SAIC names senior VP of strategy

Nyla Beth Gawel joins Reston-based defense contractor

Published August 19, 2020 by Sydney Lake

Reston-based Fortune 500 defense contractor Science Applications International Corp. (SAIC) announced Tuesday it has hired Nyla Beth Gawel as senior vice president of strategy.

With more than two decades of experience, Gawel was most recently the director of public sector strategy with Verizon Business Group, where she led strategy and development for the company’s public sector business, with a focus on providing networks, products and services for federal, state, local, and education customers. In her new role, she will be responsible for developing the company’s strategy to drive growth by working with the organization’s leadership.

After earning her bachelor’s degree in foreign service and international politics from Georgetown University, Gawel began her career in 2000 as a contracted program analyst for the National Institute of Justice, before moving into a homeland security director position with G&H International Services LLC. Six years later, she was hired by Booz Allen Hamilton, where she eventually became vice president of the firm’s strategic innovation group.

“Nyla Beth’s experience and background as a strategy leader will be an enormous asset to SAIC as we drive organic growth and strengthen our capabilities to deliver digital transformation solutions to federal government customers,” Dee Dee Helfenstein, SAIC executive vice president and chief strategic growth officer, said in a statement.

SAIC employs more than 25,000 people and has pro forma annual revenues of $7.1 billion.