Company: High Performance Technologies, Inc., Reston, VA
Company Description: Founded in 1992, High Performance Technology, Inc., designs IT solutions that help our federal customers protect America’s safety and prosperity. Our experts use applied science, performance-based architecture, and systems engineering to help our customers achieve the results they need. Headquartered in Reston, Virginia, HPTi has over 240 employees in sites across the country.
Nomination Category: Information Technology Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Technical Professional of the Year

Nomination Title: Rebecca Jimenez, Junior Systems Engineer

   1. Tell the story about what this nominee achieved since January 1 2008 (up to 500 words). Focus on specific accomplishments, and relate these accomplishments to past performance or industry norms. Be sure to mention obstacles overcome, innovations or discoveries made, and outcomes:

          Rebecca Jimenez’s technical insights help protect the technological “Crown
          Jewels” of America’s major weapons programs. She develops the policies,
          processes, and practices for the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) that
          protect advanced technology from being intercepted by foreign adversaries. Her
          ability to analyze technical problems, develop insightful solutions, and
          communicate technical matters to clients and team members has made her a
          familiar face in executive briefings at the OSD. Rebecca’s outstanding work and
          interaction with her client has resulted in $1 million in additional contract
          work, and, because of this growth, HPTi has added three additional people to the
          contract.
          
          For her clients, Rebecca researches various technologies to gain technical
          insights and support the technical architectures and frameworks of the
          Department of Defense (DoD). In one instance, she performed a systemic analysis
          of over 600 software-related findings to identify the top seven DoD software
          issues. Rebecca has also established herself as a subject matter expert in
          program protection planning (PPP) and Foreign Disclosure and Military Sales. PPP
          identifies processes and technologies that guard large defense projects from
          external risks (e.g., foreign espionage or terrorist hackers). After becoming an
          expert, Rebecca contributed to the guide for writing PPPs and developed a PPP
          handbook—a knowledge-base for program protection that includes metrics she
          developed. Both documents will be used across the DoD. During the fall, Rebecca
          took the initiative to gain a detailed understanding Foreign Disclosure and
          Export for Foreign Military Sales. Through her analysis, she determined an
          opportunity for streamlining program documentation, and she is now moving
          forward to implement this efficiency throughout the DoD. To become an expert in
          these fields, Rebecca relentlessly studies and evaluates new technologies.
          Toward this end, in 2008, she earned her Six Sigma Green Belt certification—a
          distinction in process methodology that is highly respected in the federal IT
          marketplace.

          As of November 2008, Rebecca owns the program protection review process for the
          Software Engineering and Systems Assurance Deputy Directorate Office, and she
          leads the Six Sigma team for the PPP review process. She coordinates the review
          of all acquisition strategies for program protection of programs exceeding $1
          billion, and she monitors their progress in complying with the program
          protection policy and guidance.

          In business development, Rebecca has been invaluable to corporate initiatives
          such as bids for new work and recruiting. Her work has been integral to two
          recent, successful proposals worth millions in revenue, and she regularly
          participates in recruiting efforts at the University of Virginia. For a
          professional not even two years out of college, Rebecca’s technical acumen has
          made her a rising star at HPTi and a delight on the client site. Her insights,
          integrity, and work ethic earned her the company’s Employee of the Year award in
          December of 2008— the first major recognition in what promises to be an
          exemplary career. In the words of her manager, “Rebecca is the benchmark by
          which HPTi recruits new college hires.”

   2. List hyperlinks to any online news stories, press releases, or other documents that support the claims made in the section above. IMPORTANT: Begin each link with http://, and enclose each link in square brackets; for example, [http://www.youraddress.com]:

   3. Provide a brief (up to 100 words) biography about the nominee:

          Rebecca Jimenez joined HPTi in 2007 after earning her degree in systems
          engineering from George Mason University. She currently serves as a junior
          systems engineer on HPTi’s project with the Office of the Secretary of Defense.
          Through her coursework, internships, and HPTi experiences, Rebecca has gained
          well-rounded systems knowledge and has become an expert in Program Protection
          Planning of mission-critical Department of Defense programs. Rebecca enjoys
          delving into new challenges and is known and well-respected for her innovative
          solutions. In 2008, because of Rebecca’s continued excellence and work ethic,
          she was named HPTi’s Employee of the Year.