When Kathleen Naeher accepted what she thought would be a “temporary” CIA job, the recent graduate had no idea what walking across that emblematic seal would mean for her future.
Nearly three decades, 70 countries and multiple leadership roles later, she’s still driven by the same forces that gripped her at 22: mission, passion for national security and a strong sense of purpose.
Today, Naeher is senior vice president and chief operating officer at The Aerospace Corp., leading the enterprise services workforce and integrating core functions that support mission partners.
It all began with a fortuitous interview.
An Unexpected Offer
Naeher was a junior at the University of Scranton studying mathematics, with minors in physics and computer science, when a CIA recruiter visited campus. She wasn’t interested in government work and assumed she’d join a tech company after graduation. A career counselor pushed her to interview for practice.
“After the interview, they were the first to offer me a job,” the Scranton native told WashingtonExec. “I took it because that was my whole goal of going to college — to get a job. But I still assumed it would be temporary.”
With a job already lined up, Naeher could also relax during her senior year. She planned on going to Washington, D.C., while continuing to figure out what she really wanted to do. That quickly changed.
“I fell in love with the agency on day one,” Naeher said. “You walk across the seal, you feel this sense of purpose just by being in the building and around the dedicated people who work there.”
Soon after starting, she deployed to Asia for six weeks to install and train users on a financial application she helped develop.
“I was hooked,” Naeher said. “Before I knew it, now it’s three decades later. I lived 10 years permanently overseas, visited dozens of countries and have had more opportunities than I ever had dreamed possible when I took the job so long ago.”
Her CIA roles included deputy chief information officer; deputy director of IT enterprise; chief of staff for the agency COO; chief of staff for the Directorate of Digital Innovation; and account executive for an Agency Mission Center. She spent her final assignment as associate deputy director for the Directorate of Digital Innovation.
During that time, she helped transform global IT, information systems and data operations; advanced cloud and AI efforts; and integrated cyber and data management initiatives.
The CIA also sponsored her two master’s degrees: a Master of Science degree in computer systems management from the University of Maryland and an MBA from George Mason University.
Naeher left the agency in 2021 with decades of experience and an even deeper commitment to mission.
Time for a Change
During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Naeher decided it was time for something new. She enjoyed her role as associate deputy director in the CIA’s newest directorate, but she wanted to test herself outside government.
“I had a desire and a little bit of a fear to see what it was like outside the government, outside of the intel community,” Naeher said.
She met with dozens of industry executives and former officers to understand her options. She knew she needed a mission-driven role, but she also wanted to step slightly outside the intelligence community.
That insight led her to Leidos, where she became COO of the civil group. The company took a chance on her leadership skills even though she had no P&L background. After a year and a half, Leidos reorganized and discontinued the civil group. Naeher shifted into the CIO office as vice president of digital engagement and collaboration. She enjoyed the role, but she missed COO work.
When the COO role at Aerospace opened, Naeher applied.
“I did not know much about Aerospace at all,” she said, but she did know about managing operations. She reached out to a colleague there who spoke highly of the company, and the rest is history.
Drawn to National Security
Naeher joined Aerospace in February 2025. While the industry was new to her, she felt an instant connection to its national security focus.
“National security has always been and will always be my passion and my priority,” she said. “The ability to work for a company that supports space exploration is a bonus.”
Her priority as COO is helping the enterprise services workforce understand its mission impact.
“The company couldn’t do their work without HR, without IT, without security, without getting paid, without having a facility to work in,” she said. “Those are all foundational things that enterprise services are responsible for.”
She’s focused on integrating enterprise services functions, breaking down silos and aligning objectives across the corporation. She’s also navigating shifting priorities under a new administration while keeping the focus on national security.
“We always will strive to provide that trusted knowledge and that technology to the government so that they can meet their mission regardless of what is going on with an administration,” she said. “To me, that’s both an opportunity and a challenge.”
With her tech background, she also sees opportunity in AI.
“AI is not something to be feared” she said. “It’s something to be utilized and managed.”
Aerospace excels technically, but Naeher sees trust as the differentiator.
“When I was in the government, what we needed in our contractors was trust — and that is what you get from Aerospace,” she said. “We need trust from both our internal mission partners here at Aerospace as an enterprise services organization, and from our external customers. When they give us something to do, they need to know we’re going to get it done.”
Naeher is building integrated teams across enterprise services to streamline support for internal and external missions.
Perspective-backed Innovation & Change
Her operational experience taught her to manage the full picture, not just a checklist.
“I might not necessarily see all the results of actions we are taking now, but we need to build that bigger strategic picture so that we keep sailing in that right direction,” Naeher said.
She also views risk differently. Instead of eliminating it, she focuses on mitigation and decision-making. Some situations require certainty; enterprise services often doesn’t.
“If a decision can be unmade easily or course corrected easily without impact to human life or loss of major resources, then it doesn’t need to be studied to get it perfect,” Naeher said. “I’m trying to instill that in enterprise services, so that we can move ahead at the speed necessary to meet our mission.”
Naeher is energized by where Aerospace is heading. She’s driven by its commitment to national security and the impact of its work, convinced that advancements in space exploration are making America safer and helping counter adversaries.
And that’s where her team comes in.
“That’s how we’re going to advance the mission — my team needs to know they are part of that mission,” Naeher said. “They’re the foundation for everything we do here; for all the technology, the great mission impacts that we have, the solutions we are bringing to our customers.”
The Reason Behind the Reason
For all her years in national security, Naeher’s deeper motivation comes from home. Her husband and children have been the steady force behind every tour, reinvention and leap into the unknown.
“Through all the jobs I’ve had, any awards I may have been given, I am most proud of my four children and how they have turned into young adults,” Naeher said. “When they tell me that they’re proud of me for working and for doing the things that I’ve accomplished at work, it reminds me why I do what I do.”
For her, the work is also about the world her children will inherit. National security isn’t abstract; it’s personal and generational.
“I am very grateful for my career and the opportunities I’ve had,” Naeher said.
All statements of fact, opinion, or analysis expressed are those of the author and do not reflect the official positions or views of the US Government. Nothing in the contents should be construed as asserting or implying US Government authentication of information or endorsement of the author’s views.