FORT LEE, Va. –
Three Defense Contract Management Agency property administrators were recently recognized by the National Property Management Association for outstanding contributions to their field.
Melissa Weaver, Angel Rosario and Ronald Regalado were honored during the NPMA’s National Education Seminar in Chicago. While all three agency team members fall within the Contracts Directorate’s Business Operations Center, their roads to recognition were paved with variants of professional excellence.
Weaver, a program performance analyst who maintains an office at DCMA Hartford, received an Outstanding Member Award for her “exceptional service, including a high-level of commitment and dedication to the property and asset management profession.”
Rosario, an industrial property administrator who works at DCMA Sikorsky in Stratford, Connecticut, received the Carl Iannacone Tribute Award for “his passion, dedication and contributions to NPMA and the property management profession.”
Regalado, a plant clearance officer who hails from DCMA Dallas, received the Award of Merit for Literary Excellence for an article published in “The Property Professional” magazine — NPMA’s bi-monthly publication.
For Weaver, her journey to Chicago commenced with an email received by her boss. It began, “I am pleased to inform you that Melissa Weaver was selected to receive a 2018 Outstanding Member Award from the National Property Management Association.”
In a self-assessment, the program performance analyst said her chapter’s ability to develop strong working relationships directly led to her recognition.
“To achieve this positive relationship, there needs to be participation,” said Weaver, who finds joy in the new challenges her job affords each day. “All NPMA members who attend meetings and events are an intrinsic part in the resulting positive relationship and chapter success.”
That success began years ago when she joined the NPMA to expand her professional network outside of government colleagues.
“Government property is a small, niche area and networking with others in the field is beneficial,” she said.
One ancillary benefit of reaching outside of the government realm is to correct misconceptions about her role in Defense acquisition.
“We do not perform physical inventories,” Weaver explained. “People assume because we work in the government property arena that it must entail performing inventories. As DCMA property administrators, we perform analysis on the contractor’s property management system as a whole.”
An ability to capture and understand the big picture of property management, serves DCMA’s second awardee well in his current role as NPMA Nutmeg Chapter president and the organization’s national director of marketing and social media.
Rosario is a regular contributor to the association’s magazine. He manages key messaging distribution. He volunteers to hosts presentations at seminars and forums free of charge. All of these contributions led to the Carl Iannacone Tribute Award.
According to award criteria, it is given in honor of a past association president. It is given to members who, like Carl, have contributed significant time and support to the enrichment and betterment of the property profession and NPMA. It is given to individuals who have devoted spirit, selfless passion and respect to property management through strong leadership and commitment; have fostered growth and change; and provided coaching, counseling and professional development guidance to association members.
“I am humbled and honored to have been selected for this award,” said Rosario, a Marine veteran. “I want to thank the nomination and selection committees, it truly means a lot … I also want to encourage and challenge my peers to make time and consider joining an organization or network that promotes their industry. I understand time is tight for all of us, but we all have the same 24 hours each day. As a devoted husband, father, business owner, Pop Warner youth football coach, chapter president, national director and mentor, I too have to make time for those things that matter to me.”
Despite his busy schedule, Rosario doesn’t hesitate to volunteer his limited free time to a non-profit organization and encourages others to follow suit.
“I promise if you do, the time you invest in your own professional development and serving others will yield satisfaction beyond anything else you could’ve done with your time,” said Rosario.
For a writer, time in front of a keyboard is time well spent. This is where DCMA’s last awardee found his 2018 success. Regalado and Robert Pearce, from the Air Force Jet Propulsion Directorate, co-authored “Cradle to Cradle Sustainment Strategy — Exchange Sale Process.” It was published in “The Property Professional.”
“This writing describes the Exchange Sale process and includes the perspective of the Air Force customer,” said Regalado. “It describes the value in using this process to both the Air Force and Naval Air Systems Command supply chains. The exchange sale process has resulted in the reutilization of millions of dollars in aircraft engines and components over the past several years. Exchange Sale, in this instance also has allowed for scarce, precious and strategic materials to be retained within those supply chains. Of all the articles I have written, I am most proud of this one, as it includes and describes extensive collaboration with a key DCMA customer.”
While this work was the reason for his most-recent recognition, his enthusiasm for writing began as a young man.
“My passion for writing is something I have had throughout my career,” said Regalado. “It is driven by a need to ‘tell the story’ about best practices, as seen through my eyes. I joined NPMA roughly 20 years ago and have tried to contribute as much as possible by presenting and through my writings. NPMA has given me the opportunity to grow as a property professional. It has also allowed me to understand the perspectives of others working in government as well as industry. This has had a positive effect on my job performance at DCMA.”
Much of that performance was documented earlier this year when he published his first book: Smart Plant Clearance and Contract Property Disposition — Technical Applications Related to Contract Property Disposals. The book, which contains a large collection of articles that Regalado has published over the years, serves as an intellectual resume of sorts that chronicles his property management insight.
According to “The Property Professional’s” award issue, the 2018 seminar “had over 620 attendees, where the benefits for attending were numerous: gaining expert knowledge, networking with others, learning new ideas and approaches to make one more effective and efficient at work.”
Based on their award write-ups, the agency’s NPMA awardees maintain workplace effectiveness and efficiency through “commitment and dedication” that often result from expanding their understanding of property management at events like the seminar. These shared traits are reflected in the trio’s performances as they pursue the ultimate goal of providing warfighter support.
“During my career as a United States Marine, I learned the value strengthening our team members in order to accomplish our mission,” said Rosario. “Knowledge by itself is not power, the dissemination of knowledge — that is power. I volunteer my personal time to champion the NPMA organization and property profession because facilitating communication, exploring efficiencies and building cohesiveness between industry and government are how we will continue to overcome challenges placed before us.”