United States Deputy Secretary of Defense

United States Deputy Secretary of Defense
Seal of the Department
Flag of the Deputy Secretary
Incumbent Kathleen Hicks since February 8, 2021
Department of Defense Office of the Secretary
Style	Madam Deputy Secretary (informal) The Honorable (formal)
Status	Chief operating officer
Reports to	Secretary
Seat	The Pentagon, Arlington County, Virginia
Appointer	The President with Senate advice and consent
Term length	No fixed term
Constituting instrument	10 U.S.C. § 132
Formation	1949[1]
First holder	Stephen Early[1] May 2, 1949
Succession	1st in SecDef succession
Salary	Executive Schedule, level II[2]
Website	www.defense.gov

The deputy secretary of defense (acronym: DepSecDef) is a statutory office (10 U.S.C. § 132) and the second-highest-ranking official in the Department of Defense of the United States of America.

The deputy secretary is the principal civilian deputy to the secretary of defense, and is appointed by the president, with the advice and consent of the Senate. The deputy secretary, by statute, is designated as the DoD chief management officer and must be a civilian, at least seven years removed from service as a commissioned officer on active-duty at the date of appointment.^[3]

The current deputy secretary of defense is Kathleen Hicks, effective February 8, 2021. Hicks is the first woman to serve in this role.