“Former CIA Officer to Provide Tech Startup with Uniquely Informed Perspective on the
Importance of Trust in Government, the Intelligence Community, and Civic Bodies”
SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. (March 19, 2015) – Starling Trust Sciences today announced the addition of
Valerie Plame to its Advisory Board. A former CIA covert operations officer and critically
acclaimed author, Plame brings to Starling her unique experience of the role of trust in government
and security matters, helping to guide Starling’s development of technology tools that make visible
the trust networks that underlie organizational behavior.
“I am excited to join the Starling team and to support their development of 21st century people
analytics tools,” said Plame. “There is a growing awareness of the importance of culture in driving
the success of any organization. Less well understood is how culture flows from underlying trust
dynamics between individuals and teams. Starling’s ability to bring credible quantitative metrics
to qualitative management challenges is a game-‐changer. I am continually impressed by Starling’s
execution around their vision and I look forward to contributing to their growing success.”
As a career covert operations officer with the Central Intelligence Agency, Plame worked to protect
America’s national security and to prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
Valerie is the author of the New York Times best-‐selling memoir Fair Game: My Life as a Spy, My
Betrayal by the White House, which was released as a major motion picture. She has written for
Newsweek, CNN, The Daily Beast, The Huffington Post, and The Guardian on nuclear proliferation,
women in intelligence, and Edward Snowden’s revelations of the NSA’s data collection activities.
Plame is also the author of the Vanessa Pierson spy thriller series, which includes to date
Blowback and Burned.
“Valerie is an incredible addition to the team,” said Starling Founder and CEO Stephen Scott. “Few
can speak with such authority on the topic of trust – and breaches of trust – in government.
Throughout her career, Valerie has developed a truly extraordinary understanding of trust as a
driver of behavior in organizations, and she knows better than many how trust brings communities of
common cause together to achieve remarkable outcomes. She will be an invaluable voice moving
forward and I’m thrilled to have her guidance.”
In addition to her role at Starling, Plame works as a consultant to Warner Brothers TV and as
Director of Community Outreach at the Santa Fe Institute, a nonprofit and multidisciplinary think-‐tank
dedicated to the study of complex adaptive systems. She also serves on the boards of GlobalZero,
the United Way of Santa Fe County, the Penn State School of International Affairs, Postpartum
Support International, and is she is involved in local public school reform.
Starling Trust Sciences is a pioneering technology venture that aims to reimagine the ways in which
technology can support the cultivation of trust among strangers in order to boost collaborative
endeavors and value creation in all walks of life. In midst of a trust crisis at all level of
government, as well as in the private sector, Starling seeks to help government and businesses to
identify and build trust networks at scale.