Washington, DC - The Department of Homeland Security today announced that six loaned executives from the private sector will begin service today within the department to support efforts to promote the facilitation of travel and tourism at the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). These positions were first announced by Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas in May 2014.

“Under this Administration, one of our top priorities has been to expand and facilitate the trade and travel that contributes to our nation’s growing economy,” said Deputy Secretary Mayorkas. “The Loaned Executive Program recruits the best talent and ideas from the private sector and brings that expertise to bear for the DHS mission. Our efforts will continue to make the United States the destination of choice for business and leisure. We are proud to welcome these outstanding individuals who have accomplished so much in the private sector to help us further improve the travel experience for the American public and visitors to our country.”

The 6 loaned executives beginning today will fill the following positions:

Christopher Whiteman Managing Director- Passenger Facilitation & Customer Initiatives, Delta Air Lines, Inc.

• Senior Advisor, Customer Service: In this position, Whiteman will advise TSA and CBP on ways to improve customer service.

Christopher Billings, President, Service Improvement Consultants International, Inc. and Consultant, American Airlines

• Senior Advisor, Line and Crowd Management: In this position, Billings will advise TSA and CBP on issues related to the airport systems flow of travelers, with a goal of streamlining our processes consistent with our security mission.

Lorri Fairchild, Branch Owner, AIT Worldwide Logistics

• Senior Advisor, Logistics:  In this position, Fairchild will advise TSA and CBP on issues related to airport systems flow of international travelers and ways to streamline the arrivals and connections process.

Kevin Bagger, Senior Director of Strategic Research & Analytics, Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority; and

Scott Russell, Senior Research Manager, Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority

• Senior Advisors, Metrics: In these positions, Bagger and Russell will advise CBP on the collection and analysis of data relating to the experience of international arriving passengers.

Nawaf Marjan, Owner, Triangle Technology Ventures, LLC

• Senior Advisor, Self-Service Technology:  In this position, Marjan will advise TSA and CBP on the development and deployment of enterprise level self-service technologies.

The positions include a six-month assignment with the option for a six-month renewal. These positions do not include a government salary; instead, participants in the Loaned Executive Program still draw their regular salary and benefits from their private-sector employer.

As part of their efforts, the loaned executives will conduct site visits at five airports: Chicago O’Hare, John F. Kennedy International, Los Angeles International, Miami International, and Newark Liberty International. 

The Loaned Executive Program was established by the DHS Private Sector Office in 2008 to provide top executive-level and subject matter experts from the private sector an opportunity to share their expertise with DHS. DHS will continue to partner with the nation’s top executives and industry experts to solve problems, improve processes, and fully realize its mission.

For more information and to apply for future openings, please visit www.dhs.gov-loaned-executive-program.