Susan Lawrence

Lieutenant General (Ret.) Susan Lawrence, a leader in defense information technology and communications systems and a former Army CIO/G-6, now heads up AFCEA International. Prior to joining the AFCEA staff, she served as a managing director, national security practice, Accenture Federal Services (AFS). At AFS, Gen. Lawrence was responsible for supporting AFS clients in developing and executing technology transformation and mission-support strategies that are designed to deter, deflect and defeat today’s evolving threats. She brought extensive knowledge and experience in fielding new communications and wireless systems, electronic platforms and advanced technology to the warfighter. Prior to her work at AFS, Gen. Lawrence was senior vice president at Booz Allen Hamilton in the Defense Market Group, helping lead business initiatives in the defense and security markets.

As the Army’s CIO/G-6, Gen. Lawrence managed the defense enterprise systems, IT infrastructure, Command and Control (C4) solutions and advanced technology used by the military warfighter and the supporting civilian workforce. Additionally, she helped develop the U.S. Army Cyber Command and worked directly with senior staff members—including the Secretary of the Army and the Chief of Staff of the Army—to reduce costs and improve the effectiveness of cyber and other IT solutions.

Gen. Lawrence also served as the commanding general for the Army’s Network Enterprise Technology Command (NETCOM), where her responsibilities included overseeing the Army C4 and Army Enterprise IT functions. During her extensive career in the Army, she had operational assignments in Europe, South Korea, Southwest Asia, the United States, and led network, C4 and IT functions during military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.

She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology from Campbell University in North Carolina, a Master’s degree in information systems management from the University of Georgia and honorary doctorates in science from Dakota State University and humane letters from Campbell University.