DAHLGREN, Va. –
Details are often overlooked in day-to-day operations. But for Managerial Cost Accounting Lead Elizabeth “Beth” Mundy from the Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division (NSWCDD) Comptroller Department, details matter most. Mundy’s attention to detail earned her the 2021 Department of the Navy (DoN) Financial Management Award for Individual Accounting and Audit Improvement. This award recognizes achievement in audit improvement efforts which continue to help the Navy achieve its goal of unmodified financial statement audits.
Mundy, a Virginia Tech graduate for both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees, began her accounting career working in the private sector. In 2008, she ventured to Naval Surface Warfare Center Indian Head before making her way to NSWCDD in 2010. Since then, she has made a tremendous difference for Dahlgren and the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA).
Her efforts were recognized in 2016 when she received the Paul J. Martini award for creating a process for reconciling cash in the Navy Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) financial system. “So, because I’m so intimately involved with cash and things are continuing to change in Navy ERP, my ears perk up and I take action and I end up being a voice for the warfare centers,” Mundy said.
Mundy said she evaluates things that have not flowed systematically and is constantly trying to troubleshoot. She expressed it is sometimes a challenge to figure out what went wrong and what could have been done to prevent it. “My day is always dynamic. I enjoy puzzles and problem solving,” Mundy said. “So, it’s like a puzzle except you’re working with information. It’s like a hierarchy of choices so I am understanding all those little what ifs or why something didn’t work like it was supposed to.”
Mundy was nominated for the 2021 DoN Financial Management Award for using her accounting and analytical skills to identify issues that cause erroneous cash and general ledger postings.
She not only brought the issues forward to her superiors, but she also proactively worked with NAVSEA personnel, the NAVSEA ERP Business Office and the Defense Finance Accounting Service to identify the various corrective actions required. This collaboration led to identifying a process to promptly resolve the transactional errors that impacted not only Dahlgren and NAVSEA, but other commands within the DoN as well.
“I was pleased because I know that I continue to operate at that higher level where I am providing useful input and trying to make things better,” Mundy said. “So, I was honored to just be nominated. It is always nice to be recognized when you’re doing a good job.”