A U.S. Army supervisory electronics engineer received a 2016 Army Acquisition Executive's Excellence in Leadership Award during a ceremony held at Fort Belvoir, Virginia on Dec. 1.
Matthew Lazzaro, with the U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Research, Development and Engineering Center, or CERDEC, was selected for the Science and Technology Professional of the Year Award, for his contributions to the Army's cryptographic modernization and cyber security efforts.
The award honors the science and technology professional whose outstanding contributions and achievements to the Army merit special recognition.
"I am honored to receive such a notable award," said Lazzaro. "This was truly a team effort and at the end of the day, it's all about the Soldier and keeping the Army networks secure."
The Program Executive Office Command, Control, Communications-Tactical (PEO C3T), nominated Lazzaro for his support to the organization through his expert management of the Cryptographic Modernization Laboratory, a large facility dedicated to advancing the implementation and effectiveness of cryptographic capabilities throughout the Army's communications networks.
Lazzaro, chief of the Cryptographic Modernization Branch at the CERDEC Space and Terrestrial Communications Directorate, or S&TCD, leads 17 subject matter experts and 46 contractor engineers and engineering technicians. Lazzaro plans, guides and directs programs pertaining to Army communication encryption devices.
Lazzaro became a "key player in the PEO C3T's Program Management Office Network Enablers (Net E), Army-wide Cryptographic Network Standardization (ACNS), initiative to upgrade aging cryptographic devices and to standardize the security capabilities for the Army's tactical network," said Stan Niemiec, Project Lead for Net E.
Lazzaro and his team have inventoried cryptographic equipment at 132 military facilities throughout the continental United States, Germany and Puerto Rico. Since the ACNS mission began in 2012, the Cryptographic Modernization Branch has removed a total of 5,398 legacy cryptographic devices and installed 1,865 modern counterparts at 245 military bases.
"Mr. Lazzaro continues to provide outstanding contributions to the Army's cryptographic modernization efforts," said Gary Martin, program executive officer for PEO C3T. "He is an exceptional leader and a tremendous asset to the PEO C3T community."
Lazzaro was also endorsed for his work under CERDEC S&TCD's partnership with the National Security Agency's Commercial Solutions for Classified, or CSfC, program. CSfC provides the community with a framework for reducing the logistical footprint and protection mechanisms required to transmit and exchange classified information.
"S&TCD's Cyber Security and Information Assurance Division is incredibly proud of Matthew's recognition by the AAE for his dedication and ability to drive high impact technical solutions to our service members across the globe," said Michael Monteleone, S&TCD CSIA Division chief. "Matthew and his team continue to have tremendous worldwide impact, while always keeping the taxpayer's resources in mind."
The CSfC team provides a critical service to U.S. military by building, documenting, and testing commercially available hardware and software technologies used in layered solutions for protecting classified data and evaluating their product performance, reliability of operation, and interoperability with currently fielded equipment to ensure the Soldier's individual safety as well as the security of the Nation.
Related Links:
U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Command
U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command
U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Research, Development and Engineering Center
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