The Pentagon on Tuesday announced Eric Chewning as the next chief of staff to acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan.

Chewning, 41, who manages industrial policy for the Pentagon, was tapped in late 2017 to help the Pentagon spearhead an investigation into the state of defense manufacturing in the United States.

Chewning left an investment banker job at Morgan Stanley following the 9/11 terrorist attacks to enlist in the Army and was later commissioned as an Army intelligence officer. He then returned to the private sector before joining the DoD as a partner at McKinsey & Co.

"Mr. Chewning brings an array of military and industry experience to the role," the Pentagon's acting chief spokesperson Charles Summers said in a Pentagon release.

The news comes amid speculation whether Shanahan, a former Boeing executive, will stay on as Defense Secretary.

President Donald Trump has said he is in "no hurry" to replace Shanahan, telling reporters "I sort of like 'acting'" because "it gives me more flexibility."

Chewning, Summers said, "was a trusted adviser to the department's senior leadership while working across the interagency on a range of issues."

He "looks forward to continuing his service in his new capacity alongside the soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines, and civilians of the Department of Defense," he added.