Photo By Morgan Tabor | Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division spotlights Tia Ward, a business...... read more read more
Subscribe
They say if you love what you do then success is bound to follow. This is a true mantra for Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division’s (NSWCDD) Tia Ward. The ardor flows deeply for Ward as she aims to continue her career achievements and leave lasting impressions at NSWCDD.
As a King George native, Ward always desired to work for NSWCDD. She initially found her niche for computers in high school, which lead her to attend educational summer camps hosted by Dahlgren, focusing on science and engineering.
While at Rappahannock Community College, Ward pursued an associate’s degree in business and accounting. One day her accounting professor eagerly approached her about an opportunity to submit her resume to a co-op program at Dahlgren, which is now called the STEM Student Employment Program (SSEP).
The journey to Dahlgren quickly progressed for Ward after SSEP received her impressive resume and noticed her knack and love for numbers. “At that point, there was no going back,” said Ward. She began her career at NSWCDD in 1994 as an administrative assistant and rapidly rose through the ranks.
Throughout her career spanning 29 years supporting the division, Ward has been recognized with numerous awards including the NSWCDD Honorary Awards for Employee Development and the Helen Springer Award.
Currently, Ward supports the Integrated Engagement Systems Department as a business operations manager. In this role, Ward demonstrates profound leadership to her team and always looks to pass along the wisdom she gained while serving in her various positions.
“I have always had a passion for teaching. I noticed this at a young age, and now I get to apply it to what I do here at Dahlgren,” said Ward. “Mentoring, training and teaching is something I value and it’s a fulfilling feeling to see other people on my team or at Dahlgren grow and flourish within their careers.”
Working in a team environment was something that Ward has welded into her mindset since childhood. As a one of eight children, Ward grew up with a family that always cherished working together. “My mom would assign chores and say ‘teamwork makes the dream work’ or ‘many hands make light work,’ and boy was she right,” said Ward. Today, those principles are integral to her work ethic.
She noticed her love for helping and mentoring others was shaping her future at Dahlgren. “I am set on retiring from here, five years in at Dahlgren, and I knew I would be here for the long haul,” Ward said.
Ward expressed that the work she has done and continues to do at Dahlgren has been very gratifying. Equipped with helping the Integrated Engagement Systems Department with financial guidance, human resources, strategic business initiatives and much more, Ward says, “there’s a very rewarding feeling in seeing the work you put on paper, go into testing and then formed into a final product to support the warfighter.”
She shared many experiences from her career at Dahlgren and the one thing that has always stood out to her was the culture. Inclusiveness was very important to her work environment at NSWCDD. “Inclusivity has shaped how I view Dahlgren and my future view of NSWCDD,” says Ward. “It is a huge factor for why I am so passionate about working and being a part of a professional culture that recognizes hard work, no matter what pay grade, title or background.”
| Date Taken: | 02.09.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 07.12.2023 15:22 |
| Story ID: | 449025 |
| Location: | DAHLGREN, VIRGINIA, US |
| Web Views: | 21 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, “Many Hands Make Light Work” – Passion and Career Collide, by Morgan Tabor, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
