Barksdale unit wins DOD-level award, tops 1,640 agencies

by Airman 1st Class Curt Beach
2nd Bomb Wing Public Affairs

6/4/2015 - BARKSDALE AIR FORCE BASE, La. -- When striving for excellence is the expectation for all Airmen, standing out in the Air Force is quite an accomplishment. One Barksdale squadron has found a way to make this happen in resounding fashion.

The 2nd Force Support Squadron was chosen above more than 1,640 Department Of Defense agencies to win the Fiscal Year 2014 Real-time Automated Personnel Identification Data System Site of the Year Award in recognition of their commitment and dedication to excellence in customer service.

The award is presented to a site that greatly exceeds standards by adopting new procedures or tools that benefit customer service. Mary Dixon, Defense Manpower Data Center director, awarded the Barksdale team a certificate of appreciation from the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense Personnel & Readiness for outstanding support of the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System.

"This award is the most prestigious award given to members of our profession," said Nate Waters, Hyperion Biotechnology site leader. "It sets us apart from more than 2,500 professionals competing at over 1,600 locations around the world."

RAPIDS deals with the hardware and software used to produce Common Access Cards and retiree and dependent identification cards for active duty, retired, reserve, civilian and contractor personnel around the globe. The criteria by which a site is chosen for the award are production rate, low card issuance failure rates, training currency, personnel and hardware management, cardstock management, proactive troubleshooting, process innovation, and customer service.

"We as leaders feel comfortable every day when we have teams like this serving our people," said Col. Kristin Goodwin, 2nd Bomb Wing commander. "I want to extend a personal thanks to all of you for making a real difference. People are now looking to you as the benchmark for excellence, and I know you'll continue to keep that standard held high."

Waters says his team has worked diligently to provide world-class service and support, and they are honored to have been chosen from such an elite field of candidates.

"This award is handed out each year but winning the award is a based on a culmination performance and best practices that took several years to develop and implement," said Waters. "We are laser-focused on one simple goal: to take care of the folks who proudly serve the best fighting force on the planet!"