Ms. Stokes is a retired Senior Executive with over 41 years of experience in the DoD intelligence and security communities. She served the U.S. Army and the U.S. Navy, the U.S. Special Operations Command, the Missile Defense Agency and the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency. Her experience transcends all disciplines of security. She was responsible for the implementation of the federal background investigation mission within the Department of Defense as it transferred from the National Background Investigations Bureau under the Office of Personnel Management. While serving as the Senior Security Advisor and Director of Security for the U.S. Army, she pioneered the development and execution of the Continuous Evaluation Program which transformed the background investigation process for the federal government.  She was the recipient of the Presidential Rank Award in 2015 among other honors throughout her career.  She is currently serving on Advisory Boards and as a senior consultant to several Defense Contractor organizations.