CEO at Southeast Crescent Regional Commission (2024-01 – Present)
Lead a newly established federal–state commission governed by a Federal Co-Chair and six Governors, advancing economic development and infrastructure investment across six states (428 counties; 51M+ residents).
- Built the Commission's capital allocation and program execution system: evaluation criteria, compliance, financial controls, and performance accountability. Enabled consistent and defensible funding decisions.
- Launched and scaled competitive funding cycles, deploying $18.9M in the inaugural cycle and $34.8M in the second, leveraging $47.1M and $87.7M respectively in additional investment.
- Converted an unstructured $6.5M USDA funding stream into an operating grant program within 90 days; 6 of 7 projects reached full notice to proceed in the first quarter.
- Oversight responsibility for $20M in annual financial/administrative operations, with a focus on regulatory compliance, audit readiness, and service delivery reliability.
- Advancing an AI-enabled grants management platform to automate intake, compliance screening, and performance tracking, converting a manual process into a scalable, data-driven system that improves decision quality and staff capacity.
Founder/CEO at 10X Leadership Consulting (2022-06 – 2024-01)
Built a boutique advisory practice supporting leaders across public, private, and nonprofit organizations—executive coaching, board development, and strategy execution.
- Coached senior teams through change, leadership transitions, and talent development—focused on clarity, accountability, and execution discipline.
- Developed and delivered leadership frameworks ("Leadership: It's More Than a Title") and authored Triumphant Transitions.
CEO at Santee-Lynches Regional Council of Governments (2017-10 – 2022-01)
Led a turnaround across a multi-jurisdiction organization serving 15 cities and 4 counties (223,000 residents), improving execution discipline and restoring collaboration across stakeholders.
- Drove a performance and culture reset that reached 95% employee engagement and a 250% productivity increase; recognized nationally (9-for-9 awards; top 15% of a 540-member association).
- Secured $14.1M in grant funding over four years (167% more than the prior decade) while strengthening the underlying systems that supported repeat wins.
- Delivered visible, place-based results: $34M main-street realignment (supporting new business activity) and $8M industrial corridor expansion (supporting business growth).
- Closed a 14% gender wage gap for frontline female staff through policy and compensation reform, achieving near-total equity (–1.02%).
- Led a multi-jurisdictional public health partnership spanning 4 counties & 6 school districts, delivering $858K COVID-19 mitigation initiative at no cost to local stakeholders and safeguarding daily transportation for 33,000+ students.
- Directed $42M rural infrastructure investment through SCDOT, delivering high-impact economic development results.
- Completed $34M downtown road realignment; increased pedestrian access & catalyzed 12 new businesses.
- Launched $8M road expansion in growing industrial corridor; enabled 3 business expansions.
Senior Executive (Retired) at United States Air Force (1987 – 2017)
Served as a senior executive leading large, mission-critical operations across domestic and deployed environments, responsible for enterprise strategy, daily operations, workforce readiness, and institutional continuity.
- Co-led organizations supporting workforces of up to 8,500 personnel, managing $352M annual budgets and $4.3B in infrastructure assets, while ensuring operational reliability under high-risk and highly regulated conditions.
- Led operations in active combat environments, overseeing multi-division aviation and logistics platforms supporting more than 1,100 personnel, while maintaining full mission execution in dynamic, high-threat conditions.
- Directed cross-functional initiatives integrating operations, health, and logistics, including the launch of an on-site medical capability supporting 2,000+ personnel, improving access to care and increasing workforce productivity by 25%.
- Led high-stakes asset consolidation and redeployment efforts across multiple operating theaters, relocating 20+ aircraft, increasing mission effectiveness by 42%, and reducing logistical complexity without disruption to operations.
- Built and sustained public–private and interagency partnerships, aligning diverse stakeholders to deliver outcomes in environments characterized by operational risk, political complexity, and resource constraints.
- Recognized with the Legion of Merit and the Bronze Star, two of the U.S. military's highest leadership awards, conferred only for exceptional performance and sustained executive leadership in complex, high-risk environments.
