Speakers

Mr. Ramesh Menon was appointed Chief Technology Officer (CTO), Office of the Chief Information Officer (CIO), Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) on March 1, 2021. Mr. Menon is responsible for technology and strategy planning, experimentation, emerging technology
solutions architecture supporting DIA and IC priorities including FVEY partners. Mr. Menon assumed his current position upon his appointment to the SES / DISL-T1. Mr. Menon serves as the CTO and authoritative information technology expert for DIA. He develops a cohesive
technological strategy for CIO’s, business, and mission partner’s capabilities on the Joint Worldwide Intelligence Communications System and in the Department of Defense Intelligence Information Systems enterprise.

Mr. Menon serves as the senior DIA technologist and interface to the Intelligence Community, Department of Defense, Military Service’s Intelligence Centers, Combatant Commands, international partners, national labs, industry and academia. He conducts feasibility assessments of current and future technology trends within the private and public sectors and makes recommendations on adoption that will increase DIA’s decision advantage. As the CTO, Mr. Menon will serve as the principal advisor for artificial intelligence to the Director and collaborate
with other IC and DoD AI leaders. Born in India Mr. Menon earned a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering and a Master’s degree in Business Administration (MBA) from California State University. He has co-authored three books and has a patent pending
for supply chain assurance using Block chain technology.

Mr. Menon was a CTO in the private sector at IBM and a Chief Architect at Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (JHU-APL) leading Artificial Intelligence, cloud, cyber and strategic national security initiatives.

Mr. Menon is a member of IEEE congressional delegation on science and technology and an invited frequent guest lecturer on emerging technologies at Johns Hopkins University. He was a member of Brookings Institution AI expert panel on autonomous weapon systems and served on space innovation council workgroup along with NASA, SMC and DARPA. He is also a mentor to AFRL catalyst campus, NASA Frontier Development Labs supporting OSINT and EdgeAI to operate in contested spaces.

Mr. Johnson serves as the Deputy Chief Technology Officer at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. In that role, Mr. Johnson helps to grow the agency’s technical expertise and empower its workforce with the tools and processes needed to deliver on NGA’s mission. Previously, Mr. Johnson had been Director of NGA’s Cybersecurity Operations Center, where he oversaw the 24x7 cyber network defense of NGA’s global information technology enterprise.

Mr. Johnson also has served as the Chief of Risk Management for the Intelligence Community Chief Information Officer (IC CIO) at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. At ODNI, he supported and advised the IC CIO and IC Chief Information Security Officer in managing the shared risk of the IC Information Environment by leading and coordinating performance analysis, independent security assessments, enterprise IT risk assessments, and cybersecurity planning and budgeting functions for the Intelligence Community.

Mr. Johnson was appointed as the Intelligence Community Tri-Chair on the Committee on
National Security Systems Subcommittee in November 2018. He also served as the U.S.
Representative to the Five Eyes Enterprise Information Assurance Group, a group of
multinational cybersecurity experts chartered to ensure the secure and trusted intelligence
sharing, integration, and collaboration between five partner nations.

Mr. Johnson has over 17 years of experience in the public and private sectors, gaining expertise
as an electronics technician, cybersecurity officer, and IT Program Manager. He joined the
federal service in 2012 at NGA, focusing on cybersecurity, vulnerability analysis, and risk
management. His work on strategic planning, budgeting, and program execution began in 2014,
when he became the first Cybersecurity Lead for NGA’s newly established Portfolio
Management governance structure.

From 2007-2012, Mr. Johnson was a defense industry consultant, providing services related to IT
risk management, assessment and authorization of information systems, and cybersecurity testing and evaluation for the U.S. Air Force and NGA.

A veteran of the United States Navy, Mr. Johnson served on active duty from 2001-2007 as an
AEGIS SPY1A radar systems technician on board the USS Yorktown, and an IT systems and
network administrator for Tactical Air Control Squadron 12. He has served in the U.S. Navy
Reserve since leaving active duty and currently holds the rank of Chief Petty Officer.
Mr. Johnson holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Information Technology from Excelsior
College and is a member in good standing with ISC2 and ISACA, holding the credentials of
Certified Information Systems Security Professional and Certified Information Security Manager.

Greg Clifton is General Manager for the Defense & National Security Group at Intel Corporation.  He oversees all aspects of the business, including; sales, go to market, customer experience, and partner  relationships.  Greg has a proven track record of achieving strong business results and building high-performing teams.  

Greg has been working with the DOD and Intelligence Community sectors for the last 20 years to help them identify, understand, and maximize the intersection between the customer’s Mission and Intel’s Technology and Business priorities.  

Greg has a passion for the mission and the importance of assisting critical operations within the Defense & National Security sector.   Greg works closely with his military customers, system integrators, partner community, and Intel’s technical experts to ensure readiness and support of systems and platforms using Intel technology across a variety of advanced systems, including sensors, vehicles, planes, naval platforms and unmanned systems.  Key focus areas include: HPC, Cloud, AI, Edge, Cyber, and Client computing.  

Greg is a member of many professional organizations including AFCEA (current AFCEA DC Board Member), INSA, AUSA, Washington Exec, Executive Mosaic, and others.

Greg has 25 years of Sales and Business Development experience.  He joined Intel in 2000 as part of Intel Online Services and managed the Mid-Atlantic and Greater NY/NJ District.  He joined Intel’s Business Development Organization in late 2002.   Prior to joining Intel, Greg was a Regional Sales Manager for UUNET Technologies in their Web Hosting Division.  Greg is a graduate of Virginia Tech.

Michael Epley has been helping the US defense and National Security communities use and
adopt open source software over the last 2 decades with practical experience as a software
developer and enterprise architect. During his tenure at Red Hat, Michael has passionately
driven adoption of key technology: cloud and kubernetes, tactical edge/forward deployed
systems, data analytics tools and platforms, and disconnected operations -- always in the
context of security and compliance concerns unique to this sector. Michael has BS degrees in
Mathematics and Mechanical Engineering from Virginia Tech and a JD from The University of
Texas School of Law.

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