Laboratories Director
As the Director of Sandia National Laboratories, Laura McGill provides leadership and management direction for the safe and secure execution of all Sandia missions.
Before her appointment as Labs Director on May 1, 2025, Laura served as the Deputy Laboratories Director for Nuclear Deterrence and Chief Technology Officer since January 2021. In that role, she was responsible for ensuring the safety, security, reliability, effectiveness and modernization of the U.S. nuclear stockpile. She guided Sandia’s contributions to nuclear weapon systems engineering, development and surveillance. As Chief Technology Officer, she led strategic initiatives and the development of emerging technologies, positioning Sandia to meet future national security challenges.
Laura has worked in the defense industry for more than four decades.
Before joining Sandia, Laura served as deputy vice president of engineering at Raytheon Missiles & Defense, a Raytheon Technologies business with 30,000 employees, including 15,000 engineers and scientists. She oversaw development and operational support for advanced weapons systems for the Department of Defense.
Before that, she was vice president of engineering for Raytheon Missile Systems, leading an organization of 7,800 engineers and scientists developing and producing weapons for the U.S. military and Department of Defense. She was responsible for systems performance, technical execution, test and flight operations, technology investment, engineering career development and capital investments.
Prior to vice president, Laura was chief engineer for the $2 billion Air Warfare Systems program portfolio, which included Tomahawk cruise missiles, air-to-air combat systems and precision strike weapons.
In 2019, Laura was inducted into the National Academy of Engineering. She is also a Lifetime Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and served as its president from 2022 to 2024. She has taught numerous graduate courses in systems engineering as an adjunct faculty member at Johns Hopkins University Whiting School of Engineering.
Laura holds a bachelor’s degree in aeronautical and astronautical engineering from the University of Washington and a master’s degree in aerospace systems from West Coast University.
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