Employee of the Month – Wanda Bivens

Did you know that Wanda Bivens wears two professional hats? Here at DGS we know her as the DGS Payroll Supervisor. But long before joining DGS in 1991, she was a member of the Army Reserve.

“After high school,” Wanda explained, “I was unsure of a career. College, a job or the military?”

Wanda chose the military, joining the Army in 1976. She said it was the best choice she ever made. During 36 years in the Army Reserve, she rose to the level of Command Sergeant Major (CSM), the Army Reserve’s highest enlisted rank. Her first CSM position was with the 203^rd Military Intelligence Battalion in Aberdeen, Maryland (2007). Wanda was selected for her second CSM in 2012 with the 48^th Combat Support Hospital at Fort Meade. She retired in April this year.

DGS’s Payroll Supervisor explained the pride and self esteem instilled in her by the military with a quote from Dr. Maya Angelou, “Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it.” And it’s no surprise that she does such a fine job in her DGS role. Among other responsibilities, she took care of payroll at the 48^th Combat Support Hospital.

Wanda and her team make sure that all of us get what we deserve – pay for a job well done. Because the team processes full-time employees one week and contractual employees the next, every week is payroll week. The added challenge is that they also process two systems, paper and electronic.

“Wanda and her Payroll group bend over backwards to post salary adjustments during the same pay period as it’s earned,” said Garry Slatnick, Wanda’s supervisor. “It’s a herculean effort, especially when there are emergency situations.”

Processing paychecks is just one small part of Wanda’s and her team’s responsibilities. They also process employment and job verifications, scan timesheets, keep track of medical documentation and make all deposits for DGS. In addition, they monitor the Online Payroll System and help employees print out W2s or reprint pay stubs, provide overtime information for StateStat, generate check registers and create annual salary charts for all employees.

For her years of service to our country and to DGS, Wanda has been chosen Employee of the Month.