Skip Links
U.S. Department of State
Enhancing the U.S.-ASEAN Partnership  |  Daily Press Briefing | What's NewU.S. Department of State
U.S. Department of State
SEARCHU.S. Department of State
Subject IndexBookmark and Share
U.S. Department of State
HomeHot Topics, press releases, publications, info for journalists, and morepassports, visas, hotline, business support, trade, and morecountry names, regions, embassies, and morestudy abroad, Fulbright, students, teachers, history, and moreforeign service, civil servants, interns, exammission, contact us, the Secretary, org chart, biographies, and more
Video
 You are in: Under Secretary for Management > Bureau of Diplomatic Security > News from the Bureau of Diplomatic Security > Bureau of Diplomatic Security: Senior Leadership 

Biography

Bureau of Diplomatic Security
Washington, D.C.

Stephen J. Mergens
Executive Director, Bureau of Diplomatic Security

As Executive Director, Mr. Mergens oversees the Bureau’s management policies and strategic planning, information technology programs, financial management, human resources, contracting and procurement, and logistics in support of DS’ global mission. He was named DS Executive Director on Feb. 26, 2007.

From August 2004 to February 2007, Mr. Mergens served as the Director of the DS Office of Security Technology (ST), comprised of 200 Security Engineering Officers, 95 Security Technical Specials, 30 civil servants, and 400 contractors, with an annual budget in excess of $100 million. As ST Director, Mr. Mergens devised and implemented a strategy to transform ST into a center of program management excellence and scrupulous fiscal stewardship.

While assigned overseas, Mr. Mergens served as the first Technical Exchange Officer with the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Canberra (1996-1998); Regional Director for Security Engineering in Frankfurt, Germany (2003-2004); Officer-in-Charge of the Engineering Services Center (ESC) in Pretoria, South Africa (1990-1993); and as Security Engineering Officer, ESC Frankfurt, Germany (1988-1990).

Mr. Mergens also has extensive domestic managerial and leadership experience in the DS Countermeasures Directorate, having served in the ST Emanations Security Branch (1987-1988); Chief of the Physical Security Programs Division of Protective Equipment and Logistics (1998-2001); and Chief of ST’s Facilities Security Engineering Division (2001- August 2003).

Mr. Mergens graduated from Texas A & M University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering and from the U.S. Department of Defense Joint Military Intelligence College. After private sector experience with Shell Oil, Halliburton, operating a cable television company, and piloting manned and unmanned submersibles, he began his career with the State Department in 1987.

Mr. Mergens is the recipient of numerous Meritorious and Superior Honor awards and was named the Department’s Security Engineering Officer of the year in 2000.

July 31, 2007


  Back to top

U.S. Department of State
USA.govU.S. Department of StateUpdates  |  Frequent Questions  |  Contact Us  |  Email this Page  |  Subject Index  |  Search
The Office of Electronic Information, Bureau of Public Affairs, manages this site as a portal for information from the U.S. State Department. External links to other Internet sites should not be construed as an endorsement of the views or privacy policies contained therein.
About state.gov  |  Privacy Notice  |  FOIA  |  Copyright Information  |  Other U.S. Government Information

Published by the U.S. Department of State Website at http://www.state.gov maintained by the Bureau of Public Affairs.