Connections Podcast

Andrew (“Andy”) Maner is the Chief Executive Officer of the merged E3/Sentinel. He is responsible for setting the strategic direction, long-term goals, and growth objectives while positioning the firm for continued expansion into new markets. Andy ensures consistent delivery excellence to clients while maintaining a strong culture of professional development and a future strategy of growth. He has over 25 years of executive leadership experience in both private and public sectors.

In 2016, Andy purchased a majority stake in Sentinel where he served as the Chairman. He helped lead organic and external acquisition growth strategies for Sentinel, which is a management consulting and solutions business focused on national security clients. NewSpring Holdings purchased a controlling interest in Sentinel in September 2018. From 2010 to 2015, Andy served as the Managing Partner of US Federal within IBM Global Business Services where he managed the $1.6B consulting and solutions and technology business. Prior to leading their acquisition by IBM, Andy was the Chief Executive Officer of NISC, a $200M information management, services, and technology consulting firm serving the federal market. In addition to his work in the private sector, Andy served as the Chief Financial Officer for the Department of Homeland Security from 2004 to 2006 and as Chief of Staff to Customs Commissioner Bonner from 2002 to 2004, where he led the transition of three agencies into Customs and Border Protection. He also served in the administration of President George H. W. Bush in the White House and as a Staff Assistant under Press Secretary Marlin Fitzwater in the White House Press Office (1991 to 1993). He later accompanied President Bush into private life in Houston after the 1992 election and served as the Special Assistant to the 1993 United Nations Envoy to Somalia in Mogadishu.

Andy holds a Master of Business Administration from the J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University and a Bachelor of Arts from Purdue University. He also serves on the Board of Directors for No Greater Sacrifice, a non-profit that dedicates scholarships for higher education to families of fallen and wounded service members.

Nick Powers is President of Data Works, an E3/Sentinel Company. Nick is responsible for the operation and growth of Data Works and works closely with the E3/Sentinel leadership team to drive business expansion and deliver client-centered results. Nick's goals include the growth and development of Data Works staff and providing exceptional support to mission-focused customers.

Data Works merged with E3/Sentinel in 2019 to help expand its capabilities and accelerate growth within the Intelligence Community. Data Works is a leading provider of mission analytics, big data, and software development solutions to the intelligence community. As the President of Data Works, Nick will continue building on the foundation that has made Data Works what it is today – a highly respected, employee-focused technology company that supports mission-critical projects within the Intelligence Community. With the support of E3/Sentinel, Data Works will increase capabilities and project offerings while maintaining quality and culture. Nick will provide oversight to Data Works staff and interface with E3/Sentinel leadership to accelerate growth and present unique opportunities to employees and customers.

Before joining E3/Sentinel, Nick co-founded Data Works and helped build it from a startup into a well-respected small business with top technical talent. His previous experience is as a software developer with expertise in large scale data transformation and analytics. Nick is a graduate of Virginia Tech and an enthusiastic Hokie.

Lt Gen (retired) Kevin McLaughlin has over 35 years of experience in the space and cyberspace business with a focus on creating and leading large-scale, innovative, global organizations, and with unique strengths in operations, strategic planning, policy development, organizational transformation, and human capital development. He is the Director of the Program for Cyber Policy, Strategy, and Security and an Adjunct Professor of Practice at the George Bush School of Government and Public Service at Texas A&M University. As the founder and President of McLaughlin Global Associates LLC, Gen McLaughlin serves as a director on several corporate boards and advises clients on cyberspace and space operations, defense, risk management, strategy formulation and implementation, domestic and international policy, and government and private sector business opportunities. Gen. McLaughlin’s last active duty assignment was as the Deputy Commander of United States Cyber Command at Ft Meade, Maryland from 2014 - 2017. In this capacity, he directed 12,000 personnel and a $525M budget to defend the nation’s largest information network, provide offensive cyberspace options to commanders, and protect critical U.S. infrastructure from cyber-attacks. Before joining U.S. Cyber Command, Gen McLaughlin led 24th Air Force, the U.S. Air Force’s organization of 4,500-personnel that organized, trained, and equipped cyber forces to execute global cyberspace operations.

Prior to his assignment at 24th Air Force, Gen McLaughlin spent thirty years as a leader of large, complex, and highly technical organizations associated with some of the world’s most critical space organizations including the squadron that operates the Global Positioning System and the Air Force operations group that operates over 170 satellites for national leadership, U.S. and allied military, and civil and federal agencies. He also served as the only active-duty staff member on the Commission to Assess National Security Space Management and Organization (AKA The Rumsfeld Space Commission) in 2000-2001.

Al Di Leonardo is an experienced intelligence and U.S. Special Operations officer who utilized his military training to successfully found and sell two companies in the private and public marketplaces. As a U.S. Army veteran, he earned the Bronze Star Medal from U.S. Special Operations Command for his work in Afghanistan and Iraq. Al is widely recognized as a subject matter expert in analytical tradecraft, and as an entrepreneur with expertise, vision, and leadership at the intersection of big data, analytics, and geography.

With more than 25 years of combined government and consulting experience, with a concentration in the Intel Community, he retired out of the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) after his career as a United States Army Intelligence Officer. Prior to JSOC, Al specialized as a Signals Intelligence Officer and spent almost a decade inside NSA with three military tours.

In 2019, Al co-founded an AI/Machine Learning company known as Black Cape, which develops unique AI/ML capabilities that serve the U.S. National Security community, and the U.S. Department of Defense.

Al serves as a board member on the following non-profit boards: The American Geographical Society; The United States Geospatial Intelligence Foundation; The Global Special Operations Foundation; The National Cryptologic Museum Foundation; and The George Washington University’s Data Analytics program.

Al holds a Master’s in Business Administration from Loyola University and a Bachelor of Arts from Fordham University. Originally from Connecticut, Al, his spouse Melissa, and their two daughters reside in Arlington, Virginia.

The Honorable Sue Gordon, PDDNI, assisted the DNI in leading the Intelligence Community and managing the ODNI from August 2017 to August 2019. In particular, she focused on advancing intelligence integration across the IC, expanding outreach and partnerships, and driving innovation across the Community.

With nearly three decades of experience in the IC, Sue has served in a variety of leadership roles spanning numerous intelligence organizations and disciplines. Most recently, Sue served as the Deputy Director of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) from 2015 to 2017.

Prior to her assignment with NGA, Sue served for 27 years at the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), rising to senior executive positions in each of the Agency’s four directorates: operations, analysis, science and technology, and support. She joined the CIA in 1980 as an analyst in the Office of Scientific and Weapons Research, and went on to serve as the Director of the Office of Advanced Analytic Tools, Director of Special Activities in the Directorate of Science and Technology, Director for Support, and ultimately in concurrent roles as Director of the Information Operations Center and the CIA Director’s senior advisor on cyber.