BAE Systems has named three senior executives to vice president roles focused on growth, federal civilian missions and the company’s F-35 portfolio. The executives announced the appointments separately in their recent LinkedIn posts.
Joanna Davenport: Vice President of Growth, Intelligence Solutions
BAE Systems has appointed Joanna Davenport as vice president of growth for intelligence solutions. In this role, she leads a team of business development professionals delivering mission capabilities to the intelligence community, the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI, NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
She previously served as chief growth officer at Cydecor, where she focused on software development, IT and mission services for the U.S. Navy, Air Force and Space Force and the IC. Before that, she spent over five years at Leidos in multiple executive roles, including vice president of civilian health business development and strategy, responsible for growth in an organization generating about $900 million in annual revenue, and vice president of intelligence group strategy and operations, developing market strategies for intelligence-related capabilities.
Earlier in her career, Davenport became senior director of business development for the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency account at General Dynamics Information Technology; vice president managing NGA, Defense Intelligence Agency and DHS accounts at Leidos; vice president of strategy and business development for defense and intelligence programs at McClendon; and mission area manager for space and geospatial business at Northrop Grumman. She also worked at Booz Allen Hamilton, supporting the NGA.
Davenport previously served as a U.S. Air Force officer for more than seven years.
Chris Schwalm: Vice President, Federal/Civilian Business Unit
Chris Schwalm was named vice president of the federal civilian business unit in BAE Systems’ intelligence and security segment. In this role, he focuses on growth and program delivery for agencies such as the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security, with efforts spanning enterprise IT, engineering, automation and artificial intelligence-enabled solutions.
He previously spent six years at Customer Value Partners, where he held leadership roles, most recently as executive vice president of strategic growth and tech modernization sector, managing a $150 million portfolio and a $1 billion qualified pipeline across IT modernization, cybersecurity and digital transformation programs.
Before CVP, he served as senior vice president for health and civilian at Salient CRGT, where he led strategic operations and profit and loss management for a $150 million federal IT portfolio. His responsibilities included overseeing more than 500 employees supporting programs at the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of State. Schwalm directed full lifecycle capture management and business development efforts, managing an opportunity pipeline exceeding $1.5 billion and generating $875 million in bid submissions within eight months. Under his leadership, the business achieved a 16 percent reduction in indirect costs and a 12 percent increase in gross profit within three quarters.
Prior to Salient CRGT, Schwalm spent over five years at ActioNet, where he served first as director and later as executive director of the national security business unit. In these roles, he managed delivery, operations and capture management for a portfolio of federal clients, including the Departments of State, Justice and Homeland Security, as well as the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts. He provided leadership for strategic planning, contract management and business development, ensuring growth while strengthening relationships across the federal space.
Earlier in his career, Schwalm held program and portfolio management roles at Blackstone Technology Group, Pragmatics and Cigital.
He began his career as a software engineer at Metron Aviation, working on projects for NASA, the Federal Aviation Administration and FedEx. Schwalm holds a bachelor’s degree in computer science from William & Mary and a master’s degree in business strategy and program management from The George Washington University School of Business.
Amber Dolan: Vice President, F-35 Solutions
BAE Systems appointed Amber Dolan as vice president of F-35 solutions in its electronic combat solutions business, responsible for leading efforts in electronic warfare dominance for the F-35 Lightning II program.
She has been with BAE Systems for more than 16 years, holding a series of leadership and technical positions in the company. Most recently, she served as product line director for adaptive communications and sensing for command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance systems. Prior to that, she held the product line director position for adaptive sensors in C4ISR systems.
Her earlier roles include program portfolio manager for advanced technology programs in communications and navigation solutions, technology development manager for assured communications, and electrical engineer in communications and signal exploitation. Dolan also gained early industry experience as a systems engineering intern at Raytheon.
She holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Rhode Island and a master’s degree in electrical and computer engineering from Worcester Polytechnic Institute.
