Bahar Niakan

Health and Human Services Department Niakan, after coming to STG from the Health and Human Services Department in 2005, instituted human resources practices to help STG serve the department. As STG's services expanded to include 12 divisions within HHS' Office of the Secretary Executive Office and also grew in other parts of HHS, she added contract support staff and implemented divisionwide standard operating practices to deliver consistent service. Niakan doubled the Human Resources Solutions division staff, from 170 to 340, and added senior medical writing, law and logistics management to the division's core competencies. Practices she instituted for her division ? including digitizing contract documentation ? have since been adopted companywide. This aggressive expansion, coupled with her ability to maintain efficiency and effectiveness through a period of growth, makes her a valuable leader.