Cynthia Cook
Cynthia Cook is director of the Defense-Industrial Initiatives Group and a senior fellow in the International Security Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. She is widely published on defense acquisition policy and organization, the defense industrial base, new technology development, and weapon systems production and sustainment. Dr. Cook is a member of the editorial board for the Defense Acquisition Research Journal and is an adjunct professor at the Pardee RAND Graduate School. From 1997 to 2021, Dr. Cook worked as a senior management scientist at RAND, where she served as the director of the Acquisition and Technology Policy Center and managed a wide range of studies for components across the U.S. Department of Defense, along with the Australian Department of Defense and the UK Ministry of Defense. Previously, Dr. Cook was a research specialist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, working on the Lean Aerospace Initiative. Before her graduate studies, Dr. Cook worked in New York as an investment banker, specializing in high-yield finance. She holds a PhD in sociology from Harvard University and a BS in management from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
Areas of Expertise
Media Queries
- H. Andrew Schwartz
- Chief Communications Officer
- 202.775.3242
- aschwartz@csis.org
- Samuel Cestari
- Media Relations Coordinator, External Relations
- 202.775.7317
- scestari@csis.org
In the News
Uit deze fabriek in Amerika komen belangrijke wapens voor Oekraïne
Cynthia Cook in EenVandaag — April 21, 2024
Australian companies increasingly look to US following AUKUS pact
Cynthia Cook in Defense News — April 5, 2024
The companies benefiting from Europe’s defence revival
Cynthia Cook in Financial Times — February 23, 2024
Two Indicators: Economics of the defense industry
Cynthia Cook in NPR — February 21, 2024
How War in Europe Boosts the U.S. Economy
Cynthia Cook in The Wall Street Journal — February 18, 2024
Can Just-In-Time handle a new era of war?
Cynthia Cook in NPR — January 30, 2024
For US to counter China effectively, Pentagon must reform, warns first-of-its-kind report
Cynthia Cook in South China Morning Post — January 12, 2024
Pentagon’s first industrial strategy calls for ‘generational’ change
Cynthia Cook in Defense News — January 11, 2024
All Cynthia Cook Content
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Readying NATO’s Defense Industrial Base for Its 100th Anniversary
Commentary by Audrey Aldisert and Cynthia Cook — July 8, 2024
CSIS-DAPA 2024: The Potential for Expanding Defense Cooperation within the ROK-U.S. Alliance
Event — June 27, 2024
Report Launch: Is NATO Ready for War?
Event — June 11, 2024
Is NATO Ready for War?
Report by Sean Monaghan, Eskil Jakobsen, Sissy Martinez, Mathieu Droin, Gregory Sanders, Nicholas Velazquez, Cynthia Cook, Anna Dowd, and Maeve Sockwell — June 11, 2024
Cooperation on Scientific Innovation, Supply Chains, and Geopolitical Risk in Northeast Asia
Report by Seth G. Jones, Park In-kook, Cynthia Cook, John J. Lee, and Gregory Sanders — May 31, 2024
The Defense Industrial Implications of Putin’s Appointment of Andrey Belousov as Minister of Defense
Podcast Episode by Nicholas Velazquez, Maeve Sockwell, and Cynthia Cook — May 23, 2024
The Defense Industrial Implications of Putin’s Appointment of Andrey Belousov as Minister of Defense
Commentary by Nicholas Velazquez, Maeve Sockwell, and Cynthia Cook — May 23, 2024
Executive Summary: "Expanding the Tool Kit to Counter China's Economic Coercion"
Podcast Episode by Cynthia Cook, Gregory Sanders, Alexander Holderness, John Schaus, Nicholas Velazquez, Audrey Aldisert, Henry H. Carroll, and Emily Hardesty — May 6, 2024
Expanding the Tool Kit to Counter China's Economic Coercion
Report by Cynthia Cook, Gregory Sanders, Alexander Holderness, John Schaus, Nicholas Velazquez, Audrey Aldisert, Henry H. Carroll, and Emily Hardesty — May 6, 2024
How Supporting Ukraine Is Revitalizing the U.S. Defense Industrial Base
Commentary by Elizabeth Hoffman, Audrey Aldisert, Cynthia Cook, Gregory Sanders, and Shivani Vakharia — April 18, 2024