Mr. Grimes is the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Networks and Information Integration and the Defense Department’s Chief Information Officer. He is no stranger to the NCS, having served as its Deputy Manager from 1981-1984. He also worked extensively with the NCS in his role as Raytheon Company’s Industry Executive Subcommittee representative to the President’s National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee (NSTAC) – a position he held prior to his DoD appointment.

Mr. Grimes has extensive technical and policy experience in tele-communications, information systems and the command and control fields. His public service includes five years on the White House National Security Council Staff as Director for National Security Telecommunications Policy, Director of Defense Command, Control and Communications Programs, and Senior Director White House Situation Support Staff from 1984 to 1990.

Barry C. West returns to the NCS Committee of Principals – this time as the Chief Information Officer for the Department of Commerce. Prior to his appointment as the Commerce CIO, Mr. West served as the CIO for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and was FEMA’s Principal to the NCS COP during his time with FEMA.

Today, Mr. West is responsible for leading and coordinating Information Technology across the Commerce Department enterprise. He is responsible for guiding his department’s effective use of information technology (IT) and for managing the Department's IT resources, with an annual budget of over $1.5 billion.

Prior to joining FEMA, Mr. West was the CIO of the National Weather Service. As the CIO, he had overall responsibility for information technology systems, services, policies and operations. He was also responsible for managing, coordinating and integrating all aspects of Information Technology for the National Weather Service.

Carl S. Pavetto is the Deputy Associate Administrator for Emergency Operations with the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration. He has more than 35 years of professional experience as an engineer and attorney. Prior to the DOE/NNSA assignment, he spent 20 years in federal service at the U.S. Department of the Interior, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the U.S. Army, and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

In addition to his federal agency experience, Mr. Pavetto has served also as Bureau Chief at the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection where he was in charge of air pollution and radiation control programs. He also has 15 years of experience in private law practice where he counseled and represented a broad range of commercial and industrial clients throughout the Northeastern United States on environmental compliance and safety and health matters.

Daniel G. Mintz currently serves as the Chief Information Officer (CIO) for the Department of Transportation. As its CIO, Mintz serves as the principal advisor to the Secretary on matters involving information resources and information services management, and provides leadership in using information technology to achieve the department’s goals and objectives.

Mr. Mintz came to his department from Sun Microsystems, where he most recently served as the Director for Government Compliance Programs and was responsible for leading a corporate-wide group responsible for security, legal, and regulatory compliance for Sun’s U.S. Government business. Over the previous 10 years he was responsible for the profitability and successful implementation of large government and commercial programs both domestic and international. This included the creation and management of business and technical teams across Sun, Sun partners, and Sun customer boundaries.

Russell B. Flowers is Chief, Client Engagement and Community Outreach for the National Security Agency (NSA) at Fort George G. Meade, Md. Prior to his current role, Mr. Flowers was the Chief of the NSA’s Space Systems Special Program Office (SPO) in the Information Assurance Directorate. He also served as the Senior Executive Account Manager (SEAM) for the U.S. Central Command and the U.S. Air Force..

Mr. Flowers has 37 years of information assurance experience, which includes design, engineering, program management and management roles on a wide range of tactical, strategic, and defensive information operations initiatives. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering from Georgia Tech, a master’s degree in national security affairs from the U.S. Naval War College, and a master’s degree in international relations from Salve Regina University in Newport, RI.