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NGA Director Letitia A. Long on Tuesday afternoon hosted a retirement ceremony for GEOINT visionary Rob Zitz at NGA’s soon-to-be-officially-former headquarters in Bethesda, MD. The event was well attended by current and retired senior leaders from the government, military and industry, to include Director of National Intelligence James R. Clapper Jr.

Rob retired after more than 31 years of dedicated government service to the nation, rising from the ranks of an Army Intelligence intern to such positions as Deputy Under Secretary for Preparedness for the Department of Homeland Security and the Deputy Associate Director of the United States Secret Service.

USGIF President Keith Masback (right) acted as the Master of Ceremonies on Tuesday to celebrate over 31 years of government service by Rob Zitz (left)

He had a unique and diverse career, rising rapidly through the civilan ranks of Army intelligence, and then serving in senior executive roles at Army, NIMA, NGA, NSA, DHS, Secret Service, and NRO. Although trained as an all-source analyst, the continual improvement of GEOINT capabilities has been a constant theme throughout his many assignments. Whether it was using GEOINT in an all-source context to support Army’s Delta Force, leading R&D at NGA, developing a common operating picture at DHS, or ensuring NRO and NGA stayed fully synchronized, Rob was known for his vision and passion and action-oriented approach.

With all of that said, there seemed to be universal agreement during the ceremony and in the discussion afterwards, that Rob’s most critical lasting legacy may well be his devotion to developing the next generation of Intelligence Community leaders. He continuously mentored and developed young minds and inspired everyone he has come in contact with. Rob Zitz is truly a leader among leaders in the GEOINT community.

Fortunately, Rob will remain in our community. He has taken a position as Senior Vice President and Chief Systems Architect at SAIC, a USGIF Strategic Partner company.

Tags: GEOINT and Rob Zitz, Letitia Long, National Geospatial Intelligence Agency, NGA, Rob Zitz, USGIF and Rob Zitz