Photo By Traci Boutwell | Aviation and Missile Command information technology specialist Bill Steely is an Army...... read more read more
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Behind every hardware upgrade and software update that pushes through on Aviation and Missile Command computer systems, there’s a team of information technology specialists working to ensure employees have the desktop capabilities they need to succeed on the job.
Among those specialists is Bill Steely, whose work with AMCOM’s Information Management Directorate (G-6) recently earned him recognition as an Army Materiel Command Employee of the Quarter for the Third Quarter 2017.
“I was really surprised to receive an honor like this,” said Steely, whose cubicle on the third floor of the Sparkman Center’s Building 5301 is home central to several IT projects in various stages of completion.
“But, I don’t look at anything as a solo effort. There’s a team of employees here who are backing me up and covering for me and giving me opportunities to work on projects. We have a team environment here. I don’t think one person can do anything without a team behind them.”
Steely works with co-worker Dan Banes to manage Information Management and Technology acquisitions for AMCOM users in buildings 5300, 5301, 4727 and 3448. He also serves as the command’s video teleconferencing subject matter expert and oversees the command’s consolidated mobility support contract. Steely and Banes are members of an IT team that includes team lead Kim Duncan, software manager Latoya Sims, support agreements manager Daniel Brown and intern Jeffrey Nauta.
“The main responsibility is acquisition -- buying technology --whether that be renewing existing technology agreements annually for the software we use or gathering information for new technology purchases,” Steely said.
Steely also buys computing equipment outside the normal requirements, primarily in support of AMCOM Logistics Center and Security Assistance Management Directorate employees.
Currently, his team is managing a $3.2 million computer hardware upgrade that will make AMCOM computer systems compliant with new security measures. The upgrade is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2018. He is also working on purchases for the installation of an AMCOM-wide digital signage system that requires the installation of television monitors in key locations in the AMCOM headquarters building and for the deployment of full cellular coverage in the Sparkman Center Complex.
“The challenge is managing changing technologies and technology requirements so that AMCOM employees can continue to focus on the main goal of providing the best aviation and missile system support to Soldiers,” Steely said.
“In managing those changing technologies, we are always analyzing how to reduce costs and obtain the best value to satisfy customer requirements. We provide AMCOM employees with the IT tools to perform the mission.”
The work performed by AMCOM information technology specialists follows the Army Knowledge Management and Information Technology guidelines as specified in Army Regulation 25-1.
“We issue, sustain and rebuild software and we work with the Defense Information Systems Agency to establish new users. We buy and renew the warranties for more than 3,000 computers and 40 to 50 software systems, including Windows, Lenix, Oracle, Windows Devices and VMware,” Steely said.
“We also handle the monthly bills for the phones, various data services, hardware charges and international cellular service charges. We have to ensure there’s enough funds budgeted. We work to make sure we are not over extended or under extended financially.”
Steely and the IT team works closely with the Army Contracting Command-Redstone to ensure the right contracts are in place for IT hardware and services. They also work with the Network Enterprise-Redstone to ensure AMCOM has the appropriate network services.
“AMCOM owns computer software, computers and the mainframe that gets us on the network to communicate both internally and externally via our computers and phones,” Steely said. “But we are a guest on the network that NEC-R owns.”
Steely was introduced to the telecommunications field while serving as a telecommunications control specialist in the Air Force.
“I was working with Zenith computers and all-in-ones. In the ‘80s, I started working with desktop computers,” he said.
After he left military service, Steely worked 15 years as a computer information consultant, including assisting with the Return to Flight for NASA’s space shuttle program in the 1990s. He began working at AMCOM in 2007 as a temporary NEC-R support technician contractor and became a DA civilian in 2011.
Among his early IT projects was the installation of video teleconferencing capabilities in AMCOM’s conference rooms and secure VTC capabilities in the command group suites. Most recently, he oversaw the upgrade of the AMCOM telephone system that involved nearly 3,000 phones in the Sparkman Complex and at other Redstone Arsenal sites.
“The logistics of deploying new hardware to the entire organization requires a lot of planning to make sure we don’t have an interruption in the mission and to make sure we meet all audit readiness requirements,” Steely said.
Besides his IT acquisition and planning responsibilities, Steely is also focused on ensuring that all IT projects are well documented.
“It’s important to document so that if you get hit by a bus tomorrow, someone can step into your position and carry on,” he said. “Share knowledge. Give your peers the tools to fish on their own. For me, sharing knowledge is the power. Helping your brothers and sisters is the power.”
For AMCOM managers who work in providing hardware and software services for their employees, Steely is well known as a go-to IT specialist who has the experience and know how to work through most any computer issue.
“I look at this role as a 24/7 job. I like getting the job done and making sure our customers have the tools they need. By providing those tools as well as sharing knowledge and experience, we are supporting the employees who are supporting Soldiers,” he said. “The ultimate goal in all we do is to support Soldiers.”
| Date Taken: | 09.07.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 09.07.2017 12:55 |
| Story ID: | 247331 |
| Location: | REDSTONE ARSENAL, AL, US |
| Hometown: | REDSTONE ARSENAL, AL, US |
| Web Views: | 67 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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