Areas of Expertise
Based on decades of experience working across all three branches of government and with Fortune 500 companies, StonePoint Strategies gives leaders the insights needed for their organizations to achieve their goals in the corridors of the Pentagon, Intelligence Community, State Department, Congress, and working with other key decision-makers in this community.
Experience
Shelly Stoneman has over 25 years of experience working in all branches of the government and is able to use her wealth of knowledge to deliver actionable insights for her clients.
DC Know-How
No matter what your organization needs, StonePoint Strategies will be your partner for every step of the way.
Shelly O’Neill Stoneman is a seasoned global leader, trusted with managing complex business and policy issues at the highest levels of government and industry. She is the founder and principal of StonePoint Strategies, drawing upon her 25 years of experience working across all three branches of the U.S. Government and in the C-suite of Fortune 500 companies.
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Stoneman most recently served as senior vice president of Government Affairs for Lockheed Martin, one of the world’s largest aerospace and defense companies, with over 120,000 employees and sales over $71 billion in 2024. As one of the company’s corporate officers, she managed Lockheed’s activities with Congress and the Executive Branch, and directed all federal, state and local government customer relationships – efforts that ranged from saving the corporation billions of dollars in tax incentives to working closely with governors on workforce improvements. In this role, she regularly engaged with the corporation’s Board of Directors, advising on strategy and risk.​ ​Prior to joining Lockheed Martin in 2023, Stoneman led Government Relations at BAE Systems, Inc., where she oversaw engagement with the White House, Pentagon, State Department, and Intelligence Community for the global aerospace and defense company’s U.S. subsidiary.
In its own right, the U.S. division is one of the top 10 defense contractors in the United States, with a 2024 sales revenue of $17 billion. Over her 10 years with BAE Systems, Stoneman enabled billions of dollars in the company’s foreign military sales and direct commercial sales through engagement with the U.S. government and foreign embassies and managed the company’s engagement with a wide range of trade and advocacy organizations to secure favorable legislative outcomes in support of the business and its employees.
Before joining the private sector, Stoneman had a distinguished nearly 15-year career in public and nonprofit service, including at the Pentagon, the White House, and on Capitol Hill. From 2009-2011, she served as Special Assistant to President Obama, responsible for the defense and national security portfolio in the White House Office of Legislative Affairs. Stoneman worked closely with the White House, National Security Council, Department of Defense, and Congress to execute a variety of the president’s priorities. She then served as the Special Assistant to the Secretary of Defense and White House Liaison for three successive Secretaries of Defense.
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Earlier in her career, she served on Capitol Hill as the deputy chief of staff for a member of the House Appropriations Committee and as a committee staff member for a Senate authorization committee.
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Stoneman earned her bachelor’s degree from Vassar College and two Masters of Arts degrees: National Security Studies from the U.S. Naval War College and International Relations from the University of Oklahoma’s program in Europe.
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In her community, Stoneman recently served as the chair of the Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services (DACOWITS), personally appointed by the Secretary of Defense to oversee the historic panel that provides advice and policy recommendations regarding women’s service in the armed forces. She is a current board member of the Leadership Council for Women in National Security (LCWINS), a member of the Military Women’s Memorial Capital Committee, and previously served on the boards of Food for Others and the United Service Organizations (USO). Named by the Washingtonian Magazine in 2023 as one of the Most Powerful Women in Washington and repeatedly selected by The Hill as a Top Lobbyist, she was an inaugural JOURNEY to Lead Fellow and is a lifetime member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
