognizes the importance of being responsible and ethical stewards of these
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resources. Through the AchieVe program, ACDI/VOCA is now able to ensure that employees are given
concrete methods for putting these values into action.
Newly hired employees are first introduced to these ethical values and behaviors through an interactive
scenario discussion during quarterly AchieVe Overview sessions. A variety of ethical scenarios are
presented. New employees participate through the use of audience response devices to select their
proposed solution to the ethical situation. Following the answers, a discussion is facilitated to explain
the consequences of both effective and ineffective behaviors. This discussion is followed with a detailed
explanation of the desired behaviors. In addition, an online module has been developed in which
employees worldwide can view the interactive ethics presentation.
Over the last three years, Marsha and William have delivered pro bono workshops to peers through
InsideNGO, a network of nonprofit organizations as well as purposefully collaborating with the
Nonprofit Human Resources Conference (NHRC) and Society for Human Resource Management
(SHRM). Furthermore, the best recognition a nonprofit can receive is from others trying to emulate and
acknowledge its efforts. The success of the AchieVe program has been recognized by the international
development industry.
Finalists:
Bernadette Channer | DAI
J. Jane Cohen | Volunteers of America
Kay Curling | Salient Federal Solutions, Inc.
EMERGING LEADERS RECOGNITION
For the fourth consecutive year, the HR Leadership Awards program also recognized emerging leaders in the
field. The HRLA Emerging Leaders Class of 2011 is:
Jessica Adams | Communities in Schools
Sabrina Shroff | Intelsat, S.A., Inc.
HR LEADERSHIP SCHOLARSHIPS
Three HR Leadership Awards Scholarships of $4,000 each were awarded to:
 Chandni Patel | Georgetown University
 Lindsay Phillips | Marymount University
 Mark Venner | Georgetown University
SPONSORS
The HR Leadership Awards of Greater Washington would like to thank the following corporate sponsors:
CACI; Greenberg Traurig LLP; Northrop Grumman; The Washington Business Journal; B.F. Saul Company
Hospitality Group,;Bisnow; Deloitte; Lockton; Mercer; Ultimate Software; Argy, Wiltse & Robinson;
CAPTRUST; General Dynamics; Kaiser Permanente; The McCormick Group; NOVA SHRM; RHI Executive
Search; Towers Watson; Wells Fargo and Willis.
The university sponsor is Marymount University.
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To participate in next year’s awards program, visit www.hrleadership.org or call Beth Lucy-Speidel at 540933-6626.
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