COMMAND/ORGANIZATION: Joint Program Executive Office for Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense (JPEO-CBRND), Joint Project Manager for CBRN Medical
TITLE:  Program manager
YEARS OF SERVICE IN WORKFORCE: 5
DAWIA CERTIFICATIONS: Advanced in program management
EDUCATION: M.S. in biotechnology and biodefense, University of Maryland; M.A. in biological anthropology, Hunter College City of New York; B.A. in anthropology, Fordham University.
AWARDS: JPM CBRN Medical Special Act Award

Wai Kwan Chung

by Holly DeCarlo-White

Wai Kwan Chung is a part of the team whose mission is developing vaccines to protect our warfighters from pathogens that they may be exposed to while deployed, or in training, that are unique to the environment in which they operate.

“I feel this work is very important to helping our nation’s military to stay healthy and prevent disease as they are deployed to regions all over the world and exposed to unknown threats, many of which are specific to the regions our military operates in,” she said of her role as a program manager within Joint Project Manager for Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Medical (JPM CBRN Medical).

“Since these diseases are not commonly found in the general population, my role comes into play as we develop these vaccines with the warfighter and their environment in mind. Part of my job is to develop ways to prevent the spread of disease that may be used by our adversaries against our warfighters, and the other part is to find ways to continue to improve on both prevention and treatment options,” Chung said.

“As a program manager developing medical products, at first look, people expect that our position is mainly concerned with managing people, time and resources. However, they are often surprised to find out that we have to have knowledge of the vaccine development pathway, clinical concerns, regulatory, technical and manufacturing in addition to the “typical” program management skills,” she said. “We also work with a variety of personalities and I think my anthropology degrees really helped me form good working relationships with my colleagues.” Skills from her academic side, she said, taught her to read people and respond appropriately as needed, having a more acute awareness of the operational environment and the people who work in this environment.

Chung’s first acquisition position with the Medical Infectious Disease Research Program involved managing a small portfolio for the DOD’s wound care and infectious disease program. In this role, she said she liked that she could apply her technical knowledge to work different scenarios and fund the most amount of programs with a small amount of funds, maximizing value, to provide help to our warfighters.

“I also appreciate the fact that I truly felt that I was helping to contribute to the field of infectious disease research and studying improved wound care technology,” she said. “While that position wasn’t truly acquisition coded, I moved on to advanced development of medical products in an actual acquisition position to my current position.”

To better advance her career, Chung said there have been many courses and assignment opportunities during her time at JPM CBRN Medical that helped her in her role today. To start, she said the month-long Program Management Office course, PMT 360, helped summarize the full scope of what is needed in an acquisition program to move a product from start to fielding. The civilian education foundation and advanced courses also helped her to understand how to lead and manage high performing teams, work with different personalities, and helped her to understand the type of leader or supervisor she could be. Chung said she also enjoyed working with other acquisition program managers from across the country. “In my program office those courses, and having strong leadership as examples, allow me to examine how I would like to lead and supervise when the opportunity arises,” she said.

Last year, Chung took a three-month assignment under the Public-Private Talent Exchange program where she was paired with the National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA). During the short time at NDIA, she was able to work closely with the emerging technologies team where she gained a new appreciation for how the public views defense work.

Through the program, she enjoyed learning about other technologies of importance to the DOD, such as hypersonics, in which she said she would normally not be exposed to in her regular position. A key take away for her was learning about the “behind the scenes” work that takes place to bring topics up to Congress for discussion. She also met former Congressional members who are now part of the leadership team at NDIA. Chung said her experience was validating as well, confirming the importance of her work at JPM CBRN Medical and how that contributes to the DOD. “Overall, it was a great learning opportunity for me and I hope that I also helped them see things from a DOD perspective,” she said.

For junior acquisition staff, Chung recommends taking the required training early in their career to gain a better understanding of acquisition processes and terms. “I also recommend that they learn to read the room and people that they have to work with to be able to communicate effectively across different personalities,” she said. She also encourages them to reach out to more experienced acquisition staff if they have questions, rather than just be confused or think they understand something only to find out it was the wrong assumption.

“The most important lesson for me is to treat others how I would like to be treated,” she said. And she applies that in both her job and personal life. “It is especially important in my position as I provide oversight and work with scientists, junior staff, contractors and a variety of individuals. Above all, I am reminded that we are all here trying to serve the larger DOD community and contribute to public service.”

Outside of work, Chung likes to bake and cook which relates to her technical nature for measuring and being exact in measurements of ingredients. “There is the overall joy of creating something useful that contributes to the joy of the recipients,” she said.