Meet Toni Townes-Whitley, the First Black Woman to Head a U.S. Defense Industry Giant

Toni Townes-Whitley has carved her name into history as one of the few Black women to lead a Fortune 500 company and the first to head a corporation in the U.S. defense industry.

In 2023, she was appointed Chief Executive Officer of Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), a technology and engineering solutions firm serving government clients in defense, intelligence, and space.

Her journey to the top has been marked by a blend of public service, corporate leadership, and a consistent push for diversity and ethics in technology.

Early Life and Education

Born in Fort Benning, Georgia, and raised in Virginia, Toni Townes-Whitley grew up in a household that valued leadership and public service. Her father, Lt. Gen. (Ret.) James F. “Cash” McCall, was the U.S. Army’s first Black Comptroller, while her mother, S. Yvonne McCall, was a Fairfax County elementary school principal.

In 1985, she graduated from Princeton University’s School of Public and International Affairs with a degree in public policy and economics. Her senior thesis explored the role of diversity in admissions policy, an early indication of her lifelong advocacy for inclusion.

She later pursued executive education programs at Wharton, NYU, and the Performance Management Institute.

Career Path

Townes-Whitley’s career began far from boardrooms. She joined the Peace Corps as a teacher in Gabon, West Africa, before returning to the U.S. to work as a policy analyst with the Government Accountability Office.

After a six-year break to raise her children, she reentered the workforce in the late 1990s, taking on financial and consulting roles that positioned her for leadership.

She rose through the ranks at Arthur Andersen and Unisys, eventually leading global public sector consulting. In 2010, she joined CGI Federal as Senior Vice President for Civilian Agency Programs, later becoming Chief Operating Officer and briefly serving as president.

Her corporate influence expanded significantly at Microsoft, which she joined in 2015. Over eight years, she spearheaded initiatives on corporate responsibility, artificial intelligence ethics, and sustainability.

As president of U.S. regulated industries, she managed $16 billion in revenue and was instrumental in Microsoft’s successful $10 billion cloud contract with the Pentagon in 2019.

In her current role at SAIC, she oversees a company at the forefront of engineering, AI, and digital solutions for critical government operations.

Influence and Advocacy

Beyond the boardroom, Toni Townes-Whitley lectures at Stanford and Princeton on technology, ethics, and entrepreneurship. She has served on the boards of major institutions including Johns Hopkins Medicine, NASDAQ, Marathon Petroleum, PNC Financial, and the Thurgood Marshall College Fund.

Her efforts to expand diversity in leadership are longstanding. At Microsoft, she helped establish pathways for women to serve on corporate boards, while also advocating for greater representation of minorities in tech.

Recognition

Her career has earned her numerous accolades, including Fortune’s “Most Powerful Women: Ones to Watch,” the Federal 100 Industry Eagle Award, the IES Lifetime Achievement Award, and recognition as “Woman of the Year” by Washington STEM.

Townes-Whitley is married to John H. Whitley. Between their blended family, they share five children and nine grandchildren. Her first marriage to Townes, with whom she had two children, ended in divorce