Mark W. Sopp was named SAIC's chief financial officer and executive vice president in November 2005. He joined SAIC with more than 18 years of finance experience, after most recently serving as chief financial officer and treasurer of The Titan Corporation. Sopp began his career with Arthur Andersen & Co. in May 1987, where he practiced as a certified public accountant. He supervised financial statement audit engagements for a variety of clients and industries, including wholesale/distribution, government contracting, manufacturing and non-profit. In February 1990, Sopp was recruited by Taylor Made Golf Company, Inc., a large international manufacturer and distributor of golf equipment, to become their senior accountant. He was promoted several times and held various financial management and director positions at Taylor Made resulting from his financial leadership and improvement initiatives. Sopp was director, international controller when he left Taylor Made to join The Titan Corporation in December 1998. At Titan he was director of finance and business operations for the company's defense division, Titan Systems Corporation, and was responsible for executing an aggressive acquisition, growth and integration campaign. Within the first year he was promoted to vice president of Finance and Business Operations for Titan Systems. He was promoted again in May 2001 to become the senior vice president, chief financial officer and treasurer for the parent company, Titan Corporation. In this role he led the organization through a shift from a conglomerate model to a pure-play defense provider, and through a period of significant growth. Sopp received a bachelor's degree in accountancy from New Mexico State University in 1987, and completed the executive program from The Anderson School at UCLA in 1998.