{"id":56695,"date":"2018-07-12T15:29:23","date_gmt":"2018-07-12T15:29:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2018\/07\/12\/new-sco-head-will-be-in-place-by-end-of-july-and-diux-is-next\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T00:12:27","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T00:12:27","slug":"new-sco-head-will-be-in-place-by-end-of-july-and-diux-is-next","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/pentagon\/2018\/07\/12\/new-sco-head-will-be-in-place-by-end-of-july-and-diux-is-next\/","title":{"rendered":"New SCO head will be in place by end of July. And DIUx is next."},"content":{"rendered":"\n

WASHINGTON \u2014 The Pentagon\u2019s Strategic Capabilities Office<\/a> has a new leader. We just don\u2019t know their name yet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Michael Griffin, the Pentagon\u2019s undersecretary for research and engineering, told reporters Thursday that he has made an offer, and it has been accepted, for a new director of the SCO.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition, Griffin said he is in the midst of interviewing candidates to lead the Defense Innovation Unit Experimental, the Pentagon\u2019s Silicon Valley outpost.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The expectation is that the new SCO head will be announced by the \u201cend of July,\u201d Griffin said. The office, which focuses on taking existing technologies and finding new capabilities for them, has been empty<\/a> since Will Roper left to become the head of acquisitions for theU.S. Air Force. Roper was the founder of the office and led it since its creation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The leadership for DIUx is less clear. The office has been working under interim director Sean Heritage since Raj Shah, who had led the team for two years, left in February<\/a>. The technology hub has since created a new chair for a Washington-focused partner, Michael Madsen, to coalesce support for the office inside the Capital Beltway.<\/p>\n\n\n\t