Her Story
About Mallory
Mallory Lind serves as Director of Business Development at Ingenix Technologies, a defense innovation firm based in Huntsville, Alabama, a position she stepped into in mid-2025. In this role, she leads outreach and networking efforts and drives the pursuit of government small-business innovation funding, applying a career's worth of experience at the intersection of the military and private industry. She came to Ingenix after spending roughly three years as a project manager at the Civil-Military Innovation Institute (CMI2), where she supported the Catalyst Pathfinder program in partnership with the West Virginia Military Authority, helping translate problems identified by soldiers in the field into solutions built through collaboration with academia and industry. A veteran of the United States Air Force, Mallory enlisted in 2014 and served for seven years before separating in 2021, with assignments spanning aviation management, roughly two years in cyber intelligence and program management at Fort Meade, and a final stretch in public affairs and photojournalism. Her time in uniform earned her a Joint Service Commendation Medal and two Joint Service Achievement Medals, honors she received between 2018 and 2019, including recognition tied to her cyber intelligence program management work despite being among the lowest-ranking and few female members in her program. She went on to complete a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration from American Military University and an Associate's degree in Aviation Management from the Community College of the Air Force, and was later accepted into the University of Pennsylvania's Executive Master's program in Public Administration, though personal circumstances kept her from enrolling. Outside her professional work, Mallory remains active in the veteran community as a member of the American Legion Auxiliary and Women in Defense, and has continued to give back through a part-time role as a substitute teacher in Pennsylvania's Delaware Valley Regional School District. She was named a semi-finalist for Ms. Veteran America in 2026, a title tied to a broader philanthropic effort supporting Final Salute Inc. A dedicated advocate for women in defense and innovation, she draws on personal interests including backpacking with her husband, reading Appalachian fiction, and returning to pointe dancing after a fourteen-year break, values that reflect the same discipline and resilience she brings to her career.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Mallory
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to the journey I've taken — from enlisting in the United States Air Force in 2014 to the role I hold today as Director of Business Development at Ingenix Technologies. That path, including my seven years of military service, my time as a defense contractor, and nearly three years as a project manager at the Civil-Military Innovation Institute, has shaped the skillset I bring to defense innovation and project management. Beyond that, I credit the quality and quantity of the work I put in, my persistence and resilience, and a service-oriented ethics rooted in giving back to others.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
Rather than a single piece of advice, I'd point to the mentors who shaped my career. Aly Gregg, Vice President of Communications at the Civil-Military Innovation Institute, was a professional mentor of mine. As one of the few female senior executives at the company, her strong leadership was a genuine inspiration to me.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Never be afraid to be a strong woman and a servant leader to others. Women are powerful and bring so many valuable skillsets to the table — skillsets that can drive even greater success when we lean into them with confidence.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
Networking is, without question, the most valuable asset in our field right now — especially for a small company like mine, with fewer than ten employees and less than three years in operation. I also see real opportunity in soldier-inspired, bottom-up innovation programs that surface problems and solutions directly from those in the field, paired with strong partnerships between military units, academia, and industry. For small companies especially, visibility and networking are critical to growing and securing the government work needed to scale.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
Service and giving back to others are at the core of everything I do. One of my proudest achievements reflects this: my work in cyber intelligence with the Air Force National Guard, where our team earned a Joint Service Commendation Medal — an accomplishment I'm especially proud of given that I was one of the lowest-ranking and few female members in the program at the time. Alongside service, I hold resilience close as a guiding value, both professionally and personally.
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