Stanford Seminar - Silicon Valley & The U.S. Government: The Honorable Sue Gordon

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Sue Gordon's Career Journey

Sue Gordon was recruited by the CIA despite her degree in Zoology due to her potential.
She held various leadership positions within the CIA, NGA, and DNI.
Gordon emphasizes the importance of taking on challenging roles, learning from failures, and adapting to the evolving intelligence landscape.
She stresses the significance of collaboration and partnerships, continuous learning, and developing new approaches to meet emerging threats.

Gordon faced setbacks, including a politically sensitive call that resulted in a demotion, but she persevered and worked on a top-secret spacecraft project.
She encountered obstacles in a project to retrieve data from a clandestine source due to misunderstandings with stakeholders.
Gordon emphasizes the need to understand all stakeholders and risks, think about the entire ecosystem, and avoid micromanagement.

The CIA's mission is National Security, and it needs to rethink its approach to open-source information and classification.
To drive innovation, individuals and organizations must focus on what they are trying to achieve and let go of traditional methods.
Public-private partnerships need to change to attract Silicon Valley talent and capabilities.
In-Q-Tel's success was due to the government's willingness to give up classified information and intellectual property to attract private sector partners.

Lessons from Ukraine include the continued trend of transparency and the value of commercial capabilities for intelligence gathering.
Lessons from the Israel-Hamas conflict highlight concerns about over-reliance on technology, the need for effective information sharing, and understanding decision-making processes around intelligence deployment.

The speaker advises individuals considering government service to view it as an extended gap year, offering unique learning opportunities and early responsibilities.
A security clearance is valuable, and individuals should explore other career options after gaining experience in government service.