With no time to spare, the outgoing Senate confirmed two nominees for top Army posts on Jan. 2, the final day of the 115th Congress.

Alex A. Beehler was confirmed to be assistant secretary for energy, installations and environment, and Casey Wardynski was confirmed to be assistant secretary for manpower and reserve affairs. The nominations for both had been approved in September by the Senate Armed Services Committee but a final vote by the full Senate was postponed. They were approved by voice vote on Jan. 2 as part of a group of 77 nominees receiving a confirmation vote.

Beehler, who worked in the Pentagon during the George W. Bush administration, is a longtime installation manager and executive with experience in environmental cleanup, base closing and realignment, and utilities modernization. “My 40-year career in various Washington, D.C., legal and policy positions, with over 25 of those 40 years concentrated in public and private sector environmental and energy regulatory and policy fields, qualifies me to perform these duties,” he told the Senate Armed Services Committee in written answers to questions.

Wardynski, a retired Army officer with 30 years of service, spent about half his military career as an expert in economic and manpower analysis. After retirement, he was a school superintendent and a pioneer in digital learning. His daughter Jennifer and son Chris are serving in the Army.

Wardynski told the Senate he expects the top issue he’ll face is “manning the total force with high quality people.”

“Recruiting and retaining the very best our nation has to offer is critical to the Army’s efforts to meet its increased end strength goals and promote readiness,” he wrote in his answers to committee questions. “Striking an appropriate balance in the military, civilian, and contractor workforce within a fiscally competitive environment will be critical to effectively meeting mission requirements around the globe.”