Stanley Fujii: Honoring AAGEN’s 20 Years of Service

By Jennie L. Ilustre

This month, the Asian American Government Executives Network (AAGEN) is holding major events to celebrate its 20th year of promoting a diverse, quality workforce and career advancement for its members. Small wonder that as the new AAGEN executive director, Stanley Fujii’s email Inbox of late was constantly full, and that was true with the state of his voicemail as well.
“Our team has been busy planning and organizing our annual Leadership Development Training Workshop on June 6,” he said. The major event will take place at the Doubletree Hotel Crystal City in Arlington, Virginia.
Good thing Stanley, a Business Administration/Economics graduate from California State University, is adept at time management and keeping his cool. His day job entails major responsibilities. Stanley works for the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Office of Veterans Business Development. He’s the Veterans Procurement Liaison for its Office of Veterans Business Development.
The office is responsible for maximizing “the availability, applicability and usability of all administration small business programs for veterans, service-disabled veterans, reserve component members, and their dependents or survivors.”
AAGEN will also be holding its Awards Banquet this month. It will bestow the Distinguished Lifetime Achievement Award to Terry Shima and Grant Ichikawa, both distinguished leaders of the Japanese American Veterans Associations (JAVA).
US Congresswoman Tammy Duckworth, an Iraqi War hero who won election last year in Illinois, will receive the Outstanding Public Service Award. Top civic leader Sharon Wong is the recipient of the Stanley Suyat Memorial Leadership Award.

Leadership
AAGEN Chair Thomas H. Phan, who is also a White House Initiative on Asian American and Pacific Islander’s Inter-Agency Working Group Designee, praised Stanley’s performance as a fellow leader and as a federal executive.
Stan, as his friends call him, is the rare public servant who rocks the boat when the occasion calls for it yet retains the sense of responsibility inherent in his position, and what’s more, he’s fun to work with, too.
Remarked AAGEN Chair Phan: “Stan is not afraid to raise tough questions and challenge conventional wisdom when appropriate. His keen focus on task accomplishment is balanced with a wry sense of humor that tempers sometimes overly serious meetings and deliberations.”
He also noted Stanley has been an active and energetic member of AAGEN leadership ever since he joined the organization. “He has assumed a wide variety of responsibilities in helping AAGEN organize and deliver our ever larger annual training workshops,” he said.
He said Stan’s extraordinary commitment to public service extends to his involvement in other community organizations, such as the Pan Pacific American Leaders and Mentors Organization (PPALM), where Stan is both a mentor and acting Vice President for Strategic Outreach. Stan also devotes time for the Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA), the Federal Asian Pacific American Council (FAPAC) and the National Japanese American Memorial Foundation (NJAMF).
Learn more about AAGEN by visiting its website at www.aagen.org. Both AAGEN Chair Phan and Executive Director Fujii urged Asian Americans in government to take the next step and join AAGEN, and become actively involved.

Right Direction
In a telephone interview, AAGEN Executive Director Fujii explained why he looked forward to taking a leadership role: “I like the direction where AAGEN is going, with its many and varied programs,” he said, adding that he welcomed the opportunity to work with Chair Phan and the rest of the team. “I also like that it is a huge organization, where everyone is dedicated to its goals.”
The executive director provides leadership and direction to the dozens of volunteers who serve on the various committees of the Board of Directors.
“AAGEN is proud to have devoted the past twenty years to our mission of promoting greater workforce diversity at the highest levels of government,” he elaborated in an email interview.
“Beginning in 1993 with just a few senior officials as an informal support group, AAGEN has grown to a non-profit corporation with over 300 members, including some 60 senior executives in the federal government,” he added.
AAGEN Chair Phan also touted the organization’s other achievements. “For decades, AAGEN has also hosted an annual leadership development workshop, where both government employees and others seeking government employment can enhance their leadership abilities and career potential.”
“Our most recent accomplishment has been the creation of a year-long leadership development program for those who aspire to appointment to the government’s Senior Executive Service, or SES. This program has already resulted in one of our graduates receiving her SES promotion,” he pointed out.

Q & A
Stanley Fujii, a third generation (Sansei) born, raised and educated in Los Angeles, California area, previously worked at the U.S. SBA in several capacities. He was a Senior Program Analyst with the Office of the HUBZone Program, Acting Deputy Associate Administrator for the Office of Business Development, and the Assistant District Director for the 8(a) Business Development Program for both the Washington Metropolitan Area District Office and the Santa Ana District Office.
Before joining SBA, he worked for the Defense Logistics Agency, and the Defense Contract Administration Services Management Area (DCASMA)–Santa Ana as a Contract Price/Cost Analyst.

Excerpts from his replies to other interview questions follow.

Who are your role models?

People who have inspired and influenced you?
Other than the obvious answer of parents and my oldest brother–Raymond has always been an inspiration in my life–I have been influenced greatly by my association with the great leadership at work, and also by those involved in organizations such as the AAGEN, PPALM, OCA, FAPAC and the National Japanese American Memorial Foundation (NJAMF).
However, I have to admit my greatest inspiration comes from those around me that I consider to be my friends (and you know who you are). They are the ones who keep me inspired, grounded and above all, test my resolve to do more.

What did you learn from your parents that have helped you in your life, career?
My parents taught me my core values of being honest, helpful, kind, courteous, courageous and brave. All of which were reinforced through my experiences growing up as a Buddhist and through scouting (Boy Scouts of America), where I obtained the rank of Eagle Scout.

What are your hobbies?
I enjoy playing golf, tennis and yes, dining. I also like to spend time with Renji, a four-year-old German Shepard mix that I adopted from a local rescue center.

What are the advantages of working for the government?
“The reason I went into a federal career was simple. The government offers you something that you can rarely find elsewhere. You can potentially work anywhere in the world, you can transfer from one agency to another and retain your benefits and seniority, and there are a wide variety of opportunities for advancement and equally important, in serving the country.”

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