Defense Information Systems Agency Director Lt. Gen. Ronnie Hawkins Jr. expects to retire by the end of 2015.
The agency is going through a major reorganization during 2015, "as I finish up my time as a director here, and I believe that's going to happen in this calendar year," he said during a panel discussion on the agency's future Monday, Jan. 12.
A DISA spokesman confirmed that Hawkins plans to step down as director and retire from military service sometime this year.
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"I do not know when and I do not know who will be replacing me," Hawkins said. "But I can smell the finish line at least, if I can't see it right now."
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Hawkins was appointed as DISA director in January 2012. He previously served as deputy director of C4 for the Joint Staff at the Pentagon after rising through the ranks of the Air Force.
The lieutenant general is the recipient of the Defense Superior Service Medal, the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star Medal, the Defense Meritorious Service Medal and the Meritorious Service Medal.
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Hawkins said the agency's current reorganization and advancements in cloud and mobile computing planned over the next year will leave DoD well positioned for the future.
"By the end of this calendar year we should be solidly ensconced in this organization [model] such that we are working at cyber speed for where we want to go," he said.
Aaron Boyd is an awarding-winning journalist currently serving as editor of Federal Times — a Washington, D.C. institution covering federal workforce and contracting for more than 50 years — and Fifth Domain — a news and information hub focused on cybersecurity and cyberwar from a civilian, military and international perspective.
