Board of Directors

Mr. Ballhaus has significant experience in the aerospace, defense and technology industries, including multiple CEO roles. He previously served as Chairman and CEO of Blackboard, Inc., a leading EdTech company, from 2016 until its merger with Anthology in 2021. Prior to that, he served as CEO and President of SRA International, Inc., a provider of information technology services, from 2011 until the creation of CSRA Inc. from SRA and CSC’s U.S. public sector business. Before that, Mr. Ballhaus served as CEO and President of government contractor DynCorp International from 2008 to 2010. Mr. Ballhaus has also held senior leadership positions at BAE Systems, Boeing and Hughes, where he led global government and commercial technology businesses particularly focused on software and IT.

Mr. Ballhaus currently serves on several private company boards, including as Executive Chairman at Catalis, a provider of software and payments solutions for government customers, Executive Chairman at Elite, a vertical software business focused on the legal technology market, and on the Board of Directors of Qmulos, a leading cybersecurity and IT compliance company. He is also a senior advisor at PSG, a private equity firm focused on the software industry, and a Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Mr. Ballhaus joined the Board in 2022.

Mr. Ballhaus holds a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California, Davis and Master’s and Doctorate degrees in Aeronautics and Astronautics from Stanford University. He also earned a Master’s degree in Business Administration from the Anderson Graduate School of Management at UCLA.
 

Mr. Carvalho has over 38 years of experience in the aerospace and defense industry with Lockheed Martin. Before his retirement from Lockheed Martin in 2018, he was Executive Vice President of Lockheed Martin's Aeronautics business, a 24,000-employee enterprise. Mr. Carvalho held several integral leadership positions with Lockheed Martin, including Executive Vice President and General Manager of the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter program, President of Lockheed Martin Mission Systems & Sensors, and General Manager and Vice President of Surface-Sea Based Ballistic Missile Defense Systems.

Mr. Carvalho presently serves on the Board of Advisors for the University of Maryland Robert H. Smith School of Business and he is an Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. 

Mr. DeMuro currently serves as Co-CEO of Eve Air Mobility, a producer of eVTOL aircraft and urban air mobility infrastructure. From 2014 to 2020, Mr. DeMuro served as President and CEO of BAE Systems, Inc., the U.S.-based subsidiary of BAE Systems PLC, a provider of some of the world’s most advanced, technology-led defense, aerospace and security solutions. From 1999 to 2013, he held several roles of increasing responsibility at General Dynamics, a global aerospace and defense company, including Executive Vice President and Corporate Vice President of Information Systems & Technology. Earlier in his career, Mr. DeMuro held roles at GTE Corporation (now part of Verizon Communications) and the U.S. Department of Defense.

Mr. DeMuro previously served on the Board of Directors of BAE Systems plc, BAE Systems, Inc. and Zanite.
 

Ms. Disbrow retired as the U.S. Senate-confirmed Under Secretary of the Air Force in 2017, responsible for the affairs of the Air Force, including organizing, training, equipping, and providing for the welfare of approximately 660,000 active duty, Guard, Reserve and civilian Airmen, worldwide. She oversaw the Air Force’s annual budget of over $132 billion dollars and directed strategy and policy development, risk management, weapons requirements and acquisition, technology investments, and human resource management across a global enterprise. Ms. Disbrow served as the Acting Secretary of the Air Force from January through May 2017. In 2014, Ms. Disbrow was confirmed by the Senate as the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Financial Management and Comptroller, the principal senior official on all financial matters with a financial workforce of 10,000 personnel world-wide. She served in multiple senior positions on the Joint Staff and on the National Security Council at the White House. Ms. Disbrow was commissioned into the U.S. Air Force in 1985 and retired in 2008 as a Colonel with over 23 years of total active and reserve service.

Mr. Krone served as the Chairman and CEO at Leidos, a leading Fortune 500 science and technology company focused on the software, hardware and complex integrated system solutions of large- and small-scale defense, civil and health applications, from 2014 until his retirement in 2023. Mr. Krone spent over 15 years at Boeing, where he served in several leadership positions, including President of its Network & Space Systems business, and was previously a Vice President at McDonnell Douglas Corporation, which was later acquired by Boeing. Mr. Krone began his career at General Dynamics Corporation.

Mr. Krone currently serves on the Board of Directors of Lear Corporation. He previously served on the Board of Directors of BorgWarner and United Launch Alliance.

Mr. Lance is currently Managing Partner at Lance Advisors LLC, an advisory firm serving private equity and institutional investors. He serves as non-executive Chairman of Summit Materials, a leading provider of aggregates and cement, and as non-executive Chairman of Change Healthcare, a leading provider of healthcare information technology and services. He also serves as a Director of New Vista Acquisition Corporation, a SPAC focused on emerging technologies in aerospace, defense and logistics, and as non-executive Chairman of privately-held Covanta Energy LLC, a leading provider of sustainable environmental solutions.

He previously served on the public-company boards of Ferrovial S.A., Eastman Chemical Company, Stryker Corporation, and Aviat Networks. 

Mr. Lance was President and Chief Executive Officer of Maxar Technologies, Inc., a leading provider of space technology solutions including satellites, robotics, geospatial imagery and services from 2016 to 2019. Previously, he was Executive Advisor – Private Equity at the Blackstone Group from 2012 to 2016. He served as Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Harris Corporation (now L3Harris), a leading global provider of communications and information technology products, software, systems and services to government, defense and commercial markets, from 2003 to 2012. He was Co-President of NCR Corporation and Chief Operating Officer of its Retail and Financial Group from 2001 to 2002. Previously, he spent 17 years at Emerson Electric Company including as Executive Vice President of its Electronics and Telecom businesses, Group President of its Climate Technologies businesses, and Chief Executive Officer of Astec PLC, a UK-listed subsidiary based in Hong Kong.
 

Mr. Nearhos has over 35 years of experience with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) providing assurance, business advisory, and other services to clients across multiple industries, including technology, life sciences, telecom, and manufacturing. Before his retirement from PwC in June 2015, Mr. Nearhos was Market Managing Partner for PwC's Northeast region, responsible for directing the strategy and operations of the firm's Boston, Hartford, and Albany offices. During his tenure, he also served as the leader of PwC's Northeast Assurance practice, a position he held from 2005 until 2008, and as a partner in PwC's Assurance practice from 1989 to 2015. He was a director of Virtusa Corporation, a publicly-traded IT services and outsourcing company, from 2016 until its acquisition by private equity in 2021.

Ms. Plunkett's previous National Security Agency (NSA) positions include Director of Information Assurance from April 2010 to November 2014 and Deputy Director of Information Assurance from August 2008 to April 2010, where she led the agency's information assurance/cyber defense mission and directed thousands of NSA professionals worldwide. She also conceived and established the National Cyber Security Assistance Program to qualify commercial organizations for accreditation in performing cyber security services for national security systems, and advised Executive Branch decision- makers, including the National Security Council, on cyber issues. Most recently, Ms. Plunkett was the first person to serve in the newly established position of Senior Advisor to the NSA Director, from November 2014 to January 2016, with a focus on enhancing equality, diversity, and inclusion for the agency's highly technical workforce.

A highly credentialed professional, Ms. Plunkett received the Distinguished Service Medal and Exceptional Civilian Service Award from the NSA Director. She was awarded the Rank of Distinguished Executive by President Barack Obama, and the Rank of Meritorious Executive by President George W. Bush. As a recognized expert in national security, she has appeared on CBS/60 Minutes and Federal News Radio, been interviewed in the Washington Post, and given keynote addresses at high-profile cyber security and defense conferences.

Ms. Plunkett serves on the corporate boards of CACI International, Nationwide Insurance and BlueVoyant, and is a founding member and Chairman of the Board of Defending Digital Campaigns, a non-profit entity focused on providing free or low-cost cybersecurity services to federal election campaigns. Ms. Plunkett also serves on the New York State Cybersecurity Advisory Board and on the Board of Visitors of Towson University.