NAME: Jennie Liming

TITLE: Intern Program Branch Chief

AGENCY: General Services Administration’s Federal Acquisition Service

NOMINATION:
As Early Career Professional Development Program program director, Jennie led the creation of recruitment strategy and materials; recruited at local colleges and universities; created innovative on-boarding processes; created an interactive Career 101session; outlined training curricula and established developmental rotational cycles. Nationwide, there are 31 interns in Class 1 of which 21 directly report to Jennie. The other 10 ECPDP interns participating in the program are stationed across the country and report to their respective region. Class 2 of FAS’ ECPDP will add an additional 30 interns in the summer of 2010. Like Class 1, some of the interns will be stationed in FAS’ Washington DC Central Office and the balance will be stationed and participate in the program from FAS’ Regional Offices located across the country. (Read the full nomination.)

JUDGES COMMENTS:
“Program will have impact agency-wide and is a model for success government-wide”…”Went above and beyond ‘basic job training’ to create an enthusiastic onboarding experience with holistic focus”…”Jennie is a ‘change agent”…”She is doing exactly what talented managers do…”

GET TO KNOW THE AWARD WINNER:
We started them off, but it was up to them to complete the thought. This is meant to give some insight into what makes these unique individuals the people they are and what makes them a Causey Award winner.

• It’s time to implement hiring reform in the Federal Government! Yay!! I am a John Berry Groupie!!

• My biggest role

in my life is that as a mother to my precious children, Jason and Allie, wife to my loving husband Eddie (31 years), and daughter, caretaker of a sick parent, a sister and a friend. Career-wise, my “biggest role” is my current position as a program manager for the most awesome intern-development program ever!! (I’m looking forward to explaining why the FAS Early Career Professional Development Program (ECPDP) is the best ever!)

• Never stop learning. Find your passion, know your unique talents and continue to study, research, and read to grow your talents into recognizable strengths, which will ultimately enable you to achieve excellence. Pay it forward, share yourself, and lend your uniqueness for the betterment of your team. Be aware of, and appreciate the unique talents and strengths of others, this will help you along the way to achieve balance of self and team! My “passion” is the driver that enables me to do a job well.
• The future is full of surprises. Some surprises will be pleasant, and some, not so much…I look forward to the future with a positive attitude. I know that I am resilient, which has served me well when I have faced moments of disappointment and despair. I accept and focus on those things that I truly have control over; the rest is wasted energy; I choose to focus my energy on the “stuff” that truly matters, where I might have the opportunity to have an impact. Always mindful that it is my “impact” that matters, not my “best intentions.”
• In my opinion you are better off looking for the “best” first, whether from an organizational perspective, or a personal one. We are a culture that tends to want to fix what is wrong first, rather than expand upon what is “right”.
• If you can handle well, I’m not quite sure how to answer this one… as I tell myself everyday “I can ‘handle'”… I am here, I am functioning, and I am even achieving some level of success… in spite of the most devastating loss imaginable, losing a child. My only son, Jason, passed away unexpectedly 2 years ago. So, my perspective on “handling”…is “don’t sweat the small stuff”, it’s just stuff. I appreciate that I am not responsible for “brain surgery” or the NASA space program, or making decisions regarding our troops. Thank goodness! I “handle” things by doing the best I can and by doing the “right thing” by, and for, others. AND, I never lose my sense of humor!
• In my free time I enjoy spending time with my family and friends, cooking and entertaining. (Also, I enjoy an occasional “mall-crawl”, which I think should count as a physical sport- much like golf, I’m jus’ sayin’…)
• I take my coffee black with artificial sweetener, (preferably with a slice of cheesecake on the side.) ;-)
• Worst advice I ever got “You should really perm your hair…” circa 1980. Seriously, I’m a good listener and I love to engage others in conversation to learn about them, understand them, and seek their guidance. However, I have always followed my intuitive sense, in spite of well-intended or not, advice from others. I take full responsibility for my own choices, some of which, I’m not gonna lie, have gone awry. Nevertheless, I have learned along the way. My “best advice” to my interns is “don’t be afraid to make mistakes…take some risks… and always continue to learn and grow.”
• Why don’t we do this again sometime? I am so humbled, and happy to be the recipient of this award. How very cool to be recognized by my peers. I am most fortunate to work with very bright, talented, committed people. I have been a “Fed” for almost (7) years. I started my career with GSA, moved onto the FAA, then USDA and then I “boomeranged” back to GSA, (one of the top 10 “BEST places to work in the Fed Government”). I am so proud of my team of (3), who work every bit as hard as I do, if not more, to ensure that our program is successful. In addition, I acknowledge that without the support of my leadership team, I would not have had the opportunity to launch this program, and achieve the level of success that we have realized thus far. I’m a lucky gal indeed, who has the opportunity to do what I do best, which allows me to feel as though I AM MAKING A DIFFERENCE.

See the complete list of Causey Award winners by clicking here.

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