Employee Spotlight: James Wilcox

Today, we’re excited to spotlight James Wilcox, a Senior Consultant who has been with FMP for three and a half years. James has a background in I-O psychology and came to FMP with experience in both the federal and private sectors. James grew up in Orlando, Florida, spent several years in the DMV area, and recently moved to Austin, Texas! Keep reading to learn more about James!

What do most people not know about you?

Most folks don’t know I’m a first-generation college student. My family moved around a lot growing up, and I went to 15 different schools in Orlando and Puerto Rico from kindergarten to high school. When I graduated from high school, I joined the local IUPAT union as an apprentice commercial glazier (glassworker). After a couple years, I started taking night classes at Valencia Community College after work and eventually got my associate degree. I was the beneficiary of a partnership that the University of Central Florida had with Valencia, through which UCF would accept any Valencia graduates into their 4-year programs. So, I applied to UCF and started working evenings in the food service industry to take classes and volunteer in research labs during the day.

What is something you are passionate about?

I’m innately curious and driven to figure out how and why things work. I think this is a major factor of the success I’ve had in my life. I’ve also had to figure out a lot of things the hard way. Something that I’ve realized brings me joy is helping guide people I meet who have had similar experiences to myself. I have learned that the challenges and setbacks I’ve experienced resulted in a perspective that adds unique value to my work and life, and I’m passionate about spreading that message to those who feel like they don’t belong or aren’t good enough.

What brought you to FMP?

One thing that attracted me to FMP was the flexibility offered. Some of my previous roles required long commutes with no capability for remote work, so having ownership over my schedule and freedom to determine “how” I got work done was certainly appealing. It speaks to the trust and respect FMP leadership has for their workforce.

I also had insight on what it was like to work at FMP from a few friends who were FMPers at the time. They relayed the opportunities they had to grow their skills and responsibility on their projects and how much they enjoyed working with their FMP colleagues. From those two factors, I got the sense that FMP was a great place to develop sustainably.

What projects have you been working on since you joined?

When I joined FMP, I worked on a project supporting the Office of Personnel Management’s (OPM) HR Line of Business program (HRLOB) to help develop government-wide human capital service delivery standards to define a uniform model for the HR user experience. Over the almost 3 years I supported this project, I facilitated focus groups with agency experts to validate standardized service frameworks in various human capital functions including workforce planning, employee engagement, strategic planning, analytics, and more.

Earlier this year, I transitioned to projects supporting the National Science Foundation (NSF), Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) across a variety of activities including workforce planning, strategic human capital planning, communications, and general program management support.

Describe FMP in 3 words.

Intentional, dependable, and warm.

Zoe Nerantzis joined FMP as a Consultant in May 2021 and works with the National Science Foundation team by supporting NSF’s learning and development branch. Zoe is from Rockville, Maryland and can generally be found reading fantasy novels, working out in her basement, or rooting for the Washington Football team.