Carrie Leggott

TS/SCI, Active, SSBI: 05/22/2017, Full Scope: 12/1986

May/June 2024

As a Director in AS&T exploring research for ground and space systems at the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), As a technical manager, I have led and managed a diverse technology portfolio spanning artificial intelligence (AI)-related technologies, such as cognition and machine learning (ML). My over 30 years of experience at NRO have equipped me with a deep and broad knowledge of SIGINT intelligence collection and operations, MSAs, governance and policy, and stakeholder engagement. As a seasoned technical subject matter expert, I have successfully led and managed programs with multi-million/multi-billion-dollar budgets, demonstrating my strong leadership skills and ability to handle diverse teams and projects effectively. My certifications in Program Management (PM) level II, Systems Engineering (SE) level III, and Contracting Officer's Technical Representative (COTR) level III have equipped me with the necessary skills to successfully negotiate win-win solutions for the Government, commercial, and academia. This ability has been instrumental in avoiding the 'not invented here syndrome, a crucial role in enabling software reuse and valuing the potential contributions of others. I have also streamlined the acquisition processes and facilitated the integration of cutting-edge technologies into NRO operations and intelligence collection for end-to-end systems. My passion for driving AI innovation and transformation at NRO and the Intelligence Community (IC), solving complex technical challenges, and advancing strategic objectives is a testament to my negotiation skills, which I believe will be valuable to your organization. 

NATIONAL RECONNAISSANCE OFFICE, Chantilly, VA

Additional detailed assignments across the NRO enterprises supporting NRO seniors’ programmatic/technical strategy, vision, and budget

SIGINT 30-day study: 2010

Technical/Programmatic team lead to evaluate & recommend re-vector baselines and/or continuation.

I was the co-technical lead with the Chief Architect on the SIGINT 30-day study in 2010 and briefed the D/NRO, D/SIGINT, and community on a recommendation.

NRO Future Ground Architecture (FGA): 2013

Lead engineer/architect for approval and concept of FGA

Hand-picked BY NRO leadership and D/GED to lead the FGA roadmap and design

Defined FGA architecture, produced all technical insertion acquisition strategy; developed budget profiles and staffing plans; introduced a new contracting mechanism to promote agile baselines and MSA acquisition roadmap; briefed roadmap and plan for a roadshow to all NRO directorates for concurrence and external messaging

Received DNRO and IC approval to proceed four months from the start of the effort

Command and Control (C2) study: 2010

I was the selected technical co-lead for the NRO C2 Tiger team to establish an Enterprise-Wide C2 Roadmap. I served as the key technical and programmatic expert in C2.

Mission Management SME Team Evaluators: 1997 - 2014

Between 1997 and 2014, I was selected as one of five senior technical experts for five different Multiple mission management (MM) independent assessment/tiger teams supporting D/GED and D/NRO.

Technical/Programmatic team lead to evaluate & recommend revector baselines and/or continuation to D/NRO.

NRO COMM study: 2019

Co-lead for enterprise-wide NRO COMM study in 2019

Briefed recommendation strategy  to D/NRO and rest of D's & O's for utilization of a cloud environment after 1  month study/evaluation

• PYTHON
• JAVA
• C++
• C
• FORTRAN
• ASSEMBLY
• BASIC
• XML
• PMML
• ADA
• COBOL
• ADVANCED COBO

• AGILE
• WATERFALL
• INCREMENTAL
• SPIRAL

• MBSE
• RTM
• RDDS
• DOORS
• SQL
• ORACLE

• HP
• SUN
• WANG
• IBM
• CRAY
• VAX
• CYBER

• LINUX
• UNIX
• VMS

• ADF-E
• ADF-C
• MENWITH
• JDFPG

• ADF-C (3 TOURS)
• GMA SITE INTEGRATION
• GMA 1-5

• DIRECTORS TEAM AWARD (2023, 2011)
• DIRECTORS TEAM AWARD OF QUARTER (2016, 2009)
• DIRECTOR/OFFICE TEAM AWARD (2009, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003)
• INNOVATION AND ACHIEVEMENT AWARD (IAA) (2024, 2021, 2018, 2016, 2014, 2012)
• INTELLIGENCE AWARDS (2006,2007)

Defense Acquisition University (DAU)

Program Management (PM) level II

Systems Engineering (SE) level III

NRO University

Contracting Officer's Technical Representative (COTR) Level III certification

Scrum Master Training and Certification

AGILE/SAFe manager certification

Earned Value Management (EVM) Certification

• 06/2020, Current, NATIONAL RECONNAISANCE OFFICE (NRO), Chantilly, VA, Group Director, Advanced Systems Office (ASO), AS&T Directorate, NRO, Programmatic/Technical management across a diverse technology portfolio spanning AI-related technologies, including cognition and machine learning, with a focus on increasing capabilities across the NRO enterprise systems. As a manager and leader, I have overseen ten government employees from various DoD and IC agencies. I have provided guidance and mentorship and offered strong oversight, guidance, and direction to civilian, SETA, and FFRDC contractors. My team and I have developed and implemented the NRO and AS&T goals and objectives., Provided Technical leadership and oversight of developer activities across 12+ separate software applications and 13+geographically dispersed research initiatives using newly implemented SAFe/AGILE methodize affecting positive change through the diversity of thought, Managed and led ten government employees from various DoD and IC agencies, providing guidance and mentorship. Provided strong oversight, guidance, and direction to civilian, SETA, and FFRDC contractors as the team developed and implemented the NRO and AS&T goals and objectives., Mentored 10+ETIC personnel for CADRE, Worked with program managers (PM), program control (PC), and contracts (CO) to ensure that all financial and programmatic activities and budget estimates were aligned with requirements/objectives for the program of record, Led a team of experts; we embarked on a journey to explore innovative ways to pivot the NRO enterprise towards utilizing commercial vendors in AI and cloud computing. Our research and successful demonstrations of new methods, such as altitude, platform, and location-agnostic NRO CONOPS and hybrid-cloud computing enterprise systems, inspire a forward-thinking approach within the organization., Managed and technically tiger team developing and publishing the first-ever NRO AI strategy and coordinated efforts across the IC, Played a pivotal role in establishing the DIVERSITY, EQUITY, INCLUSION, AND ACCESSIBILITY (DEI&A) group, which sparked significant interest across AS&T and the NRO. Led numerous forums with the NRO Office of DEI&A, hosting NRO-wide DEI&A esteemed events hosted with other agencies such as NASA and internally with other NRO directorates, fostering a culture of diversity and inclusion., Empowered subordinates through delegations, writing the organization appropriately to meet mission milestones, milestones, and objectives., Applied NRO directives with much dedication and Instructions strictly per the regulations, policies, and guidelines set forth by the NRO, ensuring a reliable and trustworthy approach., Established collaborative efforts, technology partnerships, and investment opportunities across the NRO, DoD, IC, Industry, and Academia and drove strategic initiatives, fostering innovation and technological advances that hold immense potential for the future., Under my leadership, I provided crucial support in managing high-risk Science & Technology (S&T) research. This research was related to a revolutionary next-generation architecture, and I was responsible for recommending strategic investments for the group's research portfolio, showcasing my ability to handle complex tasks and make strategic decisions., Foster a collaborative environment across the office, and the directorate and provided the technical foundation for future capabilities through innovation in mission-relevant S&T
• 06/2020, 11/2020, NATIONAL RECONNAISANCE OFFICE (NRO), Chantilly, VA, Chief, Architect Group, Advanced Systems Office, NRO/AS&T (2020), Provided technical innovative ideas/solutions in adopting Scale Agile Framework (SAFe) and rebranding AGILE as a new service Ground On-Demand (GOA); led the first-ever Program Increment Planning Event which was the first step in achieving Architecture After Next (ANN) vision thru 2025, Proactively helped align all three Agile Release Trains (ATRs) towards government-established prioritized objectives to schedule GOA, Actively engaged in in-architecture studies, provided technical expertise in space-to-ground interfaces as an NRO pioneer, computer science, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), CYBER, CLOUD computing, and architecture designs, Setup battle rhythms to remove barriers/roadblocks freeing-up staff to focus on research and innovation. Worked to next generation architecture strategy that addressed high-performance computing, communication, and advanced processing hardware along with neural nets and ML
• 07/2019, 06/2020, NATIONAL RECONNAISANCE OFFICE, Chantilly, VA, Technical Staff, SIGINT Front Office (SIFO), Technical System Engineering (SE)Support D/SIGINT & DD/SIGINT for architecture studies, providing specialty expertise in areas of space-to-ground interfaces, computer science, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), CYBER, CLOUD computing, & architecture designs, Provided technical guidance & mentoring to the NRO Office of CADRE Element for many recruiting events, including career fairs, virtual events, professional associations, and classroom participation as CADRE Ambassador., Participated as the technical subject matter expert on selection panels across many NRO Directorates or non-voting member human resource members to ensure consistency and fairness in hiring for acquisition, technical, contracts, financial management, mission support, and security career fields., Selected by DD/NRO and DD/SIFO to lead the Independent Program Assessment SE & Risk Management teams in review of Ground Enterprise Directorate (GED) Future Ground Architecture (FGA) 2.0 to assess readiness for the Major Systems Acquisition (MSA) & as well as a Special Interest Acquisition (SIA) and provide technical/programmatic Recommendations to D/NRO, D/GED, and DD/SIGINT in preparation for the National Intelligence Acquisition Board to gain approval to proceed to the subsequent acquisition phase
• 09/2014, 07/2019, NATIONAL RECONNAISANCE OFFICE, Chantilly, VA, Chief, Technical Staff, Space System Program Office (SSPO) (SIGINT), Senior SE & Acquisition expert; provided technical expertise to SPO Leadership, officers, SETA, and FFRDC for technical and programmatic management of Portfolios over billions of dollars and numerous MSAs, Led technical efforts to plan & execute architecture development, technology roadmap Development, budget planning, cost &schedule management, requirements development, risk management, interface management, design verification, mission assurance, system launch & activation, and long-term operations support, COTR for one of the largest SETA contracts at the NRO valued at hundreds of millions of dollars, Led technical decision forums: Senior Management Group (SMG), Engineering Review Board (ERB), Configuration Control Board (CCB), and High Collaboration Working Group (HCWG) – cross the NRO enterprise, technical advisor to Risk Management Board (RMB), Developed acquisition strategies and technical architectures for operational replenishment; ensured the technical baselines were well balanced between SIGINT primary & secondary missions. Provided management guidance and fostered close coordination with external organizations to ensure on-orbit architecture and command and control-related requirements were well understood and incorporated into future system design; provided all technical guidance in all the SSPO pre-acquisitions as programs were staffed up through the NRO Acquisition Board (NAB), through the source selection processes to contractual award, Led technical exchange with GED, MOD, COMM, SED, AS&T, and others on enterprise initiatives, including architecture space and ground development and end-to-end system integration
• 10/2010, 09/2014, NATIONAL RECONNAISANCE OFFICE, Chantilly, VA, Divisional Deputy Director, SSPO, SIGINT, Programmatic/technical management across HERITAGE, LEGACY, & NEXT GENERATION HEO and GEO Space & Command and Control systems, Managed government employees from various DoD and IC agencies, led and influenced government employees and contractors that were geographically dispersed, Provided in-depth knowledge of SIGINT program decisions, contacts, budgeting, and mission assurance for large-scale C2 development of ground systems, including life-cycle Echelon 1 and Echelon 2 maintenance, Provide leadership at large-scale design reviews, evaluating the readiness of the system to move to the next milestone, surfacing deficiencies or vulnerabilities, and addressing risks with mitigation plans, Utilized excellent written and verbal interpersonal communication skills necessary to interact in an effective and efficient manner within the diverse workforce to achieve the goals and objectives of the organization
• 10/2000, 10/2010, Aerospace Corporation, Chantilly VA, Technical Staff, SSPO, SIGINT, Command and Control (C2), Senior staff engineer and acting Systems Director, SSPO/SIGINT, Programmatic/technical analyst and advisor across Heritage, Legacy And Next Generation HEO and GEO ground C2 systems, Provide oversight of complex construction activities in CONUS and overseas, requiring in-depth knowledge of standards, policies, and the U.S. and International Law
• 10/1998, 10/2000, NATIONAL RECONNAISANCE OFFICE, Chantilly, VA, System Director (SD) System Engineering, Ground Systems Program Office (GSPO)/SIGINT, Select by D/SIGINT & D/NRO to participate in a five-member Tiger Team to recommend organizational restructuring merging the HEO and GEO program offices into to newly defined SSPO and GSPO, Responsible for 16 Aerospace engineers including matrixed personnel from Engineering Technology Group (ETG)
• 09/1997, 10/1998, NATIONAL RECONNAISANCE OFFICE, Chantilly, VA, System Director (SD) Acquisition, GSPO/SIGINT, Worked as key technical/programmatic lead to architect, define, and implement the new SIGINT Ground Merged Architecture (GMA) 1-5 which acquired an combined all new/existing acquisitions for Misson Management, real-time command system, signal distribution network, infrastructure support services, data repository system, signal quality assurance system, and new or enhanced processing systems, Responsible for 10 Aerospace engineers including matrixed personnel from Engineering Technology Group (ETG)
• 02/1996, 10/1997, NATIONAL RECONNAISANCE OFFICE, Chantilly, VA, Technical Staff, SIGINT, HIGH ELLPICAL ORBIT, HEOSPO, Supported new ground development acquisitions; developed and executed verification plans for functional and performance requirements, sell-offs, and deployment to the site ensuring mission success
• 1996, 1993, TRW Corporation, Aurora Colorado, Assistant Program Manager (APM), Managed and technically led 45+ systems, hardware, and software engineers; Managed second echelon (E2) and COMINT operations, two subcontracts, and a team at the site location.
• 1993, 1990, TRW Corporation, Aurora Colorado, Sub-Project Manager (SPM), Managed and technically lead 20+ software engineers; Managed first echelon (E1) processing systems Interactive ELINT, COMINT, FISINT, & PROFORMA for operations at the site location., Provided real-time maintenance of the distributed Suns' and VAXes' & and special-purpose computer hardware for operational/reporting systems.
• 1990, 1985, TRW Corporation, Aurora Colorado, Senior Software Engineer, Performed operations and maintenance of ELINT Real-time & Distribution Switch Fixed Interactive ELINT, COMINT, FISINT, & PROFORMA for processing Software and unique mission hardware were used for operations at the site location.
• 1984, 1985, TRW Corporation, Aurora Colorado, Software Engineer, Defined requirements, developed CONOPS, designed and wrote FORTRAN & ASSEMBLY CODE, wrote test plans and procedures, executed tests, & Provided necessary documentation for a multitude of ground systems, including Automatic and Interactive ELINT and deployment for operational use at a site.