WORKFORCE
for me was the alternate work schedule. I really liked that aspect of coming and working as a civilian.”
Troughout her time in the Army Acqui- sition Workforce, she said she has given advice to several junior acquisition person- nel. “I typically give them five principles for the work environment,” she said. “One, get to know and be known by others in your work environment. Two, keep things positive. Tree, make your career devel- opment a priority. Four, ask for feedback. Five, respect the time you have with people to glean information on how things are done.” Hobson-Williams
attended
the Civilian Education System (CES) Advanced course in 2018, and she said she learned a lot about her own approach to leadership. “Te main thing that I got out of the training was understanding my leadership philosophy. Leadership is the ability to inspire people to do things that they didn’t realize they were capable of doing.”
In addition to the CES Advanced course, she makes time for additional training and study whenever possible, and she has learned an important lesson that guides her work for her team. “Not everyone’s journey is going to be the same. I read this book, “Sticking Points,” [by Haydn Shaw] and it’s about having four or five genera- tions working in a particular industry at one time, and how no one thinks the same and no one approaches a problem in the same way, and how they become sticking points for us.” For example, some people working in an office environment prefer making phone calls to their colleagues, some prefer the “walk and talk” method of dropping in to a teammate’s office, and yet others may prefer to send a text or a Microsoft Teams message. “I’ll burn some extra calories walking. But understanding and embracing those differences, that’s the biggest thing.”
She also has a unique perspective on career progression, based on her own experience moving across several industry jobs before entering the Army civilian workforce. “In this day and age, most people are not going to stay with the same company for 20 years. Some people feel like, if you don’t stay five or 10 years, you’re not interested in having a career, but I have a different view of that,” she said. “What I tell people is that you want to be well-rounded as far as understanding how your work affects everything else.” In other words, know precisely what you bring to the table, no matter where you are on the organiza- tion chart. “If you’re working the rocket launcher, it’s important. Some people will say, ‘No it isn’t—the most impor- tant thing is the missile.’ ” But you can’t fire the missile without the launcher, no matter how you try. “Without the launcher, you have a nice, shiny missile,” she laughed. “You can’t do anything with- out a launcher.” Te point isn’t the missile or the launcher, she said. It’s the system. “Take a look at all the steps required for us to provide a piece of hardware to Soldiers. It’s really a system. Tat’s something I talk to young engineers about.”
Another thing she likes to talk about is directly related to her Mississippi
upbringing. “I’m definitely a foodie,” she said. “Anytime I am going TDY [tempo- rary duty], I always start planning where I’m going to eat while I’m there.” She will happily discuss her favorite TDY restaurant experiences (ask her about the Ethiopian food and spiced tea in Tucson, Arizona), but she’s known for a recipe she learned closer to home. “I would always take my kids down to New Orleans to get beignets and muffalettas,” she said. Tey’re grown now—two have graduated college and the third will finish high school this year—but they still love her cooking. “My two signature dishes are my chicken and sausage jambalaya and my lasagna,” she said.
What’s next for Hobson-Williams? “I haven’t really decided. I’m kind of still searching for my next five-year plan before I retire,” she said. “I’m looking to see where I would fit best within the Army, and where I can help to meet a strategic goal that the Army has.” Her sights were orig- inally set on space, but now she’s looking for her own final frontier—an opportu- nity to contribute to the Army’s success through her unique skills and experiences.
—ELLEN SUMMEY
FIRE AT WILL
Norwegian soldiers of the Telemark Battalion fire an FGM-148 Javelin during a combined arms live fire training exercise at Al Asad Air Base, Iraq, in June 2020. The Javelin is a portable, compact, lightweight, anti-tank missile system. (Photo by Spc. Derek Mustard, Combined Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve)
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