Often, human resources is perceived as merely policies, processes and to-do items, but Sharron Harris and her team, who won one of five Labs Director Awards on May 15, are on a mission to transform Sandia’s benefits, the people-side of human resources.

Sharron and her team tackled the monumental task of modernizing and implementing new and enhanced benefits for Labs staff. From adding floating holidays to better vacation accrual and new programs to help with student loan debt and childcare expenses, the team explored benefits that organizations outside of Sandia are offering and gathered feedback from employees to design benefits that meet the needs of Sandia’s evolving workforce.

Sharron was one of nearly 800 Sandians recognized in New Mexico on May 15 and in California on May 22 as part of Sandia’s annual Employee Recognition Awards. These awards celebrate individuals and teams across the Labs who go above and beyond expectations. Read the full list of awards in the PDF version of Lab News.

“The winners embody the innovation, excellence and extraordinary spirit that define our laboratory,” said Labs Director James Peery at the New Mexico ceremony. “The people in this room are critical to our national security and mission success.”

Every year, James reviews the award winners and selects his picks for the prestigious Labs Director Award. This year, he announced the following five winners:

Julie Kelly-Smith won an individual award for her exceptional leadership building the Integrated Space Solutions organization to address a variety of challenging space issues.

The 2024 New and Enhanced Benefits Implementation Team was selected for innovation and modernizing and offering new benefits to meet the workforce’s evolving needs.

The Advanced Engagement System Team was chosen for developing and deploying critical advanced nonkinetic effects capabilities that will have a daily impact on Integrated Deterrence and Defense in operational theaters. This team’s effort led to the approval of an urgent operational need issued by the warfighter for more of this capability.

The Global Burst Detector IIIF Prompt Flash-X-ray Radiation Testing Qualifying Mission Performance Team won for extraordinary collaboration in executing a prompt radiation test on the Global Burst Detector IIIF payload at the High-Energy Radiation Megavolt Electron Source, known as the HERMES facility, which successfully supported system design review in January.

The Supply Chain Disruption Tiger Team received a Labs Director Award for managing disruptions and building resiliency in Sandia’s supply chain. This team mitigated risk in programs that face challenges related to unstable supply chain activity, threatening national security deliverables.

“I feel so honored,” Julie said. “It’s been putting together so many skills that I have gained throughout my career so far, and I feel like I’ve really been able to let them shine.”

“The award highlights the work that the team did and also shows that HR, as an organization, is equally important all the way up to our Labs Director,” Sharron said.

“We do a lot of really good work here and it can go under the radar as part of the big cog in the machine for national security and for the mission,” said Elliott Leonard, team representative for the Global Burst Detector IIIF Prompt Flash-X-ray Radiation Testing Qualifying Mission Performance Team. “Seeing your cog highlighted every so often feels really good.”