Jonna Mendez | Former CIA Chief of Disguise, Author, Speaker

Jonna Mendez

Former CIA Chief of Disguise, Author, Speaker

Jonna Mendez
Biography

In the captivating world of intelligence, espionage, and covert operations, Jonna Hiestand Mendez’s speeches immerse audiences into the adventures of an international spy. Starting as a secretary at the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Mendez eventually rose to the position of Chief of Disguise. Her path was unconventional, initially joining the CIA in Europe as a "contract wife," hired as a convenience to her husband’s career. In the best-
selling author’s next book (publication: March 2024), In True Face, A Woman’s Life in the CIA, Unmasked , she inspires with tales of intrigue. Through her experiences, Mendez witnessed firsthand the toll of a gendered culture, not only on the women working within the agency but also on its overall mission and the nation it serves. Now retired after dedicating 27 years of her life to the CIA, she emerges as a pioneer who defied the prevailing sexism of her time.

Mendez lived undercover for several decades, serving tours of duty in Europe, the Far East, and the Subcontinent, as well as at CIA Headquarters. In 1970, she joined the CIA’s Ofce of Technical Service, similar to “Q” in the Bond flms. Mendez specialized in training foreign assets to gather high-priority intelligence using subminiature spy cameras and other espionage technology.

Recognized as a future leader early on, Mendez was selected for an exclusive yearlong program designed for officers with high potential before being deployed overseas. As a result, she would add disguise and identity transformation to her extensive roster of skills. Upon her return to Langley in 1986, she focused on Denied Area Operations, facing of against the KGB, the East German Stasi, and the Cuban DGI. Promoted to Chief of Disguise in 1991, she ran a global multi-million-dollar program.

Mendez retired from the government in 1993, after which she co-authored several books with her late husband Tony Mendez, including Spy Dust, ARGO , and The Moscow Rules . Over her career, Mendez has briefed Presidents and Prime Ministers and lectured extensively at colleges and universities, ranging from WestPoint to the Sorbonne in Paris and multiple US intelligence agencies, including the CIA. She has also been featured in numerous TV documentaries and online media, one of which has been seen over 22 million times. On June 23, she received the prestigious DAR Patriot Award for “lifelong service to America in the defense of freedom.” Most recently, she spoke at Los Alamos National Laboratories.Mendez is also a founding member of the Advisory Board of the International Spy Museum in Washington, D.C., continuing to shape and infuence the intelligence world. 

On the page and on stages, Mendez tells her riveting, courageous story of being a female spy at the CIA during the height of the Cold War. She also recounts how she navigated the general culture of sexism at the time while never wavering in her patriotism.

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Undercover Boss

Jonna Mendez has fabricated disguises around the world, in the most hostile cities in the world. She is able to take a well-known figure and quickly disguise them to the level that they basically disappear and their colleagues would not be able to recognize them. This has proven to be an excellent way to bring her talks home to her audience, and she can combine the fascinating clandestine disguise of an “Undercover Boss” with any of her presentation topics below.

Female Spies
Clandestine Women

Jonna Mendez served 27 years undercover with the CIA, retiring as Chief of Disguise. She relates spy tales about a number of effective and not so effective female spies, and also discusses her own experiences, living and traveling around the world, operating in the alleyways of Europe, the Far East and the Subcontinent, in alias identities, participating in classic espionage operations.

Disguise, Deception and Illusion
Clandestine Operations Based on the Principles Of Magic

From Sun Tzu to the present, warfare has been conducted by the use of deception and illusion. Jonna Mendez, former Chief of Disguise for the CIA, reviews some of the most important deception operations throughout history. With the use of the art of magic, illusion and misdirection many enemies have been defeated without taking the field of battle. Jonna will recount stories of deception as used by the Allies in the Battle of El Alamein and “D” Day. From Hollywood she learned how to manage the “stage” on the streets of Moscow, delivering “performances” that helped win the Cold War. She also gives examples of how the “stage” of battle could be better managed today in the war against terrorism.

The Real “Q”
Gadgets and Technologies in Espionage Operations

Jonna served 27 years in the Office of Technical Service, the technical arm of the CIA’s operations directorate. She gives an overview of technical operations and the spy gear that made them unique. These gadgets were designed to keep foreign agents in place in hostile environments and to get them out of harm’s way when it was time. She finishes with an in-depth review of operational disguise and identity transformations operations where she tells stories of some of her life and death operations designed to elude surveillance and move intelligence agents and officers clandestinely around the world.

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Jonna Mendez

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