Profile
Dr. Nayantara Hensel has done extensive work over the past two decades on the defense industrial base. The importance of critical materials (such as rare earths) on supply chains, national security budgeting and strategy, and energy markets, as well as the impact of economic forces and regulatory initiatives across a variety of industries, including housing.
She is the Chief Economist and Senior Advisor for Seaborne Defense and is a member of the Secretary of the Air Force’s Advisory Group. She previously served as the Chief Economist for the Department of the Navy where she played a significant role in defense industrial base issues, budget issues, and acquisition policy development. She subsequently served as Professor of Industry and Business at NDU’s Eisenhower School, where she played a significant leadership role in the development of the defense resourcing program.
In 2013, she was awarded the Department of Defense Joint Civilian Service Commendation Medal. She also taught at the Naval Postgraduate School, Harvard University, and the Stern School of Business at New York University. Dr. Hensel has also focused on the impact of economic forces on financial stability across industries and developed regulations in her role as Chief Economist of PCAOB and the Director of the Office of Economic and Risk Analysis, as well as during her six years at FHFA leading economic teams in analyzing changes in the housing market and regulatory initiatives. Dr. Hensel received her B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. from Harvard University, where she graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa and specialized in economics and finance.
Dr. Hensel authored The Defense Industrial Base: Strategies for a Changing World (which has been published in hardback, paperback, and Kindle), as well as has written over 60 articles and research reports, including 25 articles in peer-reviewed journals and books.
Sessions