FirstNet begins new era under Swenson’s leadership

FirstNet Deputy General Manager TJ Kennedy, who has been acting as FirstNet’s general manager since D’Agostino resigned, echoed this sentiment during a FirstNet committee meeting on Monday.

“We’re really looking for people to come in with that startup mindset and culture,” Kennedy said. “We often work very long days and weekends, and we often work early morning hours and late at night to really try to drive toward accomplishing the mission and getting key deliverables done that have to be brought together.

“[We want people who] do not sit back and say, ‘We can’t do it’ but ‘How are we going to make it work?’ To work in that startup environment is very different than some of the standard government positions. So, for somebody transferring over who thinks it’s a lot like another government agency, it’s probably going to be a shock to their system.”

Swenson also shared her philosophy of “Execute, Engage, Communicate and Collaborate” as a path to achieving meaningful results. She also conveyed a no-excuses attitude in terms of achieving the mission.

“Have you ever had anybody come into your office and say, ‘Oh my god, this is such a problem’?” Swenson said. “My attitude is that I ask, 'Did somebody die?' If the answer is 'No,' then my attitude is that we can fix it.

“Let’s not dwell on what happened in the past. It’s an interesting perspective, but it’s frankly not useful for solving the problem. I look at these as opportunities for improvement.”

Given the massive challenge ahead of FirstNet, this philosophy should serve the organization well as it pursues several key milestones, including state consultations and the launch of first-responder LTE networks. It certainly sounds like Swenson understands the importance of the task at hand.

“I’m here only because this is going to make a difference in not only the lives of public-safety people but the lives of everybody,” she said. “We’re going to save lives as a result of this.”