We are the Community Advisory Pilot Cohort
by Ben McMartin, Felicia Teeter, Greg Sapp, Jesse Levin, Mike Snyder & Sean Heritage
The Community Advisory exists to disrupt the disruptors, bringing in fresh ideas about what is needed in the DEF community. We felt it important to share who is involved in the initial pilot of the concept.
The idea that learning to say “NO” and draw personal boundaries when it comes to time allocation is often noted as an imperative for success. To quote the late Steve Jobs “It’s only by saying no that you can concentrate on the things that are really important.” And for those of us wanting to see major shifts in the way our national security ecosystem works, one “really important thing” is the mission of the Defense Entrepreneurs Forum.
So, when the call went out to the community for intrepid volunteers for the initial Community Advisory Cohort to tackle the fuzzy challenge of enhancing our ecosystem of radicals, a host of individuals (more than just us) raised our hands and shouted “I can’t say no to that!”, diving head-in and sacrificing other opportunities to make a unique difference.
DEF is often noted as distinct in both the eclectic nature of our membership and level of mutual support across the community.
DEF is often noted as distinct in both the eclectic nature of our membership and level of mutual support across the community. We are one of few grassroots organizations where academics, entrepreneurs, national security experts, and government employees of all ranks and backgrounds collide on a regular basis to seek positive change without economic or political incentives. People join because they identify with our story and care about what we do.
The alchemy that transpires as a result is often hard to explain, but, as in any all-volunteer organization, there are always opportunities to do better. In that spirit, six individuals are taking part in an experiment, the Community Advisory Pilot Cohort. Each of us has stepped up to get our hands dirty in working to identify the community’s perspectives on critical fail points or areas for improvement, and will partner with the Leadership Team over the next several months to address at least one core issue in earnest (more updates on those efforts will be published in future posts).
…academics, entrepreneurs, national security experts, and government employees of all ranks and backgrounds collide on a regular basis to seek positive change...
So, without any further ado, may we introduce ourselves, the initial Community Advisory Cohort:
Ben is well-known in many circles as “the dude with the emoji face”, but his real work is in acquisition management with the Army, where he’s one of the lead rabble-rousers pushing for better understanding and use of government acquisition tools.
He wants to identify ways to help ideas flow freely and evaluate how DEF can best structure itself to serve community needs.
Felicia brings a newcomer’s perspective to the cohort, having recently joined DEF after extensive experience with program development, both in and outside the defense community (and is particularly fond of metrics and analytics).
She sees DEF as a way to intentionally inject new thinking, processes, and assumptions into established organizations with hierarchical structures.
Greg (aka “Uncle Greg”) works in a leadership role with a defense engineering, IT and cybersecurity firm and is part of the Midwest crew supporting DEF 2020 in Indianapolis, having been increasingly active with DEF over the last year.
He is excited by the opportunities that DEF creates and is interested in bringing enhanced level of technology to the organization.
Jesse is a longtime DEF member that created an expeditionary capability for entrepreneurs, veterans, and first responders to stand up businesses for emergency economic stability and disaster response around the world.
His area of interest is refining the DEF brand and narrative to further socialize and attract unconventional minds into the community.
Mike is a former Army intelligence geek that feels right at home in the DEF community, given his deep appreciation for the collective group’s disparate perspectives that come together “like a fission reaction to try and break up the status quo.”
His motivation for joining the Community Advisory was attracting and expanding the enlisted contributions through and within DEF.
Sean was one of the early architects of the Defense Innovation Unit, having previously led Navy cyber security operation. He is now operating in the private sector supporting cloud security.
He wants to inspire more dialogue with the private sector, especially Silicon Valley, where national security and defense work is not always understood.
The Cohort kicked off early in November and is finding our groove with five months left to shake things up! We will be reaching out to the community for feedback, but proactive engagement is encouraged and appreciated!
Should there be any burning coals in the fire, ideas for bettering DEF, or frustrations that individual members want to share in regards to how the volunteer Leadership Team might focus their efforts — just reach out!
We can’t help fix what we don’t know is broken.
The Defense Entrepreneurs Forum is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that inspires, connects and empowers people by convening events, forging partnerships and delivering tangible solutions. Our mission is to promote a culture of innovation in the U.S. national security community.
If you are a military member or veteran, government employee, entrepreneur focused on national security, or just find the idea of helping solve tough problems enticing, we’d love to have you join the DEF Community!
