Managing Director, Intelligence Practice,
Accenture Federal Services

Mary Legere

Mary Legere –
Most Influential People in Security 2021

As Managing Director and co-leader of the Intelligence Practice, Mary Legere focuses on bringing Accenture’s global capabilities, services and best practices to national defense, intelligence and cyber clients. She brings experience and passion to her role at Accenture Federal Services (AFS), serving senior leaders across the U.S. intelligence community and the Department of Defense to help advance improvements to their community.

Over the course of her professional life, which includes nearly four decades of service in the military and now in the private sector service, Legere says she, “has been blessed to serve and lead extraordinary teams that have contributed significantly to defending our nation and protecting the security of our friends and allies around the world.”

As a senior leader in the Defense Intelligence community, Legere was awarded the Director of National Intelligence Distinguished Service Medal for her service, as well as the Distinguished Service Medal; Defense Superior Service Medal (with Oak Lead Cluster); Legion of Merit (with Oak Leaf Cluster); Bronze Star Medal; and Meritorious Service Medal (with five Oak Leak Clusters) for her exceptional contributions as a leader in the Armed Forces.

She was also awarded the Order of National Security Merit Chonsu Medal from the President of the Republic of Korea (ROK) for her service to ROK in promoting military cooperation between the ROK and United States. For her outstanding leadership and service to the United States Army, she was inducted into the University of New Hampshire ROTC Hall of Fame.

“In my 34 years in uniform, I served in over 25 leadership and intelligence roles, including as the Senior Military Intelligence Officer for U.S. forces in the Republic of Korea and in Iraq, in support of the Multi-national Forces Iraq as the Commanding General of the U.S. Army’s 16,000-person global Intelligence and security command as the Army G2,” Legere recounts. “I was responsible for the readiness, operations and modernization of the Army’s 58,000-person Intelligence Corps. From my first days as a collection and jamming platoon leader, conducting intelligence operations in support of the U.S. and allied forces in Germany, to my final assignment as the Army G2, overseeing the readiness and modernization of our intelligence corps, I am proud of every team I have been part of. I am proud of the passion, ingenuity, creativity and commitment we brought to our missions and of our collective contributions to the security of our nation.”

Legere’s venerable service to the national security community has continued since she transitioned to the private sector. After joining Accenture Federal Services (AFS) in October 2016 as Managing Director, she now co-leads the Accenture Federal Services National and Defense Intelligence practice. In this capacity, she and her colleagues focus on bringing the organization’s global capabilities, services and fed-fit best practices to national defense intelligence and cyber clients across the U.S.

In addition, as one of Accenture’s global defense luminaries, she has been part of high-level government engagements to help build the organization’s strategies to drive national efforts to advance digital adoption and transformation. She has published and co-authored articles on the criticality of digital transformation to defense and produced a series of industry-government events to promote understanding of the impact of technology on the future of work, the evolution of cloud services in the U.S. intelligence community, the expanding importance of open-source intelligence, and the impact of COVID-19 on the community going forward.

Legere says, “Today, as a leader in the private sector, I’m honored to continue that service to our intelligence and national security communities, working with my exceptionally talented and committed teammates at Accenture Federal Services and with our clients to co-create and usher in innovative solutions to address some of our most difficult security challenges.”

To support the U.S. intelligence community’s priorities, she has championed leader literacy efforts to expand understanding of the importance of augmenting intelligence using machines, transitioning to modern data management enterprises, focusing on holistic cyber defense and increasing public-private partnerships.

At a time when U.S. intelligence community partners and organizations are seeking to regain the global, national security advantage, Legere has promoted the acceleration of capabilities and services to advance her clients’ and the greater intelligence community’s embrace of cloud, applied intelligence, cybersecurity and use of open-source intelligence for decision advantage. In 2018, she was awarded the 2018 Women in Technology Award for Excellence. Later that year, she received the 2018 AFCEA Gold Shield of St. Isidore Award for distinguished service to national security and the cyberspace community.

Actively involved as an advisor to multiple senior leaders, she is a member of the U.S. Geospatial Intelligence Foundation, the Military Cyber Professionals Association, the U.S. Intelligence and Security Alliance Security Committee. She is Chairman of the National Military Intelligence Foundation (NMIF), a non-profit dedicated to mentoring students and young professionals.

Combining her depth of national security and intelligence understanding, Legere continues to serve her community by bringing relevant experience and solutions to inform, elevate and advance the nation’s ability to execute its critical missions at a far more accelerated pace.

As the national and global security landscape is constantly changing, with new threats and disruptive technologies presenting unique risks to governments industries, and other partners around the world, “security and intelligence professionals must embrace that volatility as a constant and continue to expand our expertise, skill sets, and ability to lead and inspire others to adapt and respond to these challenges — whether in service to our government, clients in the private sector, or our communities,” Legere says. “Through self-study, continuous professional development, a commitment to seeking progressively challenging assignments, and contributions as mentors to other rising professionals, we must continue to learn, grow and increase our abilities to support the national security of the nation.”

More than any of the countless projects or initiatives she has taken on or participated in, Legere says, “I am proud of the people I serve with, the passion and teamwork borne from the unity of vision and purpose and the collective commitment to doing what is best for the intelligence community and the nation. I am grateful and proud of their service and of the thousands of like-minded public servants and industry partners who put service ahead of self and who place the interests of our nation first.”

On a personal level, Legere is a passionate mentor, sharing her time each month with high school students, college students and rising professionals as they seek to begin or navigate the next steps in their careers. She enjoys biking, hiking, swimming and is a serial marathoner, having completed 26 marathons.

Impacting enterprises, communities and nations, these 10 security leaders are making a positive difference in the security industry.

The Most Influential People in Security 2021