Chairman of the Foundation Board
Chairman and CEO
Leonardo DRS

William J. Lynn III serves as the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Leonardo DRS, a leading mid-tier defense technology company listed on the Nasdaq. Mr. Lynn has had an extensive career in national security, both in government and in industry. In government, he has served two Presidents, five Secretaries of Defense and as an aide to Senator Edward Kennedy. In industry, he has worked as a senior executive for Raytheon and now Leonardo DRS.

Prior to joining Leonardo DRS in January 2012, Mr. Lynn was the 30th United States Deputy Secretary of Defense from 2009 to 2011. Serving under Secretaries Robert Gates and Leon Panetta, his role was that of Chief Operating Officer managing three million personnel and overseeing an annual budget of over $700 billion.

From 2002 to 2009, Mr. Lynn was Senior Vice President of Government Operations and Strategy at the Raytheon Company. In this position, he directed strategic planning, oversaw merger and acquisition activities and supervised government relations.

Previously, he served in the Department of Defense from 1993 until 2001 as first the Director of Program Analysis and Evaluation (PA&E) and then the Chief Financial Officer and Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller).

Mr. Lynn worked for Senator Edward Kennedy as counsel to the Senate Armed Services Committee from 1987 to 1993. He was instrumental in the passage of several important pieces of legislation, including the Military Childcare Act of 1989, which established childcare as a benefit for military families, and the 1991 bill that repealed the longstanding ban on women flying in combat.

A graduate of Dartmouth College, Mr. Lynn holds a JD from Cornell Law School and a Master’s degree in International Affairs from the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs.