Former Navy SEAL To Speak At Christ Church Greenwich On Sept. 11

GREENWICH, CT — Mike Hayes, a former Navy SEAL who eared a Bronze Star for his service in Afghanistan, will speak at Christ Church Greenwich in September.

Titled "Living Lives of Meaning and Purpose: Lessons Learned from a Navy SEAL," Hayes' talk will take place in-person in the Christ Church Greenwich Parish Hall and via a streaming link on the church's website at 11:15 a.m., on Sept. 11. The event is free and open to the public, and coffee, tea and light breakfast will be served.

Hayes is currently the chief digital transformation officer at VMware and leads the company’s worldwide business operations and the acceleration of the company’s SaaS transition. Prior to joining VMware, Hayes served as senior vice president and head of strategic operations for Cognizant Technologies, where he ran a $2 billion P&L for Cognizant’s largest financial services clients.

Prior to becoming the CEO and COO at Bridgewater Associates, Hayes spent 20 years in the U.S. Navy SEALs as one of 19 graduates from a class of 120. Hayes served throughout South America, Europe, the Middle East and Central Asia, including the conflicts in Bosnia, Kosovo, Iraq and Afghanistan. His last job in the Navy was the commanding officer of SEAL Team TWO, which included 10 months as the commander of a 2,000-person Special Operations Task Force in southeastern Afghanistan.

Before that, Hayes was selected as a White House Fellow ('08/'09) and served two years as director, defense policy and strategy at the National Security Council. In the Bush Administration, Hayes was responsible for the START Treaty, where he produced a new proposed START Treaty and flew to Russia for negotiations.

In the Obama administration, he led the White House response to President Obama's first major foreign policy showdown - the hijacking of the Maersk Alabama off the coast of Somalia. Prior to the White House Fellowship, Hayes served as the deputy commander for all special operations in Anbar Province, Iraq. Hayes holds a master's degree in public policy from Harvard's Kennedy School and received his bachelor's from Holy Cross College, where he was an active Big Brother.

Hayes published his book in 2021, "Never Enough: A Navy SEAL Commander on Living a Life of Excellence, Agility, and Meaning."

Hayes is also on the boards of Immuta, a data governance company, and the National Medal of Honor Museum. He is a lifetime member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and is fluent in German and Spanish.

For more information, click here.