The Brotocracy That Sustains the Manels
A Manel is a panel made up entirely of men. Government contracting conferences produce them year after year. The associations that convene those conferences are run by men.
Nine national trade associations in government contracting publish their leadership. Eight publish a senior paid executive. Seven of those eight are men. The Professional Services Council also seats a woman as President under its chief executive. The one woman running an association is at Women In Defense, an organization created for women and housed inside the National Defense Industrial Association. The HUBZone Contractors National Council publishes no chief executive.
Three of these seats passed from a woman to a man in about two years. Two changed in 2026. The National Defense Industrial Association replaced board chair Lisa Disbrow with John Bonsell on August 25, 2026. AFCEA International replaced chief executive Susan Lawrence with Bruce Crawford in June 2026. At the Native American Contractors Association, a co-chair seat held by a woman is now held by a man. No seat passed from a man to a woman.
These are the people who govern the conferences. Seven of eight senior executives are men. That is a brotocracy that helps create and sustain the Manels. Long before Secretary Hegseth asked for testosterone checks, the Manels had it down.
Compiling these statistics is easy. They are public sources. Methodology available at Outlook Law Legal Updates.
Sources
Nat’l Def. Indus. Ass’n, NDIA Announces New Board Leadership (Aug. 25, 2026), https://www.ndia.org/about/press/press-releases/2026/8/25/ndia-bod (last visited Sept. 13, 2026).
AFCEA International Board Appoints Lt. Gen. Bruce T. Crawford, USA (Ret.) as Next President and CEO, GlobeNewswire (Apr. 15, 2026), https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2026/04/15/3274572/0/en/afcea-international-board-appoints-lt-gen-bruce-crawford-usa-ret-as-next-president-and-ceo.html (last visited Sept. 13, 2026).
AFCEA Int’l, AFCEA Senior Leadership, https://www.afcea.org/about-afcea/afcea-senior-leadership (last visited Sept. 13, 2026).
Native Am. Contractors Ass’n, About, https://nativecontractors.org/about/ (last visited Sept. 13, 2026).
Nat’l Contract Mgmt. Ass’n, Program Year 2027 Board of Directors, https://www.ncmahq.org/Web/About/Leadership/Board-of-Directors.aspx (last visited Sept. 13, 2026).
Prof’l Servs. Council, Jim Carroll Bio, https://www.pscouncil.org/a/Bios/PSC_Staff/Jim_Carroll_Bio.aspx; Stephanie Sanok Kostro Bio, https://www.pscouncil.org/a/Bios/PSC_Staff/Stephanie_Sanok_Kostro_Bio.aspx; Executive Leadership, https://www.pscouncil.org/psc/About/d/__p/ca/Executive_Leadership.aspx (last visited Sept. 13, 2026).
Soc’y of Am. Mil. Eng’rs, Leadership, https://www.same.org/about-same/leadership/ (last visited Sept. 13, 2026).
Nat’l Veteran Small Bus. Coal., Coalition Leadership, https://nvsbc.org/about-us/coalition-leadership/ (last visited Sept. 13, 2026).
HUBZone Contractors Nat’l Council, Board of Directors Profiles, https://hubzonecouncil.org/Board-of-Directors-Profiles (last visited Sept. 13, 2026).
Women In Def., National Staff, https://www.womenindefense.net/contact-wid/staff; National Council, https://www.womenindefense.net/about-wid/national-council; Nat’l Def. Indus. Ass’n, Colonel Audricia “Driece” D. McKinney, USA (Ret.), https://www.ndia.org/leadership-bios/audricia-mckinney_staff (last visited Sept. 13, 2026).
Madison Czopek, As Hegseth Pursues a High-T Military, Here’s What to Know About Testosterone Replacement, PBS News (July 26, 2026), https://www.pbs.org/newshour/health/as-hegseth-pursues-a-high-t-military-heres-what-to-know-about-testosterone-replacement (last visited Sept. 13, 2026).