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DISA Faces Personnel Shortage

Officials seek talent across an array of mission areas, including cyber.

Anthony “Tony” Montemarano, DISA executive deputy director, speaks about workforce challenges at TechNet Cyber. Photo by Michael Carpenter

Vice Adm. Nancy A. Norton, DISA director and commander of the JFHQ-DODIN, discusses DISA's workforce needs at TechNet Cyber. Photo by Michael Carpenter

The Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) is challenged with a significant personnel shortage, including information technology, spectrum and cybersecurity experts.

Vice Adm. Nancy A. Norton, DISA director and commander of the Joint Forces Headquarters-Department of Defense Information Network (JFHQ-DODIN), told the audience at the AFCEA TechNet Cyber 2019 conference in Baltimore that the agency is seeking to hire personnel in a number of areas.

VADM Nancy Norton, @USDISA director: Can I say we are hiring? We have a spot just waiting for you.#AFCEATechNet #AFCEACyber
— George Seffers (@gseffers) May 14, 2019

“We’re looking to hire the best and brightest minds who are interested in information technology, spectrum, telecommunications, computer and electronic engineering, cybersecurity, cyberspace operations, as well as IT contracting, finance, personnel, administration, physical security and even lawyers,” Adm. Norton reported during her luncheon keynote address on the first day of the May 14-16 conference. “I have a spot just waiting for you. Each day, our workforce at Fort Meade and at locations around the globe show their commitment and dedication to supporting our national defense. We always need talented people. It’s critical to us that we hire people committed to our mission.”

Anthony “Tony” Montemarano, DISA’s executive deputy director, made the same point in starker terms during an earlier presentation. “We have got an enormous number of vacancies within the agency. This gives plenty of opportunities for folks from industry to come. Anybody that’s unhappy out there, we’ve got a lot of jobs.”

Joking that he might get in trouble with the public affairs office, Montemarano suggested “enormous” might have been an overstatement. Still, he stressed the need for the agency to hire more people. “We’ve got a lot of vacancies. We’ve got opportunities,” he said.