PEO EIS holds final change of charter for Defensive Cyber Operations

Program Executive Office Enterprise Information Systems (PEO EIS) held a change of charter ceremony July 21 for its Defensive Cyber Operations (DCO) project management office.

Describing the occasion as “bittersweet,” PEO EIS Program Executive Officer Ross Guckert noted it was the last such ceremony the acquisition organization would be holding for DCO before it moves this fall to its new home at Program Executive Office Intelligence, Electronic Warfare and Sensors (IEW&S). IEW&S’s new program executive officer, Brig. Gen. Ed Barker, attended the DCO change of charter ceremony, as did new Army Chief Information Officer Leonel Garciga.

Guckert presented outgoing DCO Project Manager Col. Mark Taylor with the Legion of Merit and the Order of Thor for his outstanding work spearheading the Army’s first and only Budget Authority (BA)-08 pilot effort for the DOD and for enabling the Army to readily respond to unexpected and dynamic cyberspace challenges.

Taylor, who came to PEO EIS from the Army Budget Office, has a “a knack for welcoming challenge, adapting and excelling,” said Guckert, adding that Taylor was a “driving force in the rapid delivery of innovative and dominating cyber capabilities for our Soldiers, as well as tailored solutions for national, joint and allied partner nations.”

Among other successes under Taylor’s leadership, DCO delivered the Deployable Defense Cyberspace System – Modular and garrison kits, continued the development of the Army’s Big Data Platform, established the Forge and Armory, delivered cyber capability and tools to cyber defenders and was a critical enabler for the Army’s Unified Network. By overseeing DCO’s BA-08 pilot, Taylor was instrumental in allowing DCO to be responsive to threats and to execute in Agile fashion — serving as a model for the entire Army, said Guckert.

Taylor is returning to the Army Budget Office for his next assignment as the liaison to the Congressional Appropriations Committee.

Guckert presented the DCO charter to new Project Manager Bob Zoppa, who recently returned to PEO EIS from Senior Service College at the National Defense University. Zoppa previously served as deputy project manager for PEO EIS’s Defense Integrated Business Systems portfolio, noted Guckert, as well as helped develop the Global Combat Support System – Army program. Zoppa also worked for the Army Space Command, supported Army Knowledge Online and had a 20-year active-duty military career.

“We’re incredibly fortunate to have such an accomplished leader back on our team,” said Guckert.

The full DCO change of charter ceremony can be watched on PEO EIS’s YouTube channel.