Advanced Program in Telecommunications Security and Public Sector Leadership
By Diane Garza
The Advanced Program in Telecommunications Security and Public Sector Leadership is a custom program designed by Georgetown University Latin America Leadership Program (LALP) for professionals from the Dominican Telecommunications Institute (INDOTEL).
This executive program examined how digital infrastructure decisions have become strategic choices that shape national competitiveness, institutional resilience, and public trust. Through an applied “tech + geopolitics” lens, participants explored how supply chains, standards, alliances, and long-term dependencies increasingly influence telecommunications policy and the real trade-offs leaders face when modernizing critical digital systems.
A central thread throughout the program was governance, and they explored how public institutions evaluate risk, define “trusted” partners, and design decision processes that are credible, transparent, and implementable at scale. Sessions connected high-level strategy to operational realities, including state capacity, administrative burden, and continuity planning, highlighting why sound policy design must be paired with the institutional capabilities required to execute it effectively.
The program featured Georgetown faculty and experts including Michael Sulmeyer on Technology & National Security, Ricardo Ernst on strategic competitiveness and risk in the digital era, Professor Anupam Chander on legal and governance frameworks shaping cross-border technology and data flows, Wouter Van Acker on state capacity for digital regulation and how policy works in practice, and Gulsanna Mamediieva on government digital transformation.
Participants also benefited from targeted briefings by Washington-based practitioners. The Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) session, led by Melissa Newman (SVP, Government Affairs) with insights from Nicholas Degani (CLDP, Cyber and Telecom subject-matter expert), offered an industry perspective on supply chain security and trusted infrastructure approaches. A briefing from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) provided a national security lens on evolving threats and the strategic implications for critical communications systems.
Across modules, the program blended academic frameworks with practical cases and decision tools, equipping participants to navigate uncertainty, assess risk responsibly, and make strategic decisions about digital infrastructure in a rapidly evolving global environment.