2009 Women of Color Award Winners
DIVERSITY LEADERSHIP EDUCATIONAL
LEADERSHIP
Dr. Jeannie A. Johnson
Corporate Director, Human Resources
Hortense B. Burt
Information Systems (HRIS)
Northrop Grumman Corporation
Acting Chief of Education Programs and
University Research
BSc –business administration – National Lead, Higher Education Projects
University NASA Kennedy Space Center
MSc – leadership & management
PhD – public administration – University of
BSc – mechanical engineering – Prairie
La Verne, California
View A&M University
Jeannie Johnson is passionate about diversity and inclusion.
Hortense Burt is a fl ight-assur-
Her master’s degree thesis and doctoral dissertation focused
ance manager who helps students take wing. Her work in
on diversity and equity in the workplace. She is an integral
expendable vehicles and with the US Department of Defense
player in Northrop Grumman’s Human Capital Management
on Line-of-Sight Anti-Tank satellites are just two examples of
Framework, an initiative designed to build the best workforce
outstanding performance in her 25-year career. In 1986, Burt,
and workplace.
an early-career mechanical engineer, was commended for
volunteering her time and talents to help the Naval Ordnance
Under the umbrella of Northrop Grumman’s Human Resource
Station’s community action program reach 1,500 eighth-
Services Center, and as part of the corporation’s human capi-
grade students in Charles County, MD. The program showed
tal management framework, Dr. Johnson and her team have
young people how Navy professionals used math and science,
worked to harmonize policies, processes and forms across
with presentations covering electronics, chemistry, computers,
9 business sectors and thousands of employees, many repre-
rockets, lasers, trades and cartridge-actuated devices.
sented by collective bargaining units or working under special
contracts.
More than 20 years on, Burt is still earning accolades for her
dedication to the challenge and opportunity to infl uence
Dr. Johnson led the project to harmonize some thirty policies
the lives of young people. She shares NASA’s story across
and procedures, effective January 2009. The policies cover be-
the country, working with school districts in Florida, Georgia
reavement, pay frequency, on boarding, and transfers among
and Puerto Rico, and in the Virgin Islands to ensure they are
many others.
aware of partnering and funding opportunities sponsored by
Over 25 years, she has led advances in the way HRIS serves as
NASA for K-12 education. With the help of her team, Burt has
a key business partner in support of the company’s strategic
developed programs that help to make a difference in the lives
goals and mission. She led the creation of a robust infrastruc-
of young people and help inspire students to seek careers in
ture to meet the demands of the workforce and management
science, engineering and math.
needs in a defense systems enterprise that has grown by leaps
In the summer of 2008, Burt worked tirelessly to organize the
and bounds.
visit of four groups of K-12 students to the NASA Kennedy
As Northrop Grumman completed mergers and acquisitions,
Space Center. Liaising with the engineering school at Morgan
Johnson’s HR organization has acquired more than 20 differ-
State University, MESA clubs of Maryland, and with engineer-
ent payroll systems and numerous HR systems, all of which
ing schools at North Carolina A&T State University, Tennessee
now fall under her team. Johnson’s group works to integrate
State and Prairie View Texas A&M Universities, she lobbied for
disparate, legacy systems into a single platform. HRIS used to
a coordinated trip for some 125 young people to travel to the
support an organization with 25,000 employees. Now, they
Space Center.
support a $34-billion enterprise with 122,000 people world-
The group spent two days and a night at Kennedy Space
wide.
Center. They talked to an astronaut, performed hands -on en-
Dr. Johnson is the steward of Northrop Grumman’s HR infor-
gineering challenge exercises and camped out below the huge
mation systems and takes great care to protect employee data
Apollo/Saturn V Moon Rocket. As one inner city Baltimore stu-
and to ensure compliance with federal and state laws and
dent described it, it was the trip of a lifetime; an exciting and
regulation.
educational venture, providing motivation for the students as
they map out their future educational goals and plans.
Over the past 15 years, she has been a mentor to several
individuals. She has worked diligently to make a difference
Under Burt’s leadership, KSC’s minority outreach committee
to Northrop Grumman and her community. From singing in
has prioritized relationships with thirty partner institutions,
TD Jakes’ Potter House Choir to serving as adjunct faculty at
including historically black colleges, Hispanic-serving institu-
El Camino College to teaching business and computer classes
tions, Asian-serving institutions, a university for the hearing
and English as a Second Language, Dr. Johnson has shown
impaired, and Native American institutions.
remarkable consistency of purpose.
She completed her doctorate in public administration as she
led HR Information Systems through more than 10 years of
growth.
www.womenofcolor.net WOMENOFCOLOR | FALL 2009 33
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76