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Cindy Sturm |
From the Gulf Coast to the Mid-Atlantic—Some
Insights from Three Sites
Cindy Sturm
June 2007
For staff who want a change of scenery, MITRE offers many opportunities
with its 60 sites around the world and a continually evolving work
program. MITRE's Cindy Sturm took one such opportunity in 2002 when
she requested a transfer from the Tampa, Fla., site to the Washington,
D.C., area. She and her husband (also a MITRE employee) hoped the
move would result in less work-related travel and allow them to
achieve a better work/life balance. Since then, Sturm has worked
at MITRE's Bolling Air Force Base site in Washington, D.C., and
is now the site leader and associate department head of Defense
Intelligence Information Systems at MITRE's Clarendon, Va., site.
Sturm began her MITRE career at the Tampa site in 1988. At the
time, she was living in St. Petersburg but knew of the company from
when she was a government employee at Rome Labs in Rome, NY. "I
knew of the high caliber of MITRE staff and thought it would be
a great place to work," she says.
During her tenure at MITRE, Sturm has worked on a variety of projects
in a number of different technical areas. "I think the most interesting
projects have been those activities where the work we do directly
impacts our Department of Defense customers' business effectiveness,"
she says. "A good example is a project I supported called Collaborative
Contingency Targeting—it changed the timeline and methods
for targeting on the battlefield."
Sturm also appreciates MITRE's commitment to working in the public
interest. "It is clear that the staff is committed to improving
and supporting our customers' goals and objectives."
The opportunity to participate in collaborative projects is another
aspect of the company Sturm appreciates. "My favorite project was
one I worked on a few years ago," she explains. "Christine Eliopoulos
[a MITRE principal engineer] and I were co-principal investigators
on a MITRE research project called Collaboration Techniques for
Coalition Teams [CT2]. We worked on the project in concert with
NATO personnel and tested it during a NATO military exercise called
Strong Resolve 2002."
The goal of CT2 was to give members of coalition forces the ability
to use instant messaging for secure, long-distance communications—even
if they spoke in different languages. "I enjoyed working with the
NATO staffs and their systems—it was a challenging project
that had a direct benefit to the customer," she adds.
A Three-Site Perspective
As a veteran of three MITRE sites, Sturm has a unique perspective
into working at MITRE. Currently, approximately 20 percent of MITRE"s
staff work at a site. At most of them, MITRE staff work side-by-side
with their government sponsors. At Clarendon, the sponsor is the
Defense Intelligence Agency's Directorate for Measurement and Signature
Intelligence (MASINT) and Technical Collection and the Directorate
for Human Intelligence. Additional MITRE staff support these two
directorates at three other government sites in the Northern Virginia
area.
MITRE's Clarendon, Virginia site
Located 10 miles from MITRE's McLean corporate headquarters,
an 11-person staff provides on-site support to the Clarendon
site sponsors: the DIA's Directorate for Measurement
and Signature Intelligence (MASINT) and Technical Collection
(DT) and the Directorate for Human Intelligence (HUMINT).
This work also includes three other Northern Virginia
sites and 12 additional full-time staff. |
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As the site leader in Clarendon, Sturm has a number of responsibilities
beyond her technical work. She oversees the work program that is
conducted on site and at three other Northern Virginia sites for
the sponsor and handles a variety of site administrative activities
(office space issues, security clearances, and so on). In addition,
she spends a portion of her time supporting the National Consortium
for MASINT Research.
When asked if she preferred working at one site over another, Sturm
replies, "No, I don't have a favorite. I feel like my work has always
been interesting and different and that each site holds its own
positives." Having said that, Sturm admits there are differences
among the locations. "The Tampa site provided much less of the corporate
feel that working in the McLean area has."
Being so close to corporate headquarters has had its own unique
advantages. "I've found that being only 10 miles from the McLean
campus provides many opportunities to participate in company activities,
classes, and social and technical events. Yet we have the benefit
of 'living' in the customer's space, which gives us a better connection
to the day-to-day running of their business."
Proximity to Washington, D.C.
Looking back on her move from Florida, Sturm is glad she had the
opportunity to relocate and has found many benefits to being in
the Washington, D.C., area. "I like diversity of activities here
and I appreciate the plethora of national history. I also enjoy
the top-notch music and theatre in the area. Another benefit to
being in the D.C. metro area is that I travel less than I did when
I was in Tampa," she says. "On the down side, there is much more
traffic here."
Having achieved a better work/life balance, Sturm enjoys a number
of hobbies including golfing, skiing, scuba diving and visiting
the many sights in the D.C. metropolitan area. Her experience is
a good example of why Fortune magazine named MITRE number
five in the top 10 companies that encourage employees to balance
their work and home lives.
—by Kay M. Upham
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