Professional Biography
Visionary leader rooted in aerospace innovation, national service, and technology enterprise transformation—partnering to shape enduring legacies through strategic action, societal advancement, and mission-aligned governance.

Born and raised in North Carolina, Molly Mae Potter developed an early passion for aviation, science, and space that would define her extraordinary career spanning military service, aerospace innovation, and Fortune 100 technology leadership. Her journey from NASA research laboratories to combat zones in Afghanistan, and ultimately to C-suite executive roles, exemplifies the power of technical expertise combined with purpose-driven leadership.

Early Career & NASA Innovation
Molly Mae's technical foundation began at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, where she earned her Bachelor of Science in Engineering Physics. This led her to NASA's astrobiology research team, where she invented and patented groundbreaking technology for detecting biomarkers in geological materials—innovations that became integral to two Mars Rover missions. Her NASA work established her as a rising star in aerospace engineering and set the stage for a career defined by transforming complex technical challenges into breakthrough solutions.

Military Service & Combat Leadership
In 2007, driven by a deep commitment to national service, Molly Mae joined the United States Air Force, serving as a flight test engineer and USSOCOM acquisition specialist. Her military career culminated in a combat deployment to Afghanistan with Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) in 2010. During this deployment, she was injured in a blast but continued her service until receiving an honorable discharge in 2013. Her military experience instilled the leadership principles of resilience, strategic thinking, and mission-first execution that would later drive her corporate success.

Veteran Advocacy & National Impact
Following her military service, Molly Mae emerged as a powerful advocate for veterans' rights and health. In 2015, she and her service dog Bella testified before Congress on the transformative benefits of trained service dogs in the healing process for combat veterans. Their compelling testimony helped establish the groundwork for the PAWS Act, securing Department of Defense funding for service dogs within the VA healthcare system—legislation that has improved countless veterans' lives.
Her advocacy work reached new heights when she was crowned Ms. Veteran America in 2016, a platform she used to champion women veterans' healthcare and garner national attention for veteran issues. She has since become a recognized national champion for Afghan refugee resettlement, securing local and state funding for refugee support and job opportunities, while serving as a commissioner for veterans' affairs.

Fortune 500 Technology Leadership
Molly Mae's transition from military service to corporate leadership began at Dell Technologies, where she spent over seven years in increasingly senior roles within the Client Solutions Group. Her tenure culminated as Director of Client Solutions Group Security Governance, where she built and led a 45-person global security governance team, managed a $20M budget, and secured 110,000+ assets across 118 global labs in five countries.

Her exceptional performance at Dell led to her appointment as Vice President of GreenLake Cloud Platform Security and Compliance at Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE), effectively serving as Chief Product Security Officer. In this role, she oversaw security and compliance governance for HPE's global cloud ecosystem. Under her leadership, HPE achieved its first SOC2 Type 2 certification in just seven months, reduced vulnerabilities by 91% in three months, and cut incident response time by 81% while reducing financial loss risk by 94% across 140 cloud clusters.

Entrepreneurial Innovation & AI Security Leadership
In August 2025, Molly Mae founded Salem CSO Partners, a women-led network committed to redefining transparency and trust in product security and business transformation. As CEO and Founder, she leads the delivery of Virtual Chief Product Security Officer services and comprehensive AI security advisory solutions, helping organizations navigate the AI revolution with expert-led governance frameworks.

Salem CSO Partners represents the convergence of her technical expertise, strategic leadership experience, and commitment to ethical innovation. The company provides Security for AI Advisory services, helping organizations proactively manage AI-related risks, ensure compliance, and build resilient AI-driven systems with clear governance and ethical standards.

Education & Technical Expertise
Molly Mae's educational foundation reflects her multidisciplinary approach to innovation:

Master of Science, Technology Commercialization, University of Texas McCombs School of Business (2018)
Master of Science, Materials Science and Engineering – Metallurgy, University of Florida
Bachelor of Science, Engineering Physics, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University

Her technical expertise spans enterprise transformation strategy, AI governance for data and security, digital operations automation, and compliance frameworks including SOC2, FedRAMP, ISO 27001, and CMMC. She maintains certifications across AWS, Azure, and GCP cloud platforms, while specializing in Zero Trust architecture and AI security and ethics.

Speaking & Thought Leadership
As a nationally recognized keynote speaker, Molly Mae has delivered presentations at major industry conferences, including a keynote address at the 2023 RSA Conference on "Building Partner-Based Security Organizations." Her speaking topics span AI security and governance leadership, organizational transformation, veteran leadership and resilience, and women in STEM leadership. She was named a National Military Influencer in 2017 and continues to be a sought-after voice on technology transformation and veteran advocacy.

Civic Leadership & Recognition
Molly Mae's commitment to service extends beyond her professional accomplishments through extensive civic engagement:

Trustee, Board of Trustees, Arnold Air Society and Silver Wings (2019-Present)
Board Director, Air and Space Forces Association (2019-2022)
Board Member, Det Bozeman (2021-2024)
Member, Chief (Global community of senior executive women) (2024-2025)
Member, Air and Space Forces Association (2004-Present)

Her recognitions include being named National Military Influencer (2017) and Ms. Veteran America (2016)

Personal Life & Values
Molly Mae currently resides in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, with her husband and their young daughter. True to her aviation roots, she never passes up the chance to look up whenever an airplane flies overhead—a reminder of the passion that launched her remarkable journey from small-town North Carolina to national leadership in technology, security, and veteran advocacy.

Her career exemplifies the unique value that veterans bring to corporate leadership: the ability to translate strategic vision into operational execution, build resilient teams under pressure, and maintain unwavering commitment to mission success while never leaving anyone behind.