Former contracting center director receives Presidential Rank status

By Betsy KozakJuly 3, 2018

Former contracting center director receives Presidential Rank status
Secretary of the Army Mark Esper and Lisha Adams, executive deputy to the commanding general, U.S. Army Materiel Command, present Bryon Young with the Meritorious Senior Executive Rank for sustained accomplishment. Young is the former executive direc... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

The former executive director of the Army Contracting Command-Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland contracting center has been awarded Presidential Rank status.

Bryon J. Young was among more than a dozen Army senior executives at the ceremony who received the Meritorious Senior Executive Rank for sustained accomplishment. The June 25 ceremony was held at the Pentagon Auditorium in Washington and hosted by Mark T. Esper, the secretary of the Army.

According to the ceremony program, "Award winners are chosen through a rigorous selection process. They are nominated by their agency heads, evaluated by boards of private citizens, and approved by the President. The evaluation criteria focuses on the executive's leadership in producing results. The Presidential Rank status is the most prestigious recognition afforded to career executives and senior professionals."

Although he's now retired from civil service, Young's career spanned 40 years, including 12 years as a senior executive and 28 years as an Army officer. His nomination highlighted career accomplishments and noted that Young's "strategic and critical thinking attributes were highly regarded and sought after by senior Department of Defense leadership."

Young was also lauded for managing the consolidation of two ACC contracting centers into a single contracting entity, accepting a lead role with the Department of Defense's Better Buying initiative, and recommending improvements for contingency contracting during the Gansler Commission review.

His award nomination closed with, "Young's superb business acumen has delivered real results for the Army, ACC-APG's customers, and ACC. On a daily basis he demonstrated commitment to using innovative contracting practices, developing a highly skilled contracting workforce, embracing better buying power, and getting the best deal for the taxpayer and the Army."