Former Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Former Deputy Under Secretary of Defense and acting Director of Defense Research and Engineering, current President, SCI Aerospace Inc., Sue Payton served as a Presidential Appointee in two Administrations with responsibility for acquisition, procurement, R&D and technology transition. In the Air Force, serving as the Assistant Secretary for Acquisition, she directed an annual budget over $30 billion acquiring capabilities for air, space and cyber superiority; intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance; rapid global mobility; global strike and C2 systems.

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Prior to her government service from 2001-2009, she worked in senior leadership capacities for small and large businesses. At Lockheed Martin, she led the classified DoD/IC systems engineering and integration initiatives in areas of complex ground/space system architectures and space mission operations.

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In her role as the President of SCI Aerospace, she serves as a Director of various industry Boards and advises small and large companies and R&D Labs focusing on risk management, sound governance practices, executive compensation/talent management strategies and the use of streamlined acquisition authorities. She is a recipient of the Department of Air Force Exceptional Civilian Service Award and the Office of the Secretary of Defense Medal for Exceptional Public Service.