Juniper Networks lands Defense Information Systems Agency’s former CTO
The Defense Information Systems Agency's recently departed chief technology officer has joined Juniper Networks' federal division, the company announced Tuesday.
The Defense Information Systems Agency’s recently departed chief technology officer has joined Juniper Networks’ federal division, the company announced Tuesday.
David Mihelcic — who served in government for about 31 years — fielded the Navy’s first firewall, helped start its information security program and led work on the Global Information Grid Bandwidth Expansion program that increased the capacity of the Defense Department’s networks. He left government earlier this month.
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“Obviously we understand that he brings value on day one,” said Tim Solms, vice president for U.S. federal and managing director for worldwide government at Juniper Networks, in an interview with FedScoop. Solms said Mihelcic brings an “incredible background” to Juniper, which sells IT networking products.
“One of the interesting things about Dave is, for SES just coming out he’s not just hired for his resume, but because he’s been such a powerful voice in shaping the breadth of technology, understanding emerging technology — that really is his value,” he said. “So it’s not just a, bring on a senior member of the government, understand their connections. … This really is about us getting … an executive who’s bringing capability to what it is that we do.”
Juniper hasn’t settled on Mihelcic’s official title yet. But near-term Solms said they want to make sure the former CTO “has a chance to absorb where we are with the technology but also to meet with the executive teams across the company” to look at where the company is, where it wants to be disruptive and how it is differentiating itself.
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“The fact of the matter is, he started yesterday, and he brought value to the organization on day one,” Solms said.
Solms said he and Mihelcic are working “side-by-side,” and added that they had already discussed the company’s federal strategy.
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“At Juniper, Mihelcic will have full visibility into the future technology roadmap and product development and will provide counsel on infrastructure modernization initiatives with a primary focus on network security,” the announcement reads.
