I’m a self-professed geek, a MacGyver fan who thinks we should be hiring a lot more IT-MacGyvers. I started at Booz Allen 25 years ago, before there was even an internship program, and ended up coding and being part of a client deliverable. It was great—so great that I joined Booz Allen straight after graduation and have been here ever since. (That client I helped deliver for is still our client 25 years later.)
Meet Paul
Executive Vice President
Paul Chi is the chief technology officer responsible for delivering solutions on behalf of multiple clients across the intelligence community. He is a thought leader in all aspects of technology consulting and IT solutions. Paul’s areas of expertise include computer science and engineering, radio frequency technologies, cyber, networking technologies, biometrics, data science, technical operations and targeting, financial intelligence, advanced prototyping, innovative and applied solutions, and non-traditional approaches to difficult and ongoing mission challenges.
Previously, Paul partnered with the intelligence community, the Department of Defense, and commercial clients to develop solutions for signals intelligence analysis, all-source research and analysis, information security, and data analytics.
Paul earned a B.S. in electrical engineering from the University of Michigan and is certified as a project management professional. He currently serves on the board for FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Chesapeake, a local affiliate of the National FIRST Robotics organization.
Why Booz Allen? Booz Allen really values their people. You can grow and choose to grow at your own rate. The firm works with you to co-own your development and allows you to develop in different ways.
Which of our five values most resonates with you and why? Collective ingenuity. I love the process of working with a diverse set of colleagues to solve hard and challenging problems for our clients. Often times, clients engage us on challenging issues where to don’t have an existing answer. Our collaboration and working with colleagues with different perspectives always brings more value in solving these challenging problems for our clients.
Why are you passionate about the work you do at Booz Allen? When I was an engineering student, I thought I’d always be approaching problems with an engineering solution. I’ve come to realize that sometimes the solution is political, or financial, or both. It’s a broadening of perspective, and the multifaceted nature of my work excites me.
Why is Booz Allen an ideal firm for someone with expertise and skills in your line of work? We try our best to encourage more and more IT-MacGyvers, those people who can make antennae from a trash can lid. We encourage MacGyvers and need more of them.
How do you help your clients prepare for the future? Some of our clients are sequestered due to the classified nature of their work. One way we help is by keeping them connected to the state of play of technology. We anticipate their needs, taking the technology we have and turning it upside down and sideways to work for them.
What’s the key to staying energized? I get most energized by adding value to employees’ ideas. The application of technology, for example. Can we make this real? Will this further help our clients’ mission? Having a dialogue over lunch and brainstorming—that keeps me engaged.
How does good idea generation happen? It’s about connecting people. At our annual Ideas Festival, the most interesting part isn’t always the presentations, it’s the conversations among employees. Once I listened in to a conversation between employees in two different markets. They’d applied the same technology differently to meet clients’ needs. A third person from yet a different market joined in, and the discussion flowed to how that technology could be applied in an entirely different situation. We’re trying to be disruptive to ourselves, and one way we do that is by connecting people and ideas. Cross pollination, so to speak.
What are your tips for managing and motivating your people? I go to a client site and listen to what my employees and the clients are struggling with. We start a dialogue about what we can do about it. It’s about making our employees successful, listening to them, and bringing ideas to the table. It’s motivating.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received? In every scenario there’s always something more you can do. Sometimes it requires patience and doing the more mundane assignments that no one else wants to do, while thinking about how to make it better
What’s the most influential book you’ve read? I, Robot by Isaac Asimov.
What’s an idea or invention you wish you’d thought of or something you’d still like to invent?
I’m interested in the concept of recycling as a new national resource. It’s a legacy to leave for our kids, to allow for a greener planet. There’s a business in there somewhere. If I were to retire from Booz Allen, that’s what I would focus on.
Who fascinates you? Stephen Hawking, Steve Jobs, and Elon Musk. Big, unconstrained thinkers who can change your impressions of the world fascinate me.
What’s something not many people know about you? I like to cook; I like to eat so I had to learn how to cook.
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