“General Bassett is deeply respected across the Department of Defense community and widely recognized as an innovative leader and subject matter expert,” said former Defense Secretary Bill Cohen, Chairman of The Cohen Group. “Our clients will benefit greatly from his expertise on technological modernization and his impressive experience managing complex programs and large-scale acquisitions.”
LTG Bassett recently concluded a distinguished 35-year military career and most recently served as Director of the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA), leading the agency responsible for ensuring the DoD, other federal agencies, and partner nation customers receive the equipment they need. His responsibilities included oversight of 12,000 military and civilian personnel managing more than 300,000 contracts, performed at 15,000 locations worldwide, with a total value in excess of $3.5 trillion.
Throughout his career, LTG Bassett has played a central role in modernizing warfighter capabilities and outpacing potential threats. Among other accomplishments, he was responsible for modernizing the Army's tactical network, highlighting his deep technical and operational understanding of the rapidly evolving Army and Joint command and control and its critical role in national security.
His previous assignments include Army Program Executive Officer for Command, Control, and Communications-Tactical (PEO C3T), Program Executive Officer for Ground Combat Systems (PEO GCS), Deputy Program Executive Officer for Combat Support and Combat Service Support (PEO CS&CSS), and manager of the Joint Program Office, Joint Light Tactical Vehicles (JLTV).
LTG Bassett completed his Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering and Master’s degree in Computer Science, both from the University of Virginia, where he was also commissioned into the Signal Corps through ROTC. He is a graduate of the Army Command and General Staff College and a distinguished graduate of the Industrial College of the Armed Forces.
In addition to his work with The Cohen Group, LTG Bassett serves on the Board of Directors for the National Contract Management Association.
LTG Bassett joins a distinguished group of senior leaders at The Cohen Group who provide strategic guidance and assistance to the firm's clients, including:
- General Joseph Ralston, former NATO Supreme Allied Commander and former Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff;
- Ambassador Marc Grossman, former U.S. Ambassador to Turkey, former Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, and former U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan and a Career Ambassador;
- General Jim Mattis, former U.S. Secretary of Defense, former Commander of U.S. Central Command and U.S. Joint Forces Command, and former Supreme Allied Commander Transformation;
- General Paul Kern, former Commander of the Army Materiel Command and former Senior Advisor for Army Research, Development, and Acquisition;
- Lord George Robertson, former NATO Secretary General and former Defense Minister of the United Kingdom;
- Ambassador Arun Singh, former Indian Ambassador to the United States, France, and Israel;
- Air Chief Marshall Sir Angus Houston, former Chief of the Australian Defense Forces and former Chief of the Australian Air Force;
- Ambassador Jeff Davidow, former U.S. Ambassador to Mexico, Venezuela, and Zambia and a Career Ambassador;
- Ambassador Mike McKinley, former Senior Advisor to the Secretary of State, former U.S. Ambassador to Brazil, Afghanistan, Colombia, and Peru and a Career Ambassador;
- General Mike Scaparrotti, former Supreme Allied Commander, Europe, and Commander of U.S. European Command, and former Commander of U.S. Forces Korea UNC, CFC;
- General Tim Radford, former Deputy Supreme Allied Commander, Europe, and UK Ministry of Defence Head of Overseas Operations;
- Lieutenant General Harry Raduege, former Director of the Defense Information Systems Agency and former Manager of the National Communications System;
- Lieutenant General Edward Cardon, former director of the U.S. Army of Business Transformation and former Head of the Army Cyber Command;
- Lieutenant General Charles Hooper, former Director of the Defense Security Cooperation Agency, former U.S. Defense Attaché to China, and former Director of Strategy, Plans, and Programs at U.S. Africa Command;
- Major General Kim Crider, former Chief Technology and Innovation Officer for the United States Space Force and former Chief Data Officer for the United States Air Force;
- Ellen Embrey, former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Force Health Protection and Readiness; and
- Dave Rank, former Deputy Chief of Mission and Chargé d'Affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing.
Formed in 2001, The Cohen Group is comprised of more than 80 professionals with many decades of combined experience working in top-level positions in Congress, the White House, the State Department, the Defense Department, the Department of Homeland Security, the intelligence community, and other federal agencies and in European and Asian governments, international organizations, and the private sector.
With offices in Washington, London, Beijing, Tianjin, New Delhi, and Brisbane, The Cohen Group provides its private business clients the insights needed to better understand and shape the business, political, legal, regulatory, and media environments in which they operate. This includes both developing strategic business plans to help clients achieve their objectives and actively participating with clients in the execution of those plans.
The Cohen Group also has a strong strategic partnership with DLA Piper, a global law firm with lawyers located in more than 40 countries throughout the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific.