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| Diane Hanf |
Transitioning from the Military to MITRE: In
Search of the Right Work-life Balance
Diane Hanf
November 2003
When Diane Hanf was ready to leave the Air Force after 23 years
of service, she knew she wanted to both further her career in computer
and system engineering and attain the right work-life balance. She
found what she was looking for at MITRE's Center for Air Force Command
and Control Systems.
Hanf, now a senior multidiscipline systems engineer, had enlisted
in the Air Force after high school, won a military scholarship to
attend Oklahoma State University, completed her degree in computer
engineering, and became an officer. Over the course of her military
career, she held a variety of positions starting out as an instructor
for a communications maintenance course and becoming an analyst
using modeling and simulation tools in support of strategic campaign
planning. She later became the flight test engineer and test director
for bomber (B-52, B-1B and B-2) electronic combat systems. She also
managed the network technical support team that built network solutions
for base support functions. In her last position with the Air Force,
she led a division of 10 technical consultants that helped Electronic
Systems Center (ESC) program offices develop and implement test
strategies for software-intensive combat operations systems.
Hanf was able to use her extensive knowledge of Air Force systems
when she began working on a MITRE team for the ESC Combat Operations
Architecture Council. "Most of the similarity between what I do
now and what I did in my Air Force career was in my last assignment
at Hanscom Air Force Base in Test and Evaluation (T&E) Planning,"
she explains. "I deal with mostly the same systems, except now I
see more technical detail and system-of-system breadth than I did
in T&E Planning."
"Systems engineering and architecture are my passions now," she
adds. "I find it very rewarding to show customers how implementing
a good architecture can solve their systems engineering problems."
This enthusiasm and commitment to her work earned Hanf's a MITRE
Program Recognition Award in June 2003—the award recognized
her contributions to a team helping the Air Force establish a blueprint
for its next-generation command and control, reconnaissance, intelligence
and surveillance information systems. The team developed and presented
an integrated framework for visualizing the Air Force's future information
architecture and its capabilities.
Happy with her project work, Hanf is also very appreciative of
the flexibility MITRE offers. "Before I came here, I had a number
of good opportunities, but only MITRE offered the balance I needed,"
she says. "With a young son at home, I wanted flexibility in my
work situation. A good work-life balance is extremely important
for me and my family."
In addition, Hanf praises MITRE's commitment to the ongoing professional
development of its staff. "I've found that if you want to grow in
a particular area your colleagues and managers are very supportive
of your career and educational goals," she says. "I hope to begin
the MITRE-Johns Hopkins University Masters in Systems Engineering
Program when a new class starts here in Bedford. What a great opportunity!
Imagine being able to attend class right downstairs. It's exactly
these types of opportunities that make MITRE such a great place
to work."
—by Kay M. Upham
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