Secretary Flournoy Discusses Women in Defense
March 25, 2010
By Christen N. McCluney

The Pentagon Channel recently sat down with Michèle Flournoy, Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, to discuss the role of women in the Department of Defense. Flournoy highlighted the progress that has been made and the hope she has for the future of women within the DoD.

“We’ve made a tremendous amount of progress from the 1990’s,” she said. “During that time if you invited all the senior woman of the Pentagon to have lunch you could probably fit them at a small table, now you’d fill a large dining room.”

One of her goals is to reach out and educate women on careers in defense. She said a key way to do that is through exposure and allowing people to see that defense is a field that welcomes women.

“The more visible women become the more other women will be attracted to the field,” she added.

She also cites mentorship as an important part of being successful. “I’m very conscious of what I gained from my mentors and I try to spend some time giving back and instilling that value of mentorship in my mentees.”

Flournoy also believes that in the next generation every door will be open for women in the military and by welcoming them the talent pool will grow by 100 percent.

“You see the walls coming down and you see a vanguard of women at multiple levels who are just paving the way for those who will follow.”

She also encourages women to follow their dreams and sense of calling and don’t take no for an answer in their careers.

When asked who inspires her she said that some of her greatest inspiration comes from women in uniform.

“They are so impressive. I think we should be tremendously proud of their contributions and grateful for those contributions every day,” she added.