Getting it Right at DoD, Highlights of June 8 Leadership Dinner with John Sherman
June 8, 2022 5:30 PM to 9:30 PM 7920 Jones Branch Dr, McLean, VA
Government, industry, and academic leaders gathered on June 8, 2022, to hear The Hon. John Sherman, DoD CIO, speak on the DoD’s priorities at the June 8 Leadership Dinner. In an impassioned keynote, CIO Sherman emphasized a “one team, one fight” mentality where the DoD’s best chance for success rested in collaboration across services and the need to “walk the walk and talk the talk” regarding technology defense and Zero Trust.
Mr. Sherman outlined three priorities for the CIO: cybersecurity; warfighting command, control, and communications (C3); and compute, software, and user productivity. To ensure the protection of the DODIN, Mr. Sherman looks to implement Zero Trust at scale with the federal government as a leader while working creatively and enhancing cyber and digital talent through a diverse workforce in terms of people and organizations.
Understanding the need to operate in intermittent and highly contested environments, he looks to modernize positioning, navigation, and timing and capitalize in the electromagnetic spectrum space. Using small- and medium-sized companies in addition to larger corporations, Mr. Sherman stated that the country’s innovation comes through the free market, and the use of OTAs could be used strategically to integrate services such as commercial Satcom and imagery.
During an after-dinner discussion with former DIA Director Robert P. Ashley Jr. (USA, Ret.), Mr. Sherman expanded on how he would achieve the CIO’s priorities through a combination of robust governance and teamwork on topics such as DefSec Ops, supply chain issues, and the balance needed regarding efficiency of communication and security.