Advisory Board

Austin Branch is an Information Operations pioneer, practitioner and leader. He holds the distinction of being the Army’s very first Information Operations officer when that career field was just forming, and while in uniform, he served at the tactical, operational, and strategic levels. Since retirement from the Army, Mr. Branch served in several senior executive civilian roles within the Department of Defense which focused on information operations, cyber, and counterterrorism. Most recently, he co-founded the Information Professionals Association or IPA.

MG (ret.) Joseph Brendler is a senior executive and thought leader with more than 30 years of experience managing large organizations specializing in delivery of information technology (IT), networks, and cybersecurity solutions. He has led strategic and tactical planning; engineering and operations; budget, program, and contract management; change management; partnership development; and service delivery. Clients benefit immensely from MG Brendler’s technical, organizational, strategic, and administrative expertise and experience.

Prior to starting his consulting company, MG Brendler was Chief of Staff for the United States Cyber Command. In that role, he directed, integrated, and synchronized the activities of the USCYBERCOM headquarters and led and mentored all staff officers, including the nine executive-level (flag) staff principals. MG Brendler coordinated and prioritized all efforts of the 2100-person staff to ensure a focus on the most important tasks, thus enabling the command and its components to provide the worldwide defense of all US Department of Defense (DoD) networks and the delivery of full-spectrum cyber effects supporting operational commanders throughout the US military. Previously, as Director of Strategic Planning, Policy, and Partnerships, MG Brendler was responsible for the development of strategy and plans for the evolutionary growth of USCYBERCOM and the execution of its missions to defend the nation against the threat of significant cyber attack. He participated in the development of US military cyber doctrine and of DoD and national cyber policy.

Earlier, MG Brendler served as US Army Director of Architecture, Operations, Networks and Space (AONS), where he had oversight of Army network operations and led Army network architecture and strategic planning. Prior to that, he was responsible for policy and operational oversight of all communications and information systems employed by NATO and US forces in Afghanistan as Chief of C5ISR, US Forces J6, and NATO Forces CJ6, ISAF. MG Brendler also served as the Chief of Staff for the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) for two years, prior to his last deployment to Afghanistan.

MG Brendler earned his BS and MS in electrical engineering from Cornell University. He also earned an MS in national resource strategy from the Industrial College of the Armed Forces and a Master of Military Arts and Science in theater operations from the School of Advanced Military Study. MG Brendler is a member of the Board of Directors of Warrior Expeditions and a member of the Board of Advisors of CSFI, MCPA, and a number of firms in the Defense and IT Industries. He is a member of the Cyber Committee of AFCEA International and an active member of IEEE, AUSA, and AOC. He holds a TS clearance, CI polygraph.

Lieutenant General Edward C. Cardon was born in Texas, raised in California and was commissioned as an Engineer Officer from the United States Military Academy in 1982.

Cardon has commanded at every level from company through Army Service Component Command. Some of his assignments include Observer/Controller at the National Training Center; Strategist to the Army Chief of Staff; Commander, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 3d Infantry Division; Deputy Commandant, US Army Command and General Staff College; Deputy Commanding General (Support), United States Forces — Iraq; Commanding General, 2d Infantry Division, Republic of Korea; and Commanding General, US Army Cyber Command and 2d Army.

Cardon has deployed in support of IFOR/SFOR Bosnia-Herzegovina and on four separate occasions in support of OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM.

His education includes a Bachelor of Science Degree from the United States Military Academy and two Masters Degrees – one from the National War College and the other from the United States Naval Command and Staff College, both in National Security and Strategic Studies.

Lieutenant General Cardon is married and has three children.

Katie is the President of INCLUDE, board member, and trusted advisor with 20+ years’ of experience and a proven track record of building and directing cross-functional teams at the highest levels of business and government. Throughout her career, she has served as a senior advisor to Fortune 500 CEOs, C-Suite executives, board members, elected officials, and senior military and government leaders. She is a proven P&L, people, and government leader with a track record of driving growth, improving performance, managing crisis and risk, promoting culture change, and advancing brand recognition.

She is the President of the Board of Directors of the Aschiana Foundation, a nonprofit organization that invests in the education and well-being of vulnerable children in Afghanistan. Additionally, she is an advisory board member of the Athena Alliance, the leading executive community that accelerates leadership advancement to the C-suite, the CEOs office, and the boardroom through a unique model of modern business leadership education and a powerful network.

Katie’s private sector leadership roles include Senior Advisor, SAIC; Vice President of Corporate Engagement at Booz Allen Hamilton; Chief People Officer, WPP Specialist Communications Division; Chief of Staff to Walmart’s Chief People Officer; Head of Global External Affairs, GE Power; and Chief Operating Officer, Bluhammock Music and Bluhammock Clothing.

Throughout her career, Katie has also held a range of government leadership roles, including having served as a Senior Advisor in the Office of the Secretary of Defense; Strategic Communications Advisor to the Commander of the International Security Assistance Force Joint Command in Afghanistan; and Press Secretary for the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Peter Warren Singer is Strategist at New America, a Professor of Practice at Arizona State University, and Founder & Managing Partner at Useful Fiction LLC, a company specializing in strategic narrative. He is also a noted keynote speaker, having delivered talks at venues that range from the White House to the Sydney Opera House.

A New York Times Bestselling author, described in the Wall Street Journal as “the premier futurist in the national-security environment” and “all-around smart guy” in the Washington Post, he has been named by the Smithsonian as one of the nation’s 100 leading innovators, by Defense News as one of the 100 most influential people in defense issues, by Foreign Policy to their Top 100 Global Thinkers List, and as an official “Mad Scientist” for the U.S. Army’s Training and Doctrine Command. No author, living or dead, has more books on the professional US military reading lists. His non-fiction books include Corporate Warriors: The Rise of the Privatized Military Industry, Children at War, Wired for War: The Robotics Revolution and Conflict in the 21st Century; Cybersecurity and Cyberwar: What Everyone Needs to Know and most recently LikeWar, which explores how social media has changed war and politics. It was named an Amazon and Foreign Affairs book of the year and reviewed by Booklist as “LikeWar should be required reading for everyone living in a democracy and all who aspire to.” He is also the co-author of a new type of novel, using the format of a technothriller to communicate nonfiction research. Ghost Fleet: A Novel of the Next World War was both a top summer read and led to briefings everywhere from the White House to the Pentagon. His latest is Burn-In: A Novel of the Real Robotic Revolution. It has been described by the creator of Lost and Watchmen as “A visionary new form of storytelling—a rollercoaster ride of science fiction blended with science fact,” and by the head of Army Cyber Command as “I loved Burn-In so much that I’ve already read it twice.”

Lieutenant General (Retired) United States Army

Ken Tovo, Lieutenant General (Retired) United States Army, is a recognized leader in special operations, strategic planning, and leadership. He is the president of DOL Enterprises, Inc, a consulting firm providing services primarily in the defense and technology sectors.

Over the course of his 35-year career, much of it as a Green Beret, Ken developed and led high performing organizations at varying levels, from a 12-man Special Forces ‘A-team’ to the 34,000-strong Army Special Operations Command.

His operational assignments include the first Gulf War; refugee relief operations in Turkey and Northern Iraq; noncombatant evacuation operations in Sierra Leone; peacekeeping operations in Bosnia on two occasions; five tours in Iraq; and one tour in Afghanistan. He has significant experience in developing organizational culture; managing change and incorporating new ideas and technology; and strategic planning and resourcing.

In addition to his consulting work, Ken currently serves on the board of several companies, is the chairman of a non-profit organization dedicated to assisting US Army Green Berets and their families, and is an advisory board member of a nonprofit that supports the educational needs of killed, wounded, or seriously injured service members.

Ken was a distinguished graduate from the US Military Academy at West Point and earned a BS in Aerospace Engineering. He holds a MS in Advanced Military Studies from the US Army Command & General Staff College and a MS in Strategic Studies from the US Army War College; he received the Bristol Military History Writing Award for his War College thesis.

Ken and his wife of 36 years, Suzanne, live in Pinehurst, NC. They raised two sons who both serve the Nation – one as a Special Forces officer and the other as a high school English teacher.

William F. Wechsler is the senior director of the Rafik Hariri Center and Middle East Programs at the Atlantic Council.  His most recent government position was Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Combatting Terrorism, where his portfolio included the Department’s policies, plans, authorities, and resources related to special operations and irregular warfare, emphasizing on counterterrorism, counterinsurgency, information operations, and other sensitive operations. He also helped provide civilian oversight for the service-like responsibilities of the United States Special Operations Command.  Immediately before that, Wechsler served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Counternarcotics and Global Threats, where he directed a budget of $1.6 billion and oversaw military and civilian programs around the globe.  Wechsler previously served as Special Advisor to the Secretary of the Treasury, as Director for Transnational Threats on the National Security Council, and as a Special Assistant to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.  Wechsler has also had a separate career in finance where he was Vice Chairman of Capitol Peak and Managing Director of Greenwich Associates, and remains a CFA charter holder and holds Series 7 and Series 63 securities licenses.  Wechsler graduated with a BA from Cornell University and a master’s degree from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs.