Yesterday, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel swore in Robert Work as the new Deputy Secretary of Defense. Work succeeds Ashton Carter who stepped down late last year.

Christine Fox, who has been serving as Acting Deputy Secretary since February, issued a statement congratulating Work and thanking Secretary Hagel for the opportunity to serve.

Prior to his confirmation, Work was the Chief Executive Officer at the Center for a New American Security. He previously serve in the Department of Defense as the Under Secretary of the Navy from 2009 until 2013. From 2002 until 2009 Work served as a Senior Fellow for Maritime Affairs and Vice President for Strategic Studies for the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments (CSBA). He also served on President Obama’s DoD transition team in 2008 and has also been an adjunct professor for Defense Analysis and Roles and Missions of the Armed Forces at the George Washington University.

He is a 27-year veteran of the Marine Corps. In his last military assignment, Work served as Military Assistant and Senior Aide to then Secretary of the Navy Richard Danzig.

In a statement following the swearing-in ceremony at the Pentagon Work said he looks forward to “ensuring our service members, civilians, and contractors have everything they need to protect our great nation and accomplish what we ask of them.”