SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
SPOTLIGHT: MS. MONICA WALKER
+ MS. MONICA WALKER
COMMAND/ORGANIZATION: Product Manager Power Projection Enablers, Information Infrastructure – Communications and Capabilities, Program Executive Office for Enterprise Information Systems
TITLE: Integrated project team lead/ project management specialist
DAWIA CERTIFICATIONS: Level III in program management
YEARS OF SERVICE IN WORKFORCE: 4
EDUCATION: MBA, Webster University; B.S. in management/human resources and A.S. in management, Park University
AWARDS: Commander’s Award for Civilian Service; three Achievement Medals for Civilian Service
Y A ‘true bean counter’ takes a stand
ou know that line about how you have to stand for something or you’ll fall for anything? Monica Walker has found her joy stand-
ing firm for the principle that the Army can supply Soldiers with the best informa- tion technology (IT) equipment without spending a fortune. She relishes her role as a steward of taxpayer dollars. “In this position you have to be slightly aggres- sive, because you’re always being pushed or guided in a particular direction, so you have to figure out quickly what’s right and then take that stand.”
Besides, she noted, “I’m a she-woman playing in a he-man’s world,” working in Army IT.
“Not that I’ve had any bad experiences where people go, ‘Oh, you’re a woman,’ ” she has- tened to add. “But there are few people at the table in a dress, usually, and that was an adjustment. Early on, I let that get in the way of my development, but now I know my job, and I love it, and I’m here to stay.”
What do you do, and why is it important to the Army or the warfighter?
I manage cost, schedule and performance for IT projects in Southwest Asia. Tis includes
everything from requirements
development to contract closeout. Right now, I’m working on the network mod- ernization project covering CENTCOM
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[U.S. Central Command] AOR [area of responsibility], which includes Afghani- stan, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Ara- bia, Syria, United Arab Emirates (UAE), and several other countries. However, I have only traveled to Kuwait, Qatar and UAE. In the past, I’ve worked on inside- plant and outside-plant videoconferencing between Afghanistan and Kuwait. I travel quite a bit for this position. I’m just back from a two-week trip to Qatar and Kuwait. Tat was a short trip—I spent the entire summer there a few years ago, and last fall I spent 30 days in Kuwait.
My position provides the most current and technologically advanced means of com- munications to Soldiers, enabling their units to operate on a robust information- centric platform to carry out missions on behalf of U.S. national security interests.
How did you become part of the Army Acquisition Workforce, and why?
I joined the Army at 18 and was on active duty for four years, until 2003. I became an admin specialist at Fort Bliss, Texas, which led me to get my bachelor’s degree in HR [human resources]. I didn’t stay in HR, but going to school is how I met my first government supervisor. One of my fellow students was a federal employee, a director and also a later-in-life student. She heard me brief a project and asked if I was looking
Army AL&T Magazine
April-June 2016
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