AFCEA's Past, Present, Future

In April, the chapter hosted a luncheon featuring guest speaker Joseph Sifer, AFCEA International's chairman of the board, at Arrowhead Country Club in Montgomery, Alabama. He spoke to a full house of military, industry and government personnel on the topic of AFCEA International's "Past, Present and Future." Sifer opened by discussing some of the challenges AFCEA was experiencing when Lt. Gen. Robert M. Shea, USMC (Ret.), became president and CEO. AFCEA had diluted its focus on chapters and regions in the United States with an overly aggressive international expansion, stretching AFCEA too thin. Sifer explained how Gen. Shea set about correcting this, right-ending strained financials and refocusing efforts on the regions and chapters around the nation, recognizing the tremendous talent at the local level. Gen. Shea, his team and members of the board recognized the need to address these challenges and did, refocusing on core AFCEA capabilities. They now are aggressively looking into ways to leverage and advance the areas of information warfare, defense intelligence and cyber synergies. Gen. Shea and the AFCEA headquarters team are focusing on growing the chapters and individual members by developing a collective, collaborative network of technical professionals. The luncheon also served as an opportunity for the chapter to recognize some of its longtime outstanding members, including Master Sgt. Brianna Oberg, USAF, and Master Sgt. Carlton Young, USAF, who both received the AFCEA 40 Under 40 Award. The chapter thanks Sifer for sharing his insights into AFCEA International's vision and future.

Event Photographs: