Colleen Cannon
Electrical Engineering, May 1988
Senior Manager, Navy
Contact Colleen Cannon at
colleen.cannon@navy.mil
Since your graduation from MU, what has been your career path?
I've had a civilian navy career that started with a Cooperative Education ("Co-op") opportunity in 1985, for the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA), in Washington DC. I've worked side by side with uniform naval officers on complex projects involving combat systems design and integration, research and development, systems acquisition, and life cycle maintenance of in-service equipment. Presently I'm a senior level manager, the "Anti-Submarine Warfare Systems Engineer" for the Major Program Manager, Undersea Warfare Systems. One huge advantage of working for a large organization in the navy is that there are so many career fields to choose from, and you can move, throughout your career, from a more technically oriented career path to more business oriented, or more people (e.g. human resources) oriented, without leaving the organization and giving up your retirement, benefits, or vacation time.
Describe your typical workday.
The "typical" day is working in an office environment. In my profession, Microsoft Office and PowerPoint are the common tools of the trade. Fortunately, there are many days that are anything but typical. The complexity of issues we deal with means that there is a lot of interaction with the Fleet, contractors, labs, and universities. My job has taken me to ships in port and at sea, navy bases at home and abroad, and business partners all over the US and some international partnerships as well.
What is the best or most exciting part of your profession?
Any time we get to see the "operational" side of things, whether it's new technology in use by the Fleet for the first time, or observing a training exercise with in-service equipment, it's always rewarding to see that our efforts make a positive contribution to the navy's mission accomplishment.
What advice would you provide for a job seeker in your field?
First, of all, get involved in student and professional organizations. This will broaden your exposure to the many career choices available to you, and it will help hone essential skills that you do not learn in the classroom or textbooks; for example, time management, coaching, mentoring, and motivating others. The Navy seeks to develop the leaders of tomorrow, and the skills you develop in college will give you a jump start. Second, stay out of trouble. The job requires a security clearance. One mistake now and you'll be explaining it for a long time to come.
What are essential skills one must possess for success in your field?
A good balance of technical aptitude and social skills. Your environment is not limited to a small office or a single, centrally managed organization. The ability to grasp the complexities of large, networked systems of sensors, command, control, communications, information, computers and weapons is key. So is the ability to communicate a vision and get people and organizations aligned and working together to achieve it. All that without getting lost in the minutiae of the mundane, day-to-day tasks that consume much of your time.
What can a current Marquette student do to effectively prepare for a career in your field?
Get a degree in engineering, sciences, math, anything technical. Forecasters predict a severe shortage of engineers and technical types in our profession, particularly among US citizens (US citizenship is a prerequisite for most Defense sector jobs). Also, get involved in extra-curricular activities, for the reasons I mentioned in Question #5. Be open to diversity, differences of opinion, and working with people of different backgrounds, experiences and different points of view.
How does one find a summer job or internship in your field, and are there any other opportunities to gain experience before graduation? www.navyjobs.com
