“A man who trusts nobody is apt to be the kind of man nobody trusts.” In this episode, I interview Colonel Billy Pope, Chief of the Future Operations Division at United States Cyber Command. We talk about his recently earned opportunity to serve at the next level of command, how to develop a culture of trust at multiple levels within an organization, and how academia has positively shaped his leadership style both as a student and as an instructor.
Background
Colonel Billy E. Pope is a Cyber Warfare Operations Officer and a National Security Strategist in the United States Air Force. He received his commission with the Air Force in June of 2001 after completing a Bachelor of Science degree in computer science at the University of Redlands. Military missions have since taken him to more than 30 countries and nearly every U.S. state. He deployed in support of combat operations to Iraq, Afghanistan, Qatar, and several other locations supporting U.S. Special Operations in the Middle East. He is currently assigned the Chief of the Future Operations Division at United States Cyber Command.
Colonel Pope’s academic background includes a Masters of Science in Military Strategy from National War College, a Masters of Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School, a Masters of Human Relations from the University of Oklahoma, and a Masters of Philosophy in Military Strategy from the Air Force’s School of Advanced Air and Space Studies. He is published in professional military strategy journals where he writes about the geopolitical ramifications of cyberspace and cyber warfare. In addition to his work in the military, he has also
served as a Teaching Assistant on Harvard’s Public Leadership Credential staff and as a member of the teaching team for the Kennedy School’s Jan Term class: Persuasion: The Art and Science of Effective Influence.
Colonel Pope’s most recent military assignments have taken him to National War College at Fort McNair, Washington, DC, and the Pentagon where he served on the Air Force’s Headquarters Staff as the Chief of the Cyberspace Strategy Branch and the Executive Officer to the Air Force’s Chief of Information Dominance. He has proudly led Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, and Airmen in the United States and abroad in support of America’s national security priorities.
Colonel Pope married his amazing wife, Amanda, in June of 2001. Together, they are the grateful parents of two awesome kids. Abbey is 14, Tyler is 12, and both are ready to take on the world.