Hon. Sue Gordon, former Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence of the United States (2017-2019), maintains that innovation, adaptability, and belief in oneself are key to navigating professional challenges and helping organizations adapt to thrive in a rapidly changing world. On March 6th, 2025, Gordon spoke at the annual Kelleher Forum about the future of international security, leadership, and the role of intelligence in a digitally connected world.
The Kelleher Forum honors Catherine M. Kelleher, one of four founding faculty members of the School of Public Policy, the first director of the Center for International and Security Studies at Maryland (CISSM), and the driving force for the establishment of the Women in International Security network (WIIS), a networking organization.
CISSM Director Nancy Gallagher opened the event by highlighting how Kelleher responded to the fearmongering, conservatism, and anti-intellectualism of the early Reagan administration by creating institutions that would foster interdisciplinary research to inform public debates about security policy and include women’s expertise in those discussions. Gallagher recalled that “Catherine was truly fearless. If she saw something that needed to be done, she figured out a way to do it, even if nobody had ever done that type of thing before.”
Gallagher noted that Sue Gordon was the unanimous choice to be the Kelleher Forum speaker in the early months of the new Trump administration because she exemplifies Catherine’s approach to innovative leadership during times of adversity. “We can all benefit from learning from Sue how to maintain professional integrity and provide the best available information to decision-makers even when they do not seem open to intelligence that contradicts their pre-existing preference and views.”
Gordon began by underscoring the relevance of Kelleher’s vision for an inclusive and forward-thinking approach to security and governance. “[She] was ahead of her time and is exactly what we need now…she was indomitable.”
Gordon prepared untraditionally for a national security career by studying zoology in college, then started her intelligence career as a Soviet missile analyst in the 1980s. This beginning became a recurrent theme as Gordon’s remarks emphasized the importance of resilience and adaptability: “We as a nation have been through profound changes, and we have managed to get through all of them.” She urged policymakers and citizens alike to focus on outcomes rather than ideological divisions, advocating for a forward-thinking approach: “If you as a leader are always becoming, if society is always becoming, it will work out.”
Because the last seventy-five years have been characterized by relative peace and abundance in the United States, many Americans assume we can keep operating the way we have. Still, Gordon argued that a range of rapid changes demand innovation. She addressed the expanding role of non-governmental actors in security policy, the complexities of data abundance, and the evolving definitions of secrecy and intelligence in an open-source world. She also emphasized the importance of adapting to a growing threat surface, managing turbulence in foreign relations and global governance, and preparing for unpredictability in the next thirty years.
Gordon offered students practical lessons on leadership: “Own your space. Keep your nose down to be good; keep your head up to be successful. Spend no energy on things that are not in your control.” She encouraged them to embrace change and foster innovation, saying that the country and the world need leaders who are willing to let go of outdated beliefs and visualize the type of future they want, then reverse-engineer a roadmap back to the present.
“The biggest threat we face now is that we will stop believing in ourselves,” Gordon stated. “In hard times, it is only about who you are.”
Watch the 2025 CISSM Kelleher Forum featuring Sue Gordon here:
Honoring Catherine M. Kelleher
CISSM director Dr. Nancy Gallagher authored Catherine McArdle Kelleher – an Appreciation. Comments in remembrance are welcome.
Support the Catherine M. Kelleher Fellowship for International Studies, which continues to honor Kelleher’s inspirational legacy, funding an exceptional graduate student pursuing their master’s or doctoral degree at the School of Public Policy.
