Heidi Grant

Heidi H. Grant worked as the director of the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) from August 2020 until the DSCA announced on October 12, 2021 she would step down from her position on November 7, 2021. In that role, Grant served as “[t]he Pentagon’s top weapon sales expert” and oversaw “over 15,000 foreign military sales cases with over 150 countries valued at $620 billion.” Prior to this role, she served as the deputy undersecretary of international affairs at the U.S. Air Force where she “was a fixture at industry trade shows and became known as the point person in pushing [Air Force] equipment to the international community.” She was also the director of the Defense Technology Security Administration where she was tasked with “protecting sensitive U.S. military weaponry.”

On October 14, 2021, before her government service had ended, Boeing announced that Grant would join the company as its vice president of business development the day after Grant left the Pentagon. “We look forward to working closely with [Grant] as we compete, win and grow our business around the world,” Boeing Defense, Space & Security President and CEO Leanne Caret said.

Boeing, which is one of the world’s largest aerospace companies, has routinely ranked among the top five U.S. defense contractors, receiving over $21.7 billion in fiscal year 2020. In fiscal year 2019, Boeing ranked as the third largest American arms exporter with an estimated $9 billion in sales. In November 2020, the Air Force awarded Boeing a $657 million contract modification to provide the Qatari Air Force with F-15QA fighter jets. The modification pushed the total cumulative value of the contract to over $8 billion. At the unveiling of the upgraded aircraft in August 2021, Grant touted the jets as“the most capable fighters in the world” and “a transformational leap in capability.”

In a response to POGO’s request for comment, a DOD spokesperson wrote: “Director Heidi Grant followed the ethics requirements when she put in her retirement paperwork and accepted a job at Boeing. She did what was correct as a senior leader in the Department of Defense by notifying the Department and recusing herself from contract negotiations as required.” In addition, Grant notified her superiors at the Department of Defense that she was in contract negotiations with Boeing on July 29, 2021.

A representative from Boeing declined to comment.