January 2025 | Issue #36
As we step into this vibrant new year, I want to pause and reflect on the incredible journey we’ve taken together. Last year, we faced challenges head-on, celebrated key milestones with pride, and—most importantly—grew stronger as a team. Your relentless dedication, innovative thinking, and unwavering commitment have been the cornerstone of our success, and I’m beyond grateful for the passion and hard work each of you has brought to the table. Looking ahead, I’m filled with an overwhelming sense of optimism about the opportunities that await us. With renewed energy and focus, I’m confident that we are poised to exceed even our highest expectations in the months to come.
The start of a new year offers us the perfect moment to reset, re-energize, and set our sights on even bolder goals. With our shared vision and collective determination, there’s no limit to what we can achieve. Let’s embrace 2025 with enthusiasm and drive, knowing that every step forward brings us closer to our next great success. Here’s to a year of growth, innovation, and leaving our mark on the world—together, let’s make it our most impactful year yet!
-Michelle Constant, CEO
Joshua McDuffie - Higher Education Intern
Joshua joined CONSTANT on December 23 as a Higher Education Intern. Joshua is a graduate student pursuing a Ph.D. in the Civil and Environmental Engineering program at Vanderbilt University. Prior to attending Vanderbilt, he earned a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering at North Carolina A&T State University.
Joshua’s research experience encompasses a variety of topics, including risk literacy, engineering education, emergency management, infrastructure resilience, climate resilience, and ethics. He has been an invited speaker and presenter at several conferences, international webinars, and symposia. His accomplishments have also been recognized through honors, scholarships, and fellowships.
Joshua is passionate about education and community development, having served as a tutor, mentor, and teacher to students from primary school through college. When he isn’t working on research, he is likely at the gym, listening to music, reading, cooking, or picking up a new hobby (currently chess). Joshua resides in Nashville, TN.
Samantha (Sam) Houchins - Junior Process Improvement Specialist (CBP)
Sam is joining CONSTANT on January 6 as a Junior Process Improvement Specialist for the CBP contract. Sam has over a decade of customer service experience and has a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC). A creative problem solver at heart, she excels in identifying client challenges and developing innovative solutions that boost efficiency and enhance the overall client experience. In the past two years, Sam has specialized in automation using tools like Power Automate and delivering compelling, branded data visualizations through Power BI.
Outside of her professional pursuits, Sam enjoys staying active on the volleyball court, playing video games, attending concerts, and unwinding at home with her two beloved cats. Sam resides in Washington, D.C.
CONSTANT's January Birthdays
Happy Birthday to our January crew!
- January 2 – Michelle Constant
- January 12 – Alyssa De La Cruz
- January 24 – Shelia Sescoe
CONSTANT's Work Anniversaries
Thank you for your hard work and dedication to our mission.
- January 18 – Jayson Kratoville, 3 years
2025's Strategic Path to a Resilient Future: Business Development Opportunities
Business Development by Jeff Philippart, Business Development Director
I have been working with Portfolio Managers, the Executive Leadership Team (ELT), the Business Development (BD) Team, and Derek to author CONSTANT’s 2025 BD Strategy. Thank you to all who have been involved in the process. We are excited to fully unveil the BD Strategy during BD’s Winter Summit presentation.
Here is a sneak peek! The BD Strategy is meant to position CONSTANT for growth in the federal market through tailored strategies that include:
- Leveraging our 8(a) status
- Building capacity with joint ventures (JVs)
- Reaching new markets with support from new mentors
- Expanding our differentiators to strengthen our competitive advantage
A section on our tactics for the state and local markets will serve as an appendix. This strategy seeks to position CONSTANT to grow from existing and past state and local work, deepen stronghold in the West, and cultivate opportunities strategically across the U.S., with emphasis on jurisdictions that receive aligned federal funding. Unique sections for each portfolio area have also been crafted for both the federal and state and local markets.
To support implementation of the BD Strategy, CONSTANT’s BD Team has been restructured for 2025. A collection of templates and tools, along with transformation of the Portfolio Manager role and redefined roles for Christy and Nicole, will provide the CONSTANT team with an opportunity to nurture opportunities through a defined pipeline.
We look forward to sharing more during the Winter Summit and executing against the BD Strategy for a successful 2025 (and beyond). We have a strong foundation from 2024 with awards from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the Small Business Administration (SBA), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the Bay Area Urban Areas Security Initiative (UASI), and more to set CONSTANT with a baseline to continue to build from this year. If you have any questions about the BD Strategy, please contact me.
New Year, New Ideas
Operations by Jayson Kratoville
Happy New Year! In December, we reflected on the impact we made in 2024. In many ways, we shifted from thinking about “how do we, or our clients, do this?” to “how can we do this better?” The FQS team recently swapped course development tasks for critical process and training improvements. The SBA and San Mateo teams used ArcGIS to present information and data more dynamically. Here are some strategies for expanding this approach in 2025 as we continue building the company together:
- Think about the problem. What is the jurisdiction or agency we’re working with trying to accomplish? Is there an easier or more effective way to do it? Are there tools we have that can help them do it better? It’s typically better to find a problem to solve than to have a solution in search of a problem.
- Think about the people. Who is this new idea going to help and how can we show them that? Who is going to push back on it and how do we help them change their minds? Technology can be a catalyst for change, processes help structure it, but it’s people that drive change.
- Keep it simple. Asking someone to change the way they’re doing things is hard, even if it will lead to better results. The more accessible a solution is, the more likely it is to succeed. Simple solutions are also easier to get to action quickly.
Continue to connect with me, your Portfolio Manager, and Derek Morrison on new ideas that can help us and our clients do things better. In the meantime, have a very Happy New Year!
May Your Days Be Merry and Bright!
People and Culture by Maggie Peters, Director of People and Culture & Alyssa De La Cruz Sr. HR Business Partner
Important January Dates:
- January 1: New Year’s Day
- January 3: Pay Day
- January 9: Expense Reports Due
- January 15: Timesheets Due
- January 17: Pay Day
- January 20: MLK Day
- January 23: Expense Reports Due
- January 27: Winter Summit, 9 am – 12 pm PT
- January 28: Winter Summit, 9 am – 12 pm PT
- January 31: Timesheets Due
Compensation/Rewards: If you joined us before September 1, 2024, you’re eligible for a merit increase! For those who started in 2024, your merit will be prorated based on the full months you’ve worked. You’ll see these increases in your January 17, 2025 payroll, as we communicated in the All Staff meeting. Managers will let you know about your merit increase on or before January 14, 2025. Our compensation strategy takes into account several factors, including your current compensation, internal equity, performance, responsibilities, and the overall merit pool amount. Thanks for all of your hard work!
Benefits Open Enrollment: Mark your calendars! Benefits Open Enrollment is January 1st to 15th. This is your once-per-year chance to review and update your coverage options for the upcoming plan year.
- What to Expect:
- Premium Increases: There will be a 4% premium increase for plans, but the overall benefit offerings remain largely unchanged. This includes the popular Gold plan.
- Making Your Elections: All elections should be made through the EASE Platform.
- Important Dates:
- New Elections Effective Date: February 1, 2025
- Deductions Effective Date: February 20, 2025
- Questions? Please direct any questions you may have to P&C.
- Benefits Open Enrollment Meeting: This meeting will provide an overview of the available plans and any changes for the upcoming year. A recording will be made available for those who cannot attend live.
- Date: January 7th
- Time: 12:00 PM ET / 9:00 AM PT
- Format: Live and recorded. Link: OE Meeting
Professional Development: Q4 Pulse Survey Results – Topic: Professional Development.
Having these brief, pulse surveys are so insightful, so thank you for participating. Key Findings:
- Participation Rate: 40%
- Professional Development Satisfaction: 47% of respondents expressed satisfaction with the current professional development opportunities available.
- Proactive Development Planning: A significant 72% of team members have not yet sought guidance from their managers on creating an individualized professional development plan.
What actions are we taking to address this opportunity for improvement? Glad you asked! For Winter Summit, we will be presenting an interactive session on Setting Performance and Professional Development goals. [see article below including a way to start early]. We want you to have time to ‘noodle’ your career path here at CONSTANT.
CONSTANT University: We’ve added the ArcGIS StoryMaps training that was presented by Dylan Yates on 12/20/2024 and how he used it at San Mateo County’s Strategic Plan. There was a great deal of interest in this tool for a project so please take a moment to view it. You may even be able to bill it to a project you are working on! Thank you, Dylan! This is SO cool and useful!
Winter Summit: Performance and Professional Development Goal Setting. We are excited to announce that we will have a Professional Development session at Winter Summit to discuss Effective Goal Setting. We will share resources, best practices, and best of all give you the time to create Performance Goals for 2025 and your own tailored Professional Development Plan (PDP).
We value your feedback and are committed to using these insights to continuously improve our workplace and support your professional growth.
Want to get a head start?? Here’s the link to the 2025 Goals Template and the 2025 Professional Development Plan template: Goals Templates.
ISOLVED: Please take a moment to review and update the following information:
- Home Address: Double-check your home address to ensure its accurate and current; 2024 W-2’s will be mailed by end of January to this address. You can also retrieve your W-2 in isolved.
- Tax Information: Verify that your tax withholding information is correct. Any changes to your filing status or number of dependents should be updated promptly.
- Beneficiaries: EASE and American Funds [401(k)]
- Emergency Contacts: “Employee Contacts” in isolved, include name and phone number
- Training record: Ensure all the training you took in 2024 is there!
Benefits: It’s a great time to re-evaluate your FSA’s and 401(k) contributions.
- Flexible Saving Accounts (FSA) Healthcare and Dependent Care
- Use it or lose it by 1/31/2025
- HC FSA $640 amount carries over
- 401(k)
- Check in on your investments, performance, contribution amounts, and beneficiaries
- 2025: $23,500 max contribution ($31,000 for those age 50 and older)
- You can rollover from another qualified plan at any time, even if not eligible to contribute to the plan
Prioritize Your Mental Wellness This Holiday Season: The holiday season, while often filled with joy, can also bring increased stress and anxiety. To help you navigate this time of year, we’re pleased to announce a special webinar as part of our Guardian Edge Mental Wellness Series: “Claiming Your Peace: Managing Mental Wellness During The Holidays.”
This webinar, presented by our partner Guardian Edge, will provide valuable insights and practical strategies for:
- Identifying and managing holiday stress and anxiety.
- Setting realistic expectations and boundaries.
- Practicing self-care techniques.
- Coping with potential triggers and challenges.
Remember, prioritizing your mental well-being is crucial, especially during this busy time of year. We encourage you to take advantage of this valuable resource.
Equity Diversity and Inclusion (EDI)
EDI by Co-Leads Manny Rodriguez, Maggie Peters, and Alyssa De La Cruz
For January, Shante King wrote an amazing article on her personal reflection of Dr. Martin Luther King. You can find it here. We still have openings if you’d like to write an article for 2025!
- Action: Volunteer to write an article for 2025! Share a story about how you incorporated EDI at a client!
- 2025 EDI Calendar – Add your name/topic.
- Template/tips for article writing.
Thanks to all the EDI Committee members for writing these important articles so we can continue to learn together!
Next Meeting: Our next EDI Committee Meeting will be Wednesday, March 19, 2025, at 12pm ET. The meeting is linked on the Staff Calendar. All meeting presentations and educational articles can be found on the P&C SharePoint site EDI Committee
Reach out to Manny, Alyssa and Maggie, EDI Co-Leads, if you need to assist a client with their EDI efforts or how to incorporate EDI into our engagements.
Building Financial Resilience
Finance By Carmen Khouri, Finance and Accounting Controller
As we begin the new year, it is important to make sure that we plan our budgets accordingly. With a set plan and funds allocated properly, we are prepared to tackle the year with a strong mindset. Whether for a business or for personal finances, budgets can help achieve large financial goals such as a home or car purchase or to keeping small expenditures in track.
A good recommendation is to allocate a small pool of your budget for emergency expenditures so when an emergency arises there are always funds that can assist without taking away from your day-to-day expenses. A budget helps both businesses and individuals with a way to be resilient in an era where costs and expenditures are ever increasing.
If you ever need help tackling budgeting, there are several free or paid for applications available such as Monarch Money, YNAB, and Mint to name a few. You can also consult with your accountant to help. We wish you a Happy New Year!
New Year's IT News
Information Technology By Morgan Forrest, IT Manager
We are now into 2025 and in terms of IT we will be focusing on achieving our CMMC Level 2 Certified Accreditation. This will involve a philosophical change in how we as a whole handle our data as well as our clients’ data. The exciting news is after we achieve this certified accreditation, we will be able to market it and use it to our advantage when bidding for new business. Here is a small outline of how it looks.
- Working with a vendor to prepare for the actual audit.
- Engage the team to prepare for the practices therein. This will prepare us for the audit.
- A strong toolbox of polices and procedures for handling data.
- A strong network with policies and configurations that will be certified secure allowing CONSTANT to weather future cyber-attacks and hacking attempts.
This will be a year-long process, as it entails checking our current CMMC self-assessment work. We will work on fixing gaps and preparing the company for the official audit. This is going to be an exciting year for IT, thank you all for your continued support!
Our mission is to make the world a safer place.
It’s that simple, and that’s why we are here. We have a strategic plan for the next three years, called CONSTANT Strategy, which outlines what our biggest priorities are:
- Take care of our people
- Forward our mission
- Respond to our clients’ most pressing needs
- Expand strategically across markets
- Build infrastructure for the future
To help us execute on our mission, we have developed the CONSTANT Credo and our aligned core values (see the graphic below). We live by these.
Our Credo
