IPPS-A's Patricia Ocasio wins 2017 John W. Macy, Jr. Award

By Mrs. Katherine Hutton (PEO EIS)May 17, 2018

Dr. Mark T. Esper awards Ms. Patricia L. Ocasio with John W. Macy, Jr. Award
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Dr. Mark T. Esper awards Ms. Patricia L. Ocasio with John W. Macy, Jr. Award
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On May 10, 2018, Ms. Patricia L. Ocasio was awarded the John W. Macy, Jr. Award at the Pentagon Auditorium. Secretary of the Army, Dr. Mark T. Esper presided over the ceremony where he bestowed three awards to Department of the Army civilians for their outstanding leadership capabilities. Ms. Ocasio is the Acting Deputy Project Manager and Lifecycle Management Division Chief for the Integrated Personnel and Pay System - Army (IPPS-A).

"This has been an absolutely incredible experience," Ms. Ocasio said. "I am completely humbled and consider this a true honor to have received this award today."

The recipients of the John W. Macy, Jr. award are leaders who best exemplify the highest traditions of service establish by Mr. Macy and whose leadership style embraces the Army philosophy that our leaders are responsible for civilian personnel management. To be eligible for this award, the nominee's contributions must demonstrate that the nominee got the job done through effective leadership of his or her civilian employees.

"I'm a big believer that as a leader, my successes are attributed to the people that I'm surrounded by and I must say that we have one of the hardest working dedicated teams that a manager can ask for," she added. "I frequently remind my staff that it is my job to give them the support they need and remove hurdles so that they can function more easily and successfully."

An adaptable, innovative, and creative problem solver, Ms. Ocasio helped senior leaders, peers, and subordinates understand the complexities of the IPPS-A system and the plans and actions to accomplish the effort. She not only had the vision to plan, but also the skills as a mentor and educator to guide peers, subordinates, and senior leaders to understand the intricacies of the system and to work out the necessary plans and actions to accomplish the work.

While speaking about Ms. Ocasio, Dr. Esper made special note of the IPPS-A system. "It's something very important to me. Pat is helping to make Army pay systems auditable for the first time in history."

Also recognized at the ceremony were Ms. Candace A. Rehling and Mr. Brandon S. Allen, who received the William H. Kushnick Award and Nick Hoge Award, respectively. During the ceremony, Dr. Esper spoke highly of all three awardees, thanking them for "always taking care of our people."

Concluding the ceremony, Dr. Esper said, "[the awardees] explain why the Army's greatest resource is our people."

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