WASHINGTON, November 15, 2021: The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) is pleased to announce that Dr. Cynthia R. Cook, formerly a senior management scientist at the RAND Corporation, has joined CSIS as senior fellow and director of the Defense-Industrial Initiatives Group (DIIG).
“We are delighted to welcome Cynthia to CSIS,” said Dr. John J. Hamre, CSIS president and CEO. “Her leadership will enhance the unmatched strategic analysis of the global defense industry that DIIG has come to be known for.”
Dr. Cook joins CSIS after 24 years at RAND. Her recent research focuses on improving space technology acquisition for the U.S. Space Force. She previously served as director of the Acquisition and Technology Policy Center within the RAND National Security Research Division, which conducts research and analysis for the U.S. military and allied forces on every warfighting domain: space, air, ground, sea, and cyber. She led and worked on a range of studies for the U.S. Department of Defense, Australia, and the United Kingdom on subjects including defense acquisition policy and organization, cost analysis, defense industrial base, weapon systems production and sustainment, and contracting practices.
In addition, Dr. Cook’s research leadership provided support for the government of Puerto Rico in developing its congressionally mandated hurricane economic and disaster recovery plan, as well as the publication of 20 analytical reports on recovery efforts across all sectors. She also led the implementation research for the 2010 RAND report Sexual Orientation and U.S. Military Personnel Policy, which contributed to the elimination of Don't Ask Don't Tell. While at RAND, Dr. Cook also served several years as the associate director of Project AIR FORCE.
“Dr. Cook is a first-rate scholar with several decades of experience leading research and analysis on defense acquisition policy and the defense industrial base,” said Dr. Seth G. Jones, director of the CSIS International Security Program. “She has also worked extensively on research projects with senior officials in the U.S. Department of Defense and U.S. allies.”
“I am honored to be joining the International Security Program at CSIS as director of the Defense-Industrial Initiatives Group. As peer and near-peer adversaries invest in the development of advanced systems, it is critical to ensure that the necessary capabilities to counter potential threats are available in a timely way to the warfighter. An agile and responsive acquisition system is increasingly an imperative warfighting capability,” said Dr. Cook. “I look forward to working with the DIIG team and our CSIS colleagues to lead the national discussion on how the defense acquisition system can be made more responsive and effective.”
Dr. Cook holds a PhD in sociology from Harvard University and a bachelor’s degree in management from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
