I speak at conferences, industry panels, and podcasts on customer experience, digital transformation, and what it takes to build a CX function inside a large, complex organization.
I explore career transitions and reinvention on my podcast, Life Between Titles, and draw on themes from Laid Off and Lost, my narrative nonfiction book on identity and rebuilding after job loss, based on a year of interviews with 29 people alongside my own story of being laid off from a decade at the Department of Defense. I’m also writing Halfway Light, a memoir breaking my family’s decades-long silence about surviving the Khmer Rouge genocide.
AFCEA (TechNet Cyber, TechNet Indo-Pacific), Federal News Network (DoD Modernization Exchange, Federal Executive Forum), GovExec (Breakfast Buzz), DefenseScoop (DefenseTalks), the ServiceNow Federal Forum, and FedScoop.
“Breaking Down IT Bottlenecks” — From Bottlenecks to Breakthroughs: Elevating User Experience in Defense IT
How cutting-edge digital tools are streamlining IT processes across the DoD, and how real-time data access improves decision-making and tactical response — alongside representatives from the Department of the Navy, DISA, and Riverbed.
View session →Building the Department of Defense’s first Customer Experience Office from the ground up — the strategy, alliances, and infrastructure it took to stand up a CXO function inside the Pentagon.
Read / watch →Customer Experience Strategies in Government — Progress and Best Practices
How agencies use data, digital services, and cross-team strategy to improve customer experience — alongside CX leaders from CBP, VA, and the Federal EHR Modernization Office.
View event →Listed on the official AFCEA speaker roster for TechNet Indo-Pacific.
View event →with Billy Mitchell
Reflecting on nearly 18 months as the Department of Defense’s first Customer Experience Officer — what got built, what’s next, and where AI fits into CX.
Listen →S2 E8 — “Design at Scale with Savan Kong”
Introducing design thinking into a massive, complex organization — building alliances with key stakeholders, finding organizational leverage points, and developing design infrastructure that scales.
Listen →with Jason Pickart
The DoD’s approach to UX, the role of the CXO, and the DoD–VA integration case study — at the same conference where Fulcrum was unveiled.
View event →“Building a Resilient Government with Secure Automation”
A panel on strengthening resilience in government through secure automation, at DefenseScoop’s DefenseTalks 2024.
View event →Speaker profile for the UX Portfolio Management Office role at the DoD CIO, at ServiceNow’s annual federal conference.
View profile →“Seeing the Power of Privilege at Play”
From South Seattle and the Khmer Rouge, to Lakeside School, to the Pentagon — on privilege, grit, and the resources that shape who gets to succeed.
Listen →This list is pulled from public event archives and press coverage, so it may not be complete.
If you’re interested in having me speak at your event, conference, or panel, reach out on LinkedIn with a brief summary of what you have in mind.
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