# San Joaquin’s Roberts selected as the winner of the Jerri L. Taylor Award for Outstanding Contributions 

/ Published Aug. 24, 2017
TRACY, Calif., 
Kristen Roberts, administrative assistant within DLA Distribution San Joaquin, California’s Materiel Management Group, is the recipient of the 2016 Jerri L. Taylor Award for Outstanding Contributions. 

Roberts was selected for her exceptional administrative skills and contributions to the mission, workforce and community. 

“Ms. Roberts is the quintessential example of DLA’s commitment of delivering ‘Global Distribution Excellence’ and truly embodies the spirit behind the Jerri L. Taylor Award,” boasted Jodie Johnson-Micks, Materiel Management Group chief. “Although her job title says ‘administrative assistant for the Materiel Management Group,’ her work and its impact reaches across the San Joaquin distribution center, as well as the entire installation.”  

Roberts meticulously managed administrative actions for the distribution center’s largest group, supporting three divisions, six branches, 300 plus employees, and 24 managers.  She was also key to a myriad of human resource programs to include training, appraisals, leave and time keeping, staffing, record keeping, and new employee on-boarding. 

According to Johnson-Micks, Roberts is the glue that holds the group together and ensures all taskers and administrative requirements are met in a timely manner.

She single-handedly managed the group’s awards budget and processed paperwork for hazardous pay incentives, On-The-Spot cash awards and sustained superior performance-based awards. She is proficient in financial stewardship, timekeeping for eight managers and key personnel.  She maintained leave requests, annotated leave logs, and reconciled accounts for accuracy resulting in 100 percent on-time/accurate reporting.

Roberts demonstrated persistence and diligence in managing headquarters and command-level taskers and aggressively tracked them to completion.  To aid in her efforts, she established a group folder to allow for three divisions and five branches to more efficiently update monthly safety and production charts.  Her efforts streamlined the process and provided for more effective version control of key data used to update senior leadership on critical safety and production metrics. 

In addition to her administrative duties, people and culture have been Roberts’ top priority. She currently serves as the president of the Civilian Welfare Fund council. In this role, she personally spearheaded countless morale boosting, teambuilding and fundraising projects for DoD, DLA and DLA Non-appropriated Fund employees located on San Joaquin. 

She also created a detailed schedule for monthly fundraisers and employee givebacks.  She began a tradition of one fundraiser and one giveback per month.  To date, she and the team have hosted an annual golf tournament, ‘Feel Good Friday’ pizza lunches, an iced-coffee fundraiser, movie pass giveaway, and the distribution center’s first annual holiday social. 

Roberts also serves as a member of the installation’s newly established Health and Wellness Council, which organized the installation’s Resiliency Day activities.  Complete with posters to focus on the four pillars of resiliency, the council hosted an information fair, physical fitness events, and briefs to educate the workforce on the importance of being resilient at work and home. 

Her outstanding work ethic and leadership skills go beyond the fence line. She is heavily involved in community service and is a true humanitarian. When a single mother from her community suddenly passed away from cancer, Roberts organized her local community to help. She established a GoFundMe account, organized a BBQ fundraiser and advocated for support from the local schools. Through her efforts, the community raised almost $4,000 for immediate living expenses and gained financial sponsorship for all three children to finish high school.  

Further, she is heavily involved in and passionate about cheerleading, directing and coaching various leagues in the community.

In addition to her work duties and community involvement, Roberts is an avid learner with plans to graduate with a Bachelor of Arts in Human Resource Management in 2017.

“Ms. Roberts consistently performed in an exceptional manner and directly contributed to the group and distribution center’s countless accomplishments throughout the year,” said her supervisor Johnson-Micks.  “It was truly an honor to nominate such a deserving employee and leader for this award.”