Photo By Sgt. Najee Tate Milton | NSWCPD Financial Improvement Audit Remediation (FIAR) Lead Maria Amoroso displays her...... read more read more
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When Financial Improvement Audit Remediation (FIAR) Lead Maria Amoroso was selected for the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) Journey Level Leadership (JLL) Program, she saw it as more than just a personal achievement. It was an opportunity to enhance her skills, broaden her perspective, and make a lasting impact beyond her regular duties at the Naval Surface Warfare Center Philadelphia Division (NSWCPD).
Over the past year, Amoroso balanced her full-time role with the program’s demanding requirements, which ran from October 2024 to September 2025. The JLL program aims to develop advanced leadership skills, offer a strategic view of NAVSEA’s enterprise, and boost mission effectiveness through cross-organizational collaboration. For high-performing civilian employees like Amoroso, it provides an opportunity to build leadership abilities while contributing to NAVSEA’s broader mission of supporting the Navy’s fleet.
“The program genuinely encouraged my growth," Amoroso said. “It pushed me to consider leadership beyond my area of expertise and gave me a better understanding of how NAVSEA functions overall."
The yearlong program started with a leadership orientation that introduced participants to NAVSEA’s strategic plan. Amoroso said this foundation helped her link personal leadership skills to the command’s main objectives. From there, she engaged in a variety of experiences, including classroom instruction, networking, mentoring, and hands-on assignments that required both teamwork and independent effort.
One of the program’s key components was a 90-day virtual rotation during which Amoroso was assigned to the NAVSEA Warfare Centers Office of the Command Inspector General. She was responsible for leading a warfare center-wide inspection of the use of Other Transaction Authorities. This task extended her beyond her financial management background into new areas of acquisition policy.
“It was empowering to take on something so different and engage directly with subject-matter experts,” she said. “I walked away with a much richer understanding of how we enable innovation.”
The capstone project was both challenging and rewarding. Amoroso collaborated with 12 fellow participants to assess NAVSEA’s current artificial intelligence maturity level and suggest ways to enhance the incorporation of artificial intelligence and machine learning into operations. Their tasks included designing surveys, collecting and analyzing data, and ultimately creating a strategic report presented to command leadership. The project served as both a technical challenge and a chance to showcase the teamwork and strategic thinking emphasized by the JLL program.
Just as crucial as tangible projects were the mentoring and networking opportunities. Amoroso attributes the impact of flash mentoring sessions with NAVSEA leaders, Navy officials, and outside experts as particularly significant. She also conducted her own session on change management alongside NSWCPD Technical Director Nigel C. Thijs, SES, completing what she describes as a meaningful leadership development cycle, which ultimately led to her mentoring a participant in the NextGen Leadership Development Program.
Reflecting on the past year, Amoroso said the program offered a deeper understanding of leadership at the enterprise level while enhancing her readiness to assume larger responsibilities.
“It gave me invaluable exposure to how senior leaders handle challenges and shape the command’s future,” she said. “I also built a network of colleagues across the Warfare Centers and Shipyards that I’ll continue to learn from throughout my career.”
“It's been rewarding to see how Maria applied the principles from the Journey Level Leadership Program to our command's full advantage,” NSWCPD Deputy Comptroller Roy Tweedy said.
Tweedy continued: “The program gives her practical tools for her leadership toolkit and greatly expands her professional network. For instance, when she recently organized a training event for the Comptroller Department, her new connections allowed her to invite an inspections subject matter expert who provided valuable external perspectives that we’d otherwise not have.”
For NSWCPD, Amoroso’s experience in the JLL program demonstrates an investment in its people and a benefit to the command through the skills, insights, and relationships she gained. With her broadened perspective and enhanced leadership skills, Amoroso is now better equipped to support NSWCPD’s mission and contribute to developing the next generation of leaders.
NSWCPD employs approximately 2,700 civilian engineers, scientists, technicians, and support personnel. The NSWCPD team conducts research and development, test and evaluation, acquisition support, and in-service and logistics engineering for non-nuclear machinery, ship machinery systems, and related equipment and materials for Navy surface ships and submarines. NSWCPD is also the lead organization responsible for providing cybersecurity for all ship systems.
| Date Taken: | 12.10.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 12.10.2025 16:55 |
| Story ID: | 553789 |
| Location: | PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, US |
| Web Views: | 15 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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