Smartsheet (NYSE:SMAR), the enterprise platform for dynamic work, today announced the company’s Federal Advisory Board composed of former federal government executives from civilian, defense and intelligence agencies. These industry experts will provide strategic insights into government-specific market needs and assist in driving growth within the federal sector.
“We launched our government offering, Smartsheet Gov, in 2019 to replace the legacy technologies many agencies still rely on and overhaul decades-old processes through streamlined collaboration and productivity that drives results for citizens,” said Gene Farrell, Chief Product Officer of Smartsheet. “Each of our founding members bring a different perspective and expertise to the Board that will help us extend our reach to the thousands of agencies and organizations looking to unlock the value trapped in outdated systems and enable them to transform, innovate, and achieve.”
Smartsheet has appointed General Peter Chiarelli (USA, Retired) as the Board Chair who will lead the group alongside Farrell. General Chiarelli served as Vice Chief of Staff for the US Army and Commander, Multi-National Corps. He also served as the Senior Military Assistant to Secretary of Defense, Robert M. Gates. Since retiring from the Army, General Chiarelli has been committed to supporting research to find treatments for service members suffering from traumatic brain injuries and post-traumatic stress, serving on public and nonprofit boards, as well as providing consulting services to companies with products that bring value to the Department of Defense.
“Smartsheet is an industry leader that can remedy the challenges today’s public sector organizations and employees face from legacy systems that promote silos that impede decision making and efficiency,” said General Chiarelli. “Smartsheet provides a platform that enables leaders to make use of real-time data when making critical decisions. Bringing together this group of experts will allow the value Smartsheet could bring to the federal sector to be introduced to more agencies who are looking to transform their operations, improve efficiencies and accomplish their missions.”
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In addition to General Chiarelli, the initial charter members include four former public sector executives with deep expertise across civilian and defense agencies, including:
- Jerry Davis who was the former CIO of the NASA Ames Research Center, CISO of the Department of Veteran Affairs, CISO of NASA and CISO of the US Department of Education. He is currently the founder of Gryphon X LLC, consulting with executives at public and private companies in high tech, semiconductors, aeronautics, astronautics, healthcare, financial, defense and US intelligence.
- Kathryn Condon who served as the former Executive Director of the Army National Cemeteries where she led the digital modernization efforts at Arlington Cemetery. She also held a number of senior executive positions in the US Army and was recognized numerous times for exemplary service including being inducted into Army Materiel Command Hall of Fame in March 2020. Condon currently runs her own consultancy, Kathryn A. Condon & Associates, LLC.
- Marina Nitze who served as the former CTO of the Department of Veteran Affairs and helped found the United States Digital Service. She also served as a Senior Advisor on technology in the White House under the Obama Administration, and on a VA Advisory Board for Cerner. Nitze currently serves on the Advisory Board for Foster America, focused on improving America’s child welfare system, is a partner at Layer Aleph, and CPO in Residence at Think of Us, helping to grow a tech-enabled systems-change mindset in child welfare.
- General William Bender is a retired Lieutenant General and former CIO of the United States Air Force where he led three directorates, and supported 54,000 cyber operations and support personnel across the globe with a portfolio valued at $17 billion. He is currently the SVP Strategic Accounts & Government Relations at Leidos, a science and technology solutions leader working to address some of the world’s toughest challenges in the defense, intelligence, homeland security, civil, and healthcare markets. General Bender is also a Board Member for the National Defense Industry Association, AFCEA International, and the National Defense University Foundation, and holds advisory positions supporting the Air Force Association and Baylor University.
Built on AWS GovCloud and FedRAMP authorized, Smartsheet Gov is a secure, enterprise-grade platform built for government agencies to increase collaboration, speed, transparency and drive innovation. The platform is currently used by the GSA, NOAA, Department of Energy, NIH, Veterans Administration, Department of Defense, Department of Agriculture, and NASA JPL.