Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) secretary Mike Carroll recently recognized 30 PennDOT employees for their outstanding performance with the Star of Excellence Award, PennDOT's highest recognition, during an awards luncheon at the National Civil War Museum in Harrisburg.

Among the local winners was Terry Bradley of Mount Joy, Lancaster County assistant highway maintenance manager. Bradley took on the role of training coordinator to address a gap in training for equipment operators at the Lancaster County Maintenance Organization. The county experienced many operator vacancies and had many new hires. Some operators with more than a year of experience had still not progressed from Equipment Operator A to Equipment Operator B (EOB).

A respected manager who is also focused on safety, Bradley developed processes to track the training status of both new and experienced equipment operators. This resulted in new hires being promoted to EOB more efficiently, which also helped with employee retention. He developed a spreadsheet to plan upcoming weeks' work, allowing planning meetings to go smoothly and efficiently. His efforts have improved productivity throughout the organization.