Director of Readiness Assurance Josh S. is excited to take the organization by the wheel and guide them into a new era.
The Y‑12er spotlight shines on one of our own, Josh S., director of Readiness Assurance. It takes all Y‑12 employees to make the mission happen successfully and safely. All views and opinions are the employee’s own and do not necessarily reflect those of CNS.
Josh S. is used to having his foot on the throttle during professional drift races, and he is ready to bring that experience to Y-12 Readiness Assurance by partnering strategically with different projects to efficiently and effectively support safe start-up.
“I moonlight as a professional race car driver,” Josh said. “Similar to nuclear start-ups at Y-12, the car I drive has specific safety requirements, including the seats, clothing, and fire suppression to ensure I walk away from each race.”
Josh has been drifting in the ProSPEC series of Formula DRIFT ever since he went to a local event and ended up in a car for a ride along. He bought his first car the very next week. Formula DRIFT is a tandem battle between two cars at a time. Winning is based off a set of criteria (line, angle, style, and/or proximity), so it’s subjective — much more like figure skating rather than a typical NASCAR race for speed.
“I participate in the four Formula DRIFT ProSPEC events that take place every year across the country, but I also drive a ton of other events, totaling around 50 days a year,” Josh said.
Josh may be a Y-12 rookie having joined the team in February as the director of Readiness Assurance, but he is no rookie when it comes to the Nuclear Security Enterprise. He worked at the Nevada National Security Site and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, most recently as the deputy test director and experiment integration manager for subcritical experiments. Josh also served as Conduct of Operations manager and Assurance manager while at Lawrence Livermore.
"We are incredibly excited to welcome Josh S. as our new director of Readiness Assurance,” Senior Director of Quality Assurance Justin B. said. “His extensive experience and proven leadership in federal and nuclear enterprise missions will be invaluable as we continue to advance our strategic objectives and streamline our processes while ensuring rigorous operational readiness across Y-12."
Josh brings a high level of experience, and he is excited to work with his new team to meet the mission.
“I am leading a group of very experienced personnel with a wealth of knowledge. They are here to provide assistance and verification that our facilities are prepared to operate safely, securely, and compliantly,” Josh said. “I am delighted by the amount of expertise and experience of this team.”
Although Josh is relatively new at the site, he doesn’t need to ease into the work.
“I love the pace,” he said. “The constant flow of work so far ensures I am using every minute in the day to execute for the mission.”
Whether racing toward mission deadlines or the finish line in his purple car, one thing is certain, Josh will be safe and efficient.
Why is teamwork an important aspect at Y-12?
- Our mission is huge! And the work at Y-12 is highly specialized and involves many interconnected tasks. Collaboration amongst colleagues is vital to ensuring accurate identification of potential issues and efficient, creative problem solving.
What is the top communications tool you rely on in your daily work? Why?
- Face-to-face communication. I feel like we lose intent and meaning, miss out on nonverbal cues, and lose engagement when we spend too much time on the computer. When speaking face-to-face, I believe we get real-time feedback, understand each other with better clarity, and build better relationships.
If you are new to the area, what is something you are looking forward to doing?
- We are into motorsports, and I have heard about Windrock Park in Oliver Springs. I am dying to get out there and watch some of the events, especially rock bouncing.
Are you doing what you envisioned as a young adult? If so, describe how you got here.
- Not at all. I knew in middle school I wanted to go the engineering route. Fast forward in my life, I did get an engineering degree and went into the navy nuclear pipeline where I served for 14 years as a Navy nuclear engineering officer. This experience led me to operations, which has led me down a different path. I never could have imagined I would be working at a national security complex when I was younger.
What’s your top bucket list item and why?
- A trip to Europe to attend one of the Drift Masters rounds. My wife and I have been talking about a trip to Europe for years, pairing this with one of our passions would make for a wonderful trip.
Josh S. drives a purple C6 Corvette and includes his family in every race.