March 21, 2019 –
Harry S. Truman, 33rd president of the United States and former colonel in the United States Army, once said, "It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit."
Keith Weinschenk, lead process improvement specialist and Tobyhanna Army Depot Employee of the Quarter in the senior category for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2018, emanates selfless leadership. Every day, he recognizes the benefit of being a team player, especially as a leader.
Weinschenk was nominated for the quarterly award by his team in the Resource Management Directorate's Process Improvement Division after earning his Lean Six Sigma Black Belt and Project Management Professional (PMP) certification, yet he credits them for some of his biggest successes.
"I'm most proud of the accomplishments of the Satellite Transportable Terminal Repair Cycle Time (RCT) Reduction Project team for reducing the cycle time by more than 50 percent and surpassing the customer goal of 60 days," said Weinschenk.
He notes that he is simply the coordinator of the diverse team of experts.
Weinschenk is known for treating his team like family. His peers say that he connects with them on professional and personal levels. He has an open-door policy to listen to anything that employees want to discuss.
As a leader, Weinschenk finds ways to have fun with his team without impeding on the organization's mission. During breaks, he encourages as well as participates in team potlucks.
"With Keith, it really feels like family, which really boosts morale around here," said Paul Brundage, process improvement specialist.
Managing his team with respect and pride, he has become familiar with each person's unique personality and work ethic--allowing him to personalize his coaching to insure the team's success.
"When it comes to work and making decisions, he is always concerned about our feedback and opinions," said Scott Hansen, process improvement specialist.
He sets a standard for how a lead should manage, guide and advise his people with dignity and respect, according Ramona Kost, process improvement specialist.
Weinschenk is known to take the time to personally assist and teach individuals how to be successful when tasks are unclear or new. Years of experience allows him to appreciate what his team is going through and know what is needed to solve issues.
"Bottom line, from simple tasks to Black Belt projects, we are not going to fail thanks to him," said Matthew Kalinowski, process improvement specialist.
Weinschenk inspires his team to reach their goals by sharing his career experiences. As a result, one team member completed their Black Belt certification and two others are developing submissions for Black Belt certifications as well. He also educates his team on tools learned throughout his PMP training, in an effort to encourage professional development.
He credits his devotion to his career and team to his experiences while deployed to Iraq. "Working alongside Soldiers was a great motivation for me to give the depot my all every single day," says Weinschenk. He added that he is fortunate to have the support of a great family and an awesome team, and strives to make them proud.
Recognizing employees for a job well done is directly linked to one of the Toby 2020 objectives -- Invest in our People. The objective centers on developing an agile and innovative workforce devoted to team work and service before self. The quarterly awards program identifies and rewards junior-, senior- and supervisor-level employees who, in the performance of their assigned duties, have established a pattern of excellence. Nominations may be submitted by co-workers, who worked with the nominee, directly or indirectly, with a minimum of at least four nominators or by an employee's supervisor.
Tobyhanna Army Depot is a recognized leader in providing world-class logistics support for command, control, communications, computers, cyber, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance systems across the Department of Defense. Tobyhanna's Corporate Philosophy, dedicated work force and electronics expertise ensure the depot is the Joint C4ISR provider of choice for all branches of the Armed Forces and industry partners.
Tobyhanna's unparalleled capabilities include full-spectrum logistics support for sustainment, overhaul and repair, fabrication and manufacturing, engineering design and development, systems integration, post production software support, technology insertion, modification, foreign military sales and global field support to our Joint Warfighters. About 3,900 personnel are employed at Tobyhanna, which is located in the Pocono Mountains of northeastern Pennsylvania.
Tobyhanna Army Depot is part of the U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Command. Headquartered at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, the command's mission is to research, develop, acquire, field and sustain communications, command, control computer, intelligence, electronic warfare and sensors capabilities for the Armed Forces.