Michele Hill – Lockheed Martin

She’s come full circle, but what an expanded circle it is for Michele Hill, the supply chain general counsel at Lockheed Martin.

Twenty years ago, the supply chain was among her responsibilities as a young lawyer fresh from the U.S. Commerce Department. In her new role as a national defense and aerospace heavyweight in Bethesda, Maryland, she was entrusted with negotiating contracts.

Having acquitted herself in that area, she earned the good graces of then-General Counsel and future FBI Director James Comey and ascended the corporate ladder. In October 2021, Hill was promoted to her present role and, as she exclaims, how the supply chain has changed and continues to do so as she seals the deals for everything from Staples’ office products to the microchips and most complex machinery for next-generation fighter planes, missiles and commercial aircraft.

And, needless to say, the microchips and machinery require much more of Hill’s attention than Staples’ offerings. National security as well as the well-being of sensitive U.S. manufacturers, are at stake. Meanwhile, the rules tighten for what Lockheed Martin is allowed to purchase.

Microchips? Come 2027, Lockheed Martin must reveal the source, and it’s hoped that more of these necessities will be made in the U.S.

Chinese-manufactured semiconductors? The United States can’t take a chance.

Laptops from such reputable U.S. companies as Dell and Hewlett Packard? Better ensure they don’t include parts coming from a potentially hostile company.

Meanwhile, everything is likely more expensive, and the supply chain is still compromised by the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet Hill’s is still counted upon to navigate the ebb and flow of supply and demand and economize.

Won’t come up short

“Since the pandemic, there have definitely been challenges for demand of many things,” she tells Vanguard in June from her Atlanta area home. “There’s still a lack of supply for parts in the second, third, fourth, and fifth tiers. So many companies we bought from didn’t make it through COVID and, on top of that, there’s been inflation.”

But Hill’s not about making excuses. As she says, sustaining the supply chain isn’t just about mitigating shortages; it’s also about being proactive—and that she is.

Her multidisciplinary approach transcends the typical duties of most in-house lawyers. Hill has to anticipate potential shortages and how they impact the final product, particularly when one component among tens of thousands might affect how an aircraft functions. She identifies suppliers and the parts that comply with regulations and brushes up on the letter and spirit of an evolving rulebook.

“You have to identify the purpose behind a rule and then strategically work to integrate that into your process by doing research, managing your projects and communicating with the various parties internally to make sure everyone is aligned and understands the needs that come with new rules,” she says. “You listen and take account of the variables and are OK not knowing something and asking input from colleagues so everyone can be on the same page.”

The federal government, having some understanding of a defense contractor’s issues, arranges for industry days and might delay enforcement of a rule to serve a mutual purpose. The Lockheed Martin brass also has its supply chain leadership council that meets monthly and quarterly, and last year, it formulated its own regulations with applicability to contractors.

“It’s good to know our customers are listening and taking into account what’s important for us,” Hill says. “Everything may not be concrete, but it can be hard to find anything concrete in law. I take a lot of calls about what the challenges are not just for today but three to five years from now.”

Here to stay

Chances are Hill will be around to deal with the challenges of tomorrow, she describes this as a most exciting time to be in commercial aerospace and national defense, what with Lockheed Martin immersed in so many critical projects and a digital transformative initiative enhancing production. It is called 1LMX, and it deploys automation, robotics and factory simulations while investing in long-lead procurement to reduce production time, increase capacity and optimize overall manufacturing and how important that is as retirements mount.

“We’re always looking for opportunities to allow our people to be more responsive to our clients but not get burned out in the process,” Hill says. “We want them to enjoy their jobs and continue to learn.”

Hill is doing both, but with some irony. Much as the Columbia University poli-sci /psychology major and Indiana University Bloomington law graduate now enjoys contracting, it wasn’t where she envisioned herself as a student.

A “Law and Order” viewer, she saw herself litigating. During her senior year in Bloomington, she did that in family court and, after graduating, at an appellate firm where lawyers often slept in their offices. Hill assessed the quality of life and joined a consulting firm, Lynn & Associates, where duties included public contracting and compliance. She didn’t just learn to like contracting; she liked it, so she notified one of her former law professors who had taught the course.

“I told him I hated contracting, but now I was a contract attorney,” she recalls. “He just laughed. Since then, it’s been a lesson to keep your options open. It’s allowed me to meet many smart people and complete many deals. It’s been very satisfying.”

Onto Commerce

It also got her to the U.S. Commerce Department for a five-year stretch from 1998 to 2003 that preceded Lockheed Martin. That made her somewhat of an anomaly—the company usually recruits legal talent from major firms. But 20 years later, Lockheed Martin and Hill seem a good fit.

Home life satisfies, too. Hill married her Columbia University sweetheart, Joseph Hill, who graduated from the Indiana University Maurer School of Law and will soon celebrate his second anniversary as an assistant general counsel for global trade at Honeywell. The couple has a son who is in college and a daughter who just graduated high school.

It’s a sports-minded family, with the son playing football and the daughter playing tennis. However, Hill’s own time for pickleball can be limited. There are always new work-related subjects to familiarize herself with, with cybersecurity and artificial intelligence high on the list. She’s also hoping to write a book with lessons that could benefit others seeking in-house roles.

Though shy by nature, Hill can be an engaging speaker and has been making the rounds before civic groups in and around Atlanta. She has many experiences to share, and as a Black woman, she would like to inspire others to believe and achieve. For anybody, Hill would pass on the lesson she garnered from that eye-opening role at Lynn & Associates Inc.

“Don’t close the door to anything,” she says. “I’m glad I didn’t with contracting law.”