ARMY AL&T
understanding of the workload of the personnel you are assigning tasks to.”
MILESTONE MOMENTS
Mark Whitby and his family before their daughter’s senior prom in May 2023. From left are his wife, Lee, son Jamie, 17, and daughter Marah, 19. (Photo courtesy of Mark Whitby)
Whitby said most people outside of work, other than those who knew him from his archeology career days, simply know him as “friend” and “dad.” He enjoys spending time with his children in all their activi- ties, whether it’s sports, choir, musicals, his daughter’s dance or his son’s Boy Scout activities—or taking on landscaping and other projects at home. He said no matter what he’s doing, he is always dedicated. “I try and have the same ethic no matter what it is. I attempt to be the best dad I can be to my kids. My goal is to complete projects at home and at work to the best of my ability,” he said. “In other words, I strive to do the best job that I can do, no matter what or where that ‘job’ may be.”
“I lead a small team of four operations officers within JPEO A&A headquarters who evaluate and develop action plans for tasks and actions received from the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics and Technol- ogy, Headquarters, Department of the Army and the Office of the Secretary of Defense,” he said. “We then task the O-6 level [colonel-led] organizations within JPEO A&A, coordinate and consolidate the information received from the PMs/ PDs [project managers and project direc- tors]. Te consolidated package is then provided to JPEO A&A leadership for review and approval before providing the response to senior Army leadership.”
Whitby and his team also manage all staff- ing actions associated with acquisition decisions, financial management, fielding and transition to sustainment for the six project management and project director offices within JPEO A&A.
“My role is basically to keep communi- cations and information flowing between our organization and senior-level Army, other DOD organizations and Congress. This flow of information enables our government to make the best decisions for our warfighters,” he said.
Whitby’s first year as the operations officer within JPEO Armaments and Ammuni- tion [then PEO Ammunition] was “an eye-opening time,” he said. “Prior to that, I had worked for three O-6 organi- zations within PEO Ammunition. I knew how hard personnel within the O-6 shops worked each day but had no understand- ing and appreciation of the workload the PEO Ammunition headquarters staff and leadership carried out daily,” he said.
It’s a learning experience, and he would advise junior operations officers to just “be ethical and honest. If you make a mistake, own up to it. Apologize and move on. Be
Tere are three important lessons Whitby said he’s learned over the course of his career. First, no one is perfect. “Every- one makes mistakes. How you deal with those mistakes is what makes or breaks you. You can either wallow in your defeats or use those mistakes or defeats as a learn- ing experience and move on.”
Also, he said, listen to people, no matter the position they hold. “Don’t be so caught up in what you’re going to say that you miss some great piece of information that someone else is providing.”
And lastly, he believes that “honesty is the best policy.” Tere are exceptions to the policy but in most cases—in particu- lar in the work environment—he believes honesty is the best course of action even if it initially puts you in a bad spotlight. It’s all a work in progress, and Whitby said he’s “still working on mastering all three.”
—CHERYL MARINO
https://asc.ar my.mil
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