Lockheed Martin may hire 1,000 for its new subsidiary in Israel- including R&D and in sales to other countries

Revealed: Lockheed Martin plans for its new subsidiary in Israel to engage in R&D and in sales to other countries.

Exclusive interview with Tom McCorry
Amir Rapaport, ISRAEL DEFENSE NEWS

The new company incorporated and registered in Israel in the fall of 2014 is not just another company: it is the subsidiary of one of the most prominent giant corporations of the USA – Lockheed Martin. Lockheed Martin Israel’s CEO is Brig. Gen. (res.) Joshua (Shiki) Shani. The company’s IS&GS activities in Israel are headed by Brig. Gen. (res.) Shelly Gutman, formerly the commander of the IAF Hatzerim airbase.

But what are Lockheed Martin’s expectations and plans for their new Israeli subsidiary? Apparently, at Lockheed Martin’s headquarters in the USA they regard their new Israeli project as a strategic investment. From the first-ever interview held with Thomas E. McCorry, the coordinator of Lockheed Martin’s operations in Israel at the corporate HQ in Maryland, USA, it appears that the operations of Lockheed Martin’s local arm will not be confined to Israel alone, but would extend to numerous other markets.

“There is tremendous potential for export out of Israel,” says McCorry. “We regard this project as a long-term effort. In Israel, we will engage in research and development, in the context of cooperative alliances with the Ben-Gurion University and other universities, and in addition we will engage in sales and provide support from Israel for IT projects in other countries. Naturally, we would like to be involved, first and foremost, in major projects in Israel, like the relocation of the defense establishment to the Negev.”

What do you regard as the optimal number of employees for your Israeli subsidiary?

“We plan to hire several hundred employees, but would be delighted to employ more than a thousand. In addition to the employees working for Lockheed Martin Israel, we plan to execute numerous projects in the context of cooperative alliances with many other companies, both local and international.”

The interview with Tom McCorry was held at the offices of the Lockheed Martin Corporation, located in Gaithersburg, Maryland, a 40-minute drive from Washington DC. The headquarters of the entire Corporation are located in neighboring Bethesda. The Gaithersburg office is the center of the Corporation’s IT and cyber operations. One of the spacious halls at the HQ accommodates a huge operations center that commands and coordinates the cyber defense for all of Lockheed Martin’s systems around the globe.

According to Tom McCorry, although Lockheed Martin is globally famous as an aviation industry primarily, it is also a giant IT company. In fact, not less than 11% of LM’s revenue – more than US$ 8 billion per year – are generated by the IT field.

Lockheed Martin Israel was established in the context of the Information Security & Global Solutions (IS&GS) element of LM’s IT division. It is one of the four primary elements of the IT division. The other three elements address the US domestic market. While it is organizationally subordinated to the IS&GS layout, LM’s Israeli subsidiary is guided by a new element within LM’s global management, charged with the task of developing the corporation’s international operations. According to Tom McCorry, the model for LM’s operations in Israel through the establishment of a local subsidiary is new to the corporation’s global concept.

Why did you choose this particular model?

“We chose to establish a subsidiary as Israel has amazing personnel and technology capabilities. There are many other countries out there where you won’t find the infrastructure available in Israel. In addition to that, Israel encourages international cooperation, and that is very important as there are numerous global opportunities.”

Tom McCorry states that Lockheed Martin’s defense specialization is reflected in the fact that it is currently regarded as a primary supplier of information technologies to government and military organization in the USA, way ahead of “classic” IT companies. In the USA, thousands of LM engineers have a high security clearance and they will provide the backup for the initiatives and projects of the Israeli subsidiary.

The R&D cooperation with the Ben-Gurion University in Beersheba should take place in numerous automation fields and generally – LM has already settled at the cyber industry park (Cyber Spark) established in Beersheba, where LM’s hundreds of employees (at least) will be working. In addition to the cooperative alliance with the Ben-Gurion University, cooperation agreements were signed with the Technion of Haifa and with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and a strategic cooperation agreement has also been signed with ENC of the USA, which established its own excellence center at Cyber Spark in Beersheba.

Will there be sufficient local manpower for all of those companies?

“We will assist by investing in the long-term development of human capital, starting with schoolchildren, as that is how the LM strategy work. In the short term, there has already been a tremendous response to employment with Lockheed Martin Israel. We will recruit numerous engineers as well as computer specialists, electronics specialists and sales personnel, along with employees for various other activities.”

What will the working environment at LM Israel be like, anything like the one at Google?

McCorry laughs: “Different countries have different rules, but in any case, we will bring in the Lockheed Martin values. In our view, there is a difference between culture and work attitude. These are two different things. At the end of the day, what matters is the work attitude, namely – the results.”

Shelly’s Beehive

According to the director of Information Systems & Global Solutions (IS&GS) in Israel, Brig. Gen. (res.)Shelly Gutman, he is assembling the company’s personnel “top down”.

Gutman is currently busy consolidating the company’s management team. One of the new executives joining LM Israel is Lt. Col. (res.) Uri Hayak, who recently retired from IDF service after having served as the head of IAF computing in the context of the ‘Ofek’ unit. Once the recruitment of the management team has been completed, the hiring of the remaining personnel will begin.

“We have a true desire to establish cooperative alliances with all of the industries in Israel,” says Gutman. “Naturally, such cooperation may be reflected, first and foremost, through project associated with the relocation to the Negev, but through other projects as well, as our portfolio is extensive.

“From a national perspective, it is good news that a corporation like Lockheed Martin is initiating operations in Israel. We intend to make substantial investments in several parameters in 2015. The success of the relocation of the IDF to the Negev depends on numerous factors, including compliance with timetables and the Government’s willingness to award incentives.”

Gutman was one of the primary speakers at a conference on the relocation of the defense establishment to the Negev, held by the Ben-Gurion University and Israel Defense in Beersheba on October 23, 2014.

The interview is published in the new issue of Israel Defense, No. 23 – out now!