Episode 11: Cybersecurity – become a cybersecurity thought leader

Wanda Jones-Heath is the AF Chief Information Security Officer, Office of Information Dominance and Chief Information Officer, Pentagon, DC. She leads Division comprised of military, civilian, and contractor personnel responsible for developing Air Force Cybersecurity policy and strategy for over 5,000 Air Force Information Technology systems. She also manages the Air Force’s transition to the Risk Management Framework and provides oversight of the Air Force’s Assessment and Authorization Program.

Ms. Jones-Heath graduated from the University of SC in 1990 with a degree in Computer Science. She began her Civil Service career as a Palace Acquire Intern as a information systems specialist in various functional areas. She moved to Headquarters Air Combat Command, Langley Air Force Base, Va., in 1993. There she held positions responsible for policy and guidance for security and network systems. Prior to assuming her current position, Ms. Jones-Heath was the Program Manager, Defense Information Systems Agency. Ms. Jones-Heath led the effort to establish a DoD Mobile capability to include infrastructure. Her joint experience includes working in various positions at Ramstein Air Base, Germany.

EDUCATION
1990 Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science, University of SC, Columbia, SC
1994 Master of Science in Management, Troy University, Troy, AL
2001 Executive Leadership and Development Program, Pentagon, Washington, DC
2004 Master of Science in National Resource Strategy, Industrial College of the Armed Forces, DC
2006 Defense Leadership and Management Program, Pentagon, Washington, DC
2007 Center for Creative Leadership, Greensboro, NC
2008 Chief of Staff Air Force Fellows, Pentagon, Washington, DC
2008 Acquisition Leadership Challenge Program-II, OPM
2008 Enterprise Leadership Seminar, Kenan-Flagler, UNC, Chapel Hill, NC
2008 Air Force Civilian Strategic Leadership Program, Pentagon, Washington DC
2009 Harvard Senior Executive Fellows, Kennedy School of Government, Harvard, MA
2009 Program for Executives in Logistics & Technology, Kenan-Flagler, UNC, Chapel Hill, NC
2010 AFSO21 Senior Leadership Course, Pentagon, Washington, DC
2011 Capitol Hill Workshop, Washington, DC
2014 Critical Infrastructure Protection, Washington, DC
2015 Cyberspace Strategy and Policy, Washington, DC
2016 Cyber Intelligence, Washington, DC
2017 International Perspectives in Cyberspace, Washington, DC

MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
• AFA General George C. Kenny Award for Lessons Learned (2011)
• Air Force Meritorious Civilian Service Award (2000 & 2007)
• E-Government Trailblazer Award (2001)
• Air Force Exemplary Civilian Service Award (1999)

PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS AND AFFILIATIONS
• Certified Information Systems Management (CISM)
• Air Force Communications and Electronics Association (AFCEA)
• Air Force Board for Corrections of Military Records
• Presidential Management Fellows Program Assessor

PROFESSIONAL CERTIFICIATIONS
• Program Management, Level I, Acquisition Professional Development Program
• Chief Information Officer (CIO)

MG (ret.) Joseph Brendler is a senior executive leader with more than 20 years of experience managing large organizations specializing in delivery of information technology (IT), networks, and cybersecurity solutions. He has led strategic and tactical planning; engineering and operations; budget, program, and contract management; change management; partnership development; and service delivery. Deep Water Point clients benefit immensely from MG Brendler’s technical, organizational, strategic, and administrative expertise and experience.

Prior to becoming a consultant, MG Brendler was Chief of Staff for the United States Cyber Command. In that role, he directed, integrated, prioritized, and synchronized the activities of the 2100-person USCYBERCOM headquarter, to enable the command and its components to provide the worldwide defense of all US Department of Defense (DoD) networks and the delivery of full-spectrum cyber effects supporting operational commanders throughout the US military. Previously, as Director of Strategic Planning, Policy, and Partnerships, MG Brendler was responsible for the development of strategy and plans for cyber support to combatant commands, the evolutionary growth of USCYBERCOM, and the execution of its missions to defend the nation against the threat of significant cyber attack. He participated in the development of US military cyber doctrine and of DoD and national cyber policy.

Prior to those assignments, MG Brendler held a number of other executive positions in the US Army, NATO, and DoD. He served as US Army Director of Architecture, Operations, Networks and Space (AONS), where he had oversight of Army network operations and led Army network architecture and strategic planning. Prior to that, he was responsible for policy and operational oversight of all communications and information systems employed by NATO and US forces in Afghanistan as Chief of C5ISR, US Forces J6, and NATO Forces CJ6, ISAF. MG Brendler also served as the Chief of Staff for the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) for two years, prior to his last deployment to Afghanistan, and prior to that he was the J3 Director of Operations for DoD’s Joint Task Force for Global Network Operations, a precursor organization to today’s USCYBERCOM.

Over the previous 20 years of his military career, he held a variety of jobs including both staff leadership responsibility and command at every echelon from platoon to brigade. This included over six years of assignments in Europe, four combat deployments in both Afghanistan and Iraq, two years teaching Physics at West Point, and seven years at Fort Bragg, NC as a paratrooper and jumpmaster.

MG Brendler earned his BS and MEng in electrical engineering from Cornell University. He also earned an MS in national resource strategy from the Industrial College of the Armed Forces and a Master of Military Arts and Science in theater operations from the School of Advanced Military Study. MG Brendler is a member of the Board of Directors of Warrior Expeditions and a member of the Board of Advisors of CSFI and MCPA. He is a member of IEEE, AUSA, and AFCEA.

In 2017, following retirement from active military service, MG Brendler completed a through-hike of the Appalachian Trail. His hobbies include hiking, skiing, soccer, open source computing projects and robotics, and he and his wife, who reside in Northern Virginia, also enjoy travel and visiting with friends and family, including their two adult children.

As the Director of Marketing, Federal and National Government at SolarWinds, Lisa M. Sherwin Wulf is responsible for all aspects of Federal Marketing to the US Government worldwide, and National Governments across Europe.

Prior to joining SolarWinds in 2012, Lisa was Director, Marketing in the Information Solutions business unit at Deltek, where she was responsible for demand generation and product marketing for select GovWin offerings.

Before Deltek, Lisa was the Public Sector Industry Solutions Manager at RightNow Technologies where she was responsible for the development and execution of marketing strategy, driving global market share and leadership in the public sector. She also held key marketing positions at Software AG, VCampus, FutureNext and ZYGA Corporation.

Coupled with this experience, Lisa has an undergraduate degree in business from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst (UMASS) and an Executive MBA from Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU).

Lisa is a finalist in the 2018 GAINER Government Marketing Awards, which honors fearless government marketers. She was a recipient of the 2016 Trending 40 Chief Marketing Officers Washington DC award, and, together with PR agency SpeakerBox, won a 2015 Gold MarCom Award in the “Research/Study” category for their federal cybersecurity market research program.

Lou Anne Brossman is the Founder and President of Government Marketing University. She has over 30 years of public sector government marketing leadership experience gained while working for some of the leading companies in the market (Juniper Networks, immixGroup, EMC). Her roots are in the manufacture world which enables her to better understand and relate to the corporate issues all government marketers are facing. She is a sought-out speaker on Government Marketing Best Practices and is well recognized and respected for her ability to drive Thought Leadership campaigns on relevant federal, state and local government policies and mandates. Lou Anne has served on numerous boards including immixGroup and Trezza Media and was a founding member of the Women’s Center Executive Council. Lou Anne was honored with the Heroines in Technology award presented by Women In Technology and she was the recipient of the ACT IAC Dedication to Making a Difference award.
Lou Anne founded Government Marketing University, an innovative learning platform that applies a collaborative, community-based approach toward knowledge sharing and skills development in the field of public sector marketing. Government Marketing University offers training, research, certifications, mentoring, and community resources all in one place. For more information about Government Marketing University, visit www.governmentmarketinguniversity.com.

Steve Watkins is Chief Content Officer at Government Marketing University, an innovative learning platform that applies a collaborative, community-based approach toward knowledge sharing and skills development in the field of public sector marketing.

He launched Watkins Communications in 2015, providing a variety of tailored communications and consulting services to clients in the federal marketplace and offering expertise in all varieties of content platforms, including live events, webcasts, white papers, video, social media, bylined articles, blogs, and issue briefs.

Prior to launching Watkins Communications, Steve served 15 years as the editor of Federal Times, a leading media brand serving the federal management community, Congress and contractors. Under Steve’s leadership, Federal Times won more than three dozen national and regional peer-reviewed awards for journalism excellence in the categories of investigative reporting, news analysis and government coverage. He is a frequent speaker and moderator at events focused on federal management and technology. As editor, Steve transformed the Federal Times editorial brand from a legacy subscription-based publication into a modern business-to-business model focused on the federal management community. Steve repositioned Federal Times to become a robust digital brand with an emphasis on federal modernization and a platform for thought leadership on federal management issues. During Steve’s tenure, Federal Times consistently ranked No. 1 or No. 2 nationally as the “Top Federal Publication Read” by Market Connections Inc., which began conducting federal market research studies in 2011.