Close Menu
WashingtonExec
    Podcast Episodes
    LinkedIn Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube
    LinkedIn Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube
    WashingtonExec
    Subscribe To The Daily
    • News & Headlines
    • Executive Councils
    • Videos
    • Podcast
    • Events
      • 🏆 Chief Officer Awards
      • 🏆 Pinnacle Awards
    • About
    • Contact Us
    LinkedIn YouTube X (Twitter)
    WashingtonExec
    You are at:Home»Execs to Know»Top 25 Execs to Watch in 2020: NGA’s Robert Sharp
    Execs to Know

    Top 25 Execs to Watch in 2020: NGA’s Robert Sharp

    By Amanda ZiadehJanuary 16, 2020
    Share
    LinkedIn Facebook Twitter Email
    Vice Adm. Robert Sharp, NGA

    Vice Adm. Robert Sharp became the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency’s seventh director in February 2019, and leads the agency under the authorities of the secretary of defense and the director of national intelligence.

    And as a life-time sailor with more than 30 years in the Navy, he’s learned the path to success is through people and partnerships.

    “As someone who’s relied on [geospatial intelligence]every day of my career, it’s a tremendous honor and privilege for me to be serving as NGA’s seventh director,” Sharp said.

    On the day he became NGA director, Sharp promised the employees three things: to work hard each day to earn and maintain their trust; to fight for the resources they need to do the things the nation needs them to do; and to remove barriers preventing them from being successful.

    And since, he’s focused his leadership on “people first.”

    “Our mission is to provide timely and relevant geospatial intelligence to a wide range of customers, from policy makers to warfighters to first responders — a job we continue to improve upon every day through the strength of our people and our partnerships,” Sharp said.

    NGA exists to combine a detailed knowledge of the physical Earth with an understanding of the world to observe what’s happening where. And to do so under Sharp’s lead, the agency’s No. 1 priority is investing in its people.

    “They are the basis of our strength,” Sharp said.

    Since he stepped into director role, Sharp has focused on creating an environment where people want to stay on the team, where they are properly resourced, their families are taken care of and there are conditions for people to contribute, grow and succeed.

    “Coming to the close of my first year, I have a strong sense that team NGA has cultivated that environment and that the workforce has embraced our strategic goals and core values,” Sharp said.

    And while he can’t discuss all of his team’s accomplishes in 2019 because of the nature of the work, Sharp says he’s proud of the workforce.

    One significant achievement he can talk about is the World Magnetic Model update. Recently, NGA in partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the British Geological Survey released the World Magnetic Model 2020 update, providing essential navigational data for all military and civilian planes, ships, submarines and GPS units that operate around the clock and around the globe.

    And on Nov. 26, NGA broke ground on its future west headquarters in St. Louis, Missouri, beginning a new chapter for the agency.

    Why Watch:

    Many of the advances of NGA’s federal missions have come through its artificial intelligence, automation and augmentation efforts, or what the agency calls AAA.

    For example, NGA coordinated with the intelligence community and the United States Geological Survey — the lead federal agency for wild land fire management — to develop a new automated capability for the wildfire-fighting community.

    Because of this coordination and cooperation, as of April 1, the beginning of the California wildfire season, the wildfire-fighting community can now conduct anticipatory analysis of destructive and fast-moving wildfires.

    And going into 2020, AAA continues to be a focus area.

    “Our goal is to partner with machines so that we can make best use of the exponential growth in volume and source of data, letting machines do what machines do well and analysts do what analysts do even better — think critically and solve problems,” Sharp said. “This will allow us to provide critical intelligence faster, more accurately and with precision — all necessary to be better than our competitors.”

    NGA will also continue investing in its people and strengthening and expanding its partnerships across the full spectrum of GEOINT missions.

    See the rest of the 2020 Top 25 Execs to Watch list here.

    Previous ArticleThe Aerospace Corp. Awarded First Direct Contract by NNSA
    Next Article J.D. Kuhn Joins EverWatch as CFO

    Related Posts

    Lucy Martin Leads PingWind’s Strategic Shift Toward Mid-Tier Growth & Emerging Tech

    Top Health Care Execs to Watch in 2025: CGI’s Steven Sousa

    Top Health Care Execs to Watch in 2025: Guidehouse’s Sarah Garnett

    Comments are closed.

    LinkedIn Follow Button LinkedIn Logo Follow Us on LinkedIn
    2025 Chief Officer Awards - Winners Revealed
    Latest Industry Leaders

    Top Cyber Execs to Watch in 2025

    Top Chief Technology Officers to Watch in 2025

    Load More
    Latest Posts

    Lucy Martin Leads PingWind’s Strategic Shift Toward Mid-Tier Growth & Emerging Tech

    June 15, 2025

    2025 Chief Officer Awards Winner: B&A’s Jonathan Evans

    June 15, 2025

    2025 Chief Officer Awards Winner: Empower AI’s Pamela Rothka

    June 15, 2025

    Top Health Care Execs to Watch in 2025: CGI’s Steven Sousa

    June 15, 2025

    Top Health Care Execs to Watch in 2025: Guidehouse’s Sarah Garnett

    June 15, 2025
    Quick Links
    • Executive Councils & Committees
    • Chief Officer Awards
    • Pinnacle Awards
    • Advertise With Us
    • About WashingtonExec
    • Contact
    Connect
    • LinkedIn
    • YouTube
    • Facebook
    • Twitter

    Subscribe to The Daily

    Connect. Inform. Celebrate.

    Copyright 2023 © WashingtonExec, Inc. | All Rights Reserved. Powered by J Media Group

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.