The 82nd Airborne of the U.S. Army earned the nickname “All American” because of its deep roots from across the country. Their charter has them deploy within 18 hours and “drop in” to save the day. Darby LaJoye, a veteran of the 82nd Airborne, continues that tradition in his career in and out of government. LaJoye is currently the Vice President and Strategic Account Executive for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security at Leidos.
LaJoye’s 30-year service at DHS and the Department of Defense, his tremendous work developing and implementing TSA’s Outcome Focused Security model, and his continued understanding and work in the convergence of cyber and physical security makes him an excellent trailblazer. Since joining Leidos, he has continued his steadfast commitment to giving back and supporting mission on an even larger scale. Before joining Leidos, LaJoye served as the Executive Assistant Administrator for Security Operations at the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) for nearly 5 years. Tasked with all of the agency’s global counterterrorism and security operations, he led a workforce of more than 60,000 employees, directing the strategy and implementation of technology and countermeasures to protect global critical infrastructure. Prior to this, he was Security Director at two of the nation’s largest airports: Los Angeles International Airport in California and John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York.
But this is not what makes LaJoye a trailblazer. His expertise and focus developed around one of the most critical security areas: the convergence of physical security and cybersecurity. He has curated his expertise to understand this complex and constantly evolving area of convergence, strategically and operationally. His expertise is now constantly in demand as both government and industry face the challenges of artificial intelligence, “smart” everything, and technological advancements at a pace difficult to wrap one’s head around. We all feel much more secure following in this trailblazer’s path.