Google Public Sector announces Board of Directors
Karen Dahut
CEO, Google Public Sector
When Google Public Sector was announced in June 2022, it was a sign of Google’s strong commitment in serving the needs of U.S. federal, state, and local governments, and education institutions.Â
Since then, Google Public Sector has furthered its work to accelerate the digital transformation of U.S. public sector customers. We recently announced that 250,000 active-duty enlisted members of the U.S. Army will use Google Workspace to improve collaboration; partnered with the U.S. Department of Labor to offer transitioning service members and spouses career assistance with Google Career Certificates and Google Cloud trainings; kicked off an effort to modernize IT and data infrastructure for the city of Dearborn, Mich.; started a collaboration with the University of California, Riverside (UCR) to modernize its enterprise infrastructure and support its cutting-edge research program, and partnered with the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources to protect the state’s wildlife, to name a few.Â
Today, it’s my pleasure to announce another important milestone for Google Public Sector: the introduction of our Board of Directors. As CEO of Google Public Sector, I am honored to join the board with these distinguished professionals, each of whom brings diverse perspectives and rich experiences to our leadership team. The board will serve as an important feedback channel to Google Public Sector, ensuring our products and services meet the needs of our customers, help us anticipate future needs, and drive differentiation in the U.S. public sector market.Â
The Google Public Sector Board of Directors
GEN Dave L. Goldfein, Ret., Board Chair
Retired General Dave L. Goldfein served a 37-year career as a pilot in the United States Air Force, where he commanded at every level and finished his career as the 21st Chief of Staff of the U.S. Air Force (CSAF).Â
As CSAF, he spearheaded the Joint All-Domain Command and Control (JADC2) with the aim of integrating all military branches into a network of U.S. military sensors, platforms, commanders, and operators in order to increase battle readiness and responsiveness. Dave currently serves as a senior advisor for Blackstone Investment Group.
Governor Steve Bullock
An accomplished lawyer, Steve Bullock served the State of Montana as Attorney General from 2009 to 2013, and as Governor from 2013 to 2021. During his years as governor, Steve successfully grew Montana’s economy, made record investments in public education, expanded access to health care, protected public lands, and prioritized fiscal responsibility and transparency in government.Â
Steve currently serves on the board of the Foundation for America's Public Lands, a congressionally-authorized non-profit working to support the mission and objectives of the Bureau of Land Management.
Dr. Dawn Meyerriecks
An engineer by trade, Dr. Dawn Meyerriecks is a leading voice at the intersection of science, technology, and government, with more than 40 years in government and industry service, including national security and defense. Â
From 2014 to 2021, Dawn led the CIA Directorate of Science and Technology, where she spearheaded the exploration and implementation of emerging technologies to serve missions, and led the organization’s first restructure in its 57-year history. Dawn currently acts as an advisor and independent consultant to executive teams within global corporations and institutions, including Blackstone, MITRE, and others.
GEN Tony Thomas, Ret.
General Raymond Anthony Thomas III is a retired general of the U.S. Army. He most recently served as the 11th Commander of United States Special Operations Command, where he led the coordinated efforts of the special operations forces across all military branches. His previous leadership roles include Commander of Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), Associate Director for Military Affairs, CIA, and many others. He is currently a partner at Lux Venture Capital.Â
LTG Nadja West, M.D., Ret.
Dr. Nadja West is a retired U.S. Army lieutenant general. Most recently, Nadja served as the 44th Army Surgeon General, and Commanding General of the U.S. Army Medical Command from 2015 to 2019, where, among other duties, she provided advice and guidance to the Army Chief of Staff on all Army healthcare matters.
Nadja currently serves on the boards of Johnson & Johnson, Nucor Corp., AmeriCares, and others.
Dr. Heather Wilson
From 2017 to 2019, Dr. Heather Wilson served as Secretary of the U.S. Air Force, where she oversaw the development of a new science and technology strategy for the branch. Prior to that, she represented New Mexico in the United States Congress for 10 years, and served on the House Energy and Commerce Committee and the House Armed Services Committee.
Heather is currently the President of The University of Texas at El Paso, which serves 24,000 students with 170 bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degree programs, and she also sits on the National Science Foundation Board.
These distinguished public sector leaders will join Will Grannis, CTO of Google Cloud; Thomas Kurian, CEO of Google Cloud; Kevin Mandia, CEO of Mandiant; Kent Walker, President of Global Affairs and Chief Legal Officer at Google and Alphabet; and me to comprise the Google Public Sector Board of Directors.Â
Since taking on the role of CEO for Google Public Sector, I’ve heard directly from government and education customers the need for more choice in cloud vendors who can support their missions, and protect the health, safety, and security of citizens. With our Board of Directors, Google Public Sector is well positioned to play a critical role in applying cloud technology to solve these and many other complex problems for our nation.
