Ms. Karen Britton, Sr. Vice President

“The first step towards success is taken when you refuse to be a captive of the environment in which you first find yourself.”
- Mark Caine

Most people don't necessarily think about government as a potential small business incubator, but it's precisely this ability to upend traditional thinking which has enabled Karen Britton to create innovative programming and communication systems in environments as diverse as the Naval Sea Command to the White House.

It's difficult to overestimate the importance of a Mentor. Karen's unconventional journey as an industrial engineer was sparked by a conversation with her excellent high school teacher who encouraged her to consider taking a competency test for science and math. This course of study was not in her initial plans because Karen was considering her acceptance into the highly competitive Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Performing Arts where the musical “Fame” was filmed. However, the course of her life was changed when a counselor at the Midwood High School she attended suggested that Karen pursue engineering and helped her to apply to a summer program at the University of Massachusetts, the Minority Engineering Program. It was an amazing experience for a young woman who had limited experience beyond New York City. She eventually enrolled in the Engineering Program at the University of Massachusetts, graduating with a degree in Industrial Engineering and Operations Research.

A key component of Karen's career track has been utilizing the process of intelligent systems design to foster effective pathways for communication. Her background in industrial engineering, combined with a Master of Science in Management from Florida Institute of Technology have been providential assets in a career arc which spans providing technical and management coordination and system interfaces for the USS Virginia Class Submarines, to working with the Department of the Navy - Naval Sea Systems Command, where she was in charge of managing Command-wide IT operations at the NAVSEA Headquarters and affiliated Program Executive Offices.

A pivotal shift in career direction occurred when Karen joined e-Management in 2007. As a Program Manager for the firm, she gained valuable experience in the fundamentals of working in a fast paced and highly successful entrepreneurial environment. This proved to be an excellent launching pad for the next platform as the Deputy Chief Information Officer for the Executive Office of the President in the Obama administration and then commissioned as Special Assistant to the President, Chief Information Officer (CIO) for the Executive Office of the President. In these positions, her prior experience working in the government sector and private enterprise through e-Management enabled an effective, systematic approach to organization and implementation of effective communications networks through the use of new technologies like social media, thus expanding the role of government's communication with citizens.

Today, we take it for granted that our elected officials can communicate with us directly through Twitter and we can have windows of insight into the President's day through Flickr. Karen spearheaded this effort, along with the accompanying challenge of coordinating a complete architectural redesign of the White House website which integrated cloud computing through a secure network. The secure, cloud based systems was launched in three months resulting in the most scalable and flexible solution for handling and processing massive amounts of data with an unprecedented response level to citizens interacting with the President.

In her new role as a senior vice president and COO at e-Management, Karen relishes the challenge of strengthening key relationships in the government sector and will be assuming assignments which include the company's expansion in the Department of Defense (DoD), as well as federal, civilian, and intelligence agencies. In addition, she will be responsible for developing strategic corporate and commercial relationships, and marketing the company's newly released CyberRx tool. She is excited about the opportunity to innovate and develop within the forward thinking environment that e-Management provides.

Karen is a graduate of the Excellence in Government Fellows Program and is also a recipient of the Partnership for Public Service Leadership in Action, the National Women of Color in Technology Emerging Leaders award, and the Navy Meritorious Civilian Service awards. She continues to mentor and encourages young women to explore and expand the opportunities they have available to them, especially in considering service to the nation through the government and military. It was during her daughter's graduation that she heard the following quote. She has found these words to be true to living a fully expanded life.

“If your dreams don't scare you, they're not big enough.”  — Johnnetta B. Cole, former President of Spelman College and Director of the Smithsonian's National Museum of African Art

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