Q2: What keeps you at DIA?

More things than I can list here. First, DIA’s mission is critical, and I’ve never felt that the work I’m doing is meaningless. I often speak to students at career fairs, and I tell them that finding a career that – even through the tough times – can make you proud is one of the greatest achievements in life. Second, DIA provides such an amazing breadth of opportunities. Although I’ve been the historian for a while, I’ve held an array of positions, been on joint-duty assignments at other intelligence community organizations, studied at a military-service college and been authorized to use my experience to teach. I’ve had opportunities to travel, to advance my education and seek advancement. Finally, it’s also about the people. Every day when I come to work, I am humbled by the skills and knowledge of those around me. When you put it all together – important work, an array of opportunities and working with the best and brightest – there really isn’t much more that I could ask for.

Q4: What would people be surprised to know about your career path, or what it’s like to work for a combat support agency/the U.S. intelligence community?

When I speak to students, I like to highlight the fictional intelligence career of author Tom Clancy’s character “Jack Ryan.” In Clancy’s books, Jack Ryan was part of an operation to steal a Soviet submarine, almost killed by and fought against terrorists, conducted interrogations, briefed senior-level officials, supported operations as an analyst, dabbled in counterintelligence, taught at the Naval Academy, was a professional historian and married a doctor. It’s the stuff of Hollywood, and no surprise that several movies were produced starring such a character!

Well, I’ve never rappelled down a rope from a helicopter firing a submachine gun, been on a speedboat to land near a nuclear weapons facility to interrogate nuclear scientists, and I will never be the President of the United States. But it’s remarkable all the things IC employees can do in their careers that capture the flavor of Jack Ryan and Hollywood. Among my many experiences: I’ve been a Joint Staff J2 and President’s Daily Briefing briefer, supported operations as an analyst, gone to the Naval War College and currently teach graduate studies, and am a professional historian who married a doctor. That makes for a fascinating career.

Q5: How do you really know you’re making a difference?

At DIA, there’s little ambiguity about making a difference. For example, I was working in the Pentagon when the 9/11 attacks occurred, and the plane that hit the building caused damage to my office. I came to DIA to help make sure that such an attack would not happen again. In the following decade of my counterterrorism work, I was able to collaborate across the intelligence community and play roles in helping the community to thwart several attacks. It’s impossible to know how many lives were saved during those efforts, but I went home every evening knowing I made a difference. To this day, with activities large or small, I feel the very same way.