Susan Oakley

"My first job out of college was as an Image Scientist with NIMA (now NGA). On my first day of work, taking a cab to Building 213, the driver asked multiple times if I had the correct address. Who would have guessed that a few years later it would be home to the Washington Nationals? As an Image Scientist, assigned to the offices of counterterrorism and later counterproliferation, my role was to determine when and how image-based satellite data could be used to solve challenging IC issues. Over time, I gravitated toward leading teams of image and geospatial scientists, which led to leadership roles with BAE Systems. There I dove much more into the strategy behind answering some of the most challenging questions facing the IC, such as 'How can we better serve our clients long term?' I’m thrilled to carry that sense of mission to Microsoft in order to lead strategy and emerging opportunities across the Federal government."

"The only thing that’s 'typical' about my workday is that it changes constantly, which I actually love and thrive on. The other constant is the pervasiveness of calls throughout the day. Fortunately, with the right productivity tools, we’ve been able to stay highly effective and well-connected despite the hurdles of working remotely."

"What excites me about the IC today is its steady march toward tech modernization, from creative ways to develop and deploy capabilities to embracing greater cloud computing."

"COVID-19 has dominated 2020, and obviously the IC is deeply affected. Being able to maintain workloads, protect data, and collaborate across distance are seminal challenges that the community is rising to meet during this pandemic and beyond. A recent NYT article reported that, paradoxically, many organizations are experiencing higher levels of productivity from staff. The big question is: How long can it last? "

Favorite Podcast: How I Built This

IC Role Model: Sue Gordon