Geost Appoints Former DOD Acquisition Chief Ellen Lord to Board of Directors

Geost, a space surveillance sensor company, has appointed former Department of Defense acquisition chief Ellen Lord to its board of directors.

Geost said that Lord will provide insights to help the company expand its research and development efforts and production operations.

Lord, a speaker at a past Potomac Officers Club event, most recently served as the undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, Geost said Wednesday.

In the said role, she reported to the secretary of defense for matters related to acquisition, developmental testing, contract administration, logistics, materiel readiness and the defense industrial base, according to the DOD.

Lord previously served as the president and CEO of Textron Systems, a multi-industry company with divisions in aviation, defense, finance and others.

She helped Textron grow its business with the defense, homeland security, aerospace and infrastructure security sectors, Geost said.

Lord currently uses her experience in the defense industry to provide advisory services on several industry and government boards.

According to the DOD, Lord served as vice chairman of the National Defense Industrial Association, director of the U.S.-India Business Council and as a steering committee member on task forces led by the Center for New American Security.

In 2020, POC’s parent organization, Executive Mosaic, presented Lord her fourth Wash100 award in recognition of her leadership in the government contracting sector.

Executive Mosaic highlighted Lord’s contributions to securing the defense supply chain and accelerating the DOD’s procurement process.

Lord earned a master’s degree in chemistry from the University of New Hampshire and a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Connecticut College.