James Merrill
National Imagery Program Manager
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About
National Imagery Program Manager – FPAC-GEO, USDA
(Principal Product Leader in scope and duties)
Cloud Modernization | Data Platforms | AI-Ready Architecture
I specialize in transforming legacy systems into cloud-native, AI-ready platforms at national scale. As National Imagery Program Manager for USDA FPAC, I led a portfolio of 6 national product lines with dual deliverables through a 16 PB AWS migration, delivering:
- 1 PB+ annual ingestion throughput across 5 national endpoints
- 75% faster delivery (cycle time reduced from 12 months to 90 days)
- 99.9%+ reliability with zero service degradation during migration
- $3M annual cost savings through intelligent storage tiering and lifecycle automation
- $12.8M modernization investment secured, unlocking $50M–$250M downstream enterprise value
- Authored $180M fiscal and technical framework, managing $30M/year contract authority
- Leadership of 5–10 concurrent cross-functional teams and a 7-vendor ecosystem, fully remote since 2020
- Migrated 22-year legacy systems to AWS cloud-native architecture
- Delivered AI-ready pipelines (COG/STAC compliance) and data mesh architecture
- Established governance frameworks (Change Control Board, metadata standards, ingestion SLAs)
- Supported multi-agency missions (USGS, FEMA, NRCS) and disaster recovery programs
Experience
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National Imagery Program Manager – FPAC-GEO, USDA
(Principal Product Leader in scope and duties)
Cloud Modernization | Data Platforms | AI-Ready Architecture
With 29 years of combined federal and military experience, I specialize in transforming legacy systems into cloud-native, AI-ready platforms at national scale. As National Imagery Program Manager for USDA FPAC, I led a portfolio of 6 national product lines with dual deliverables through a 16 PB AWS migration, delivering:
- 1 PB+ annual ingestion throughput across 5 national endpoints
- 75% faster delivery (cycle time reduced from 12 months to 90 days)
- 99.9%+ reliability with zero service degradation during migration
- $3M annual cost savings through intelligent storage tiering and lifecycle automation
- $12.8M modernization investment secured, unlocking $50M–$250M downstream enterprise value
- Authored $180M fiscal and technical framework, managing $30M/year contract authority
- Leadership of 5–10 concurrent cross-functional teams and a 7-vendor ecosystem, fully remote since 2020
- Migrated 22-year legacy systems to AWS cloud-native architecture
- Delivered AI-ready pipelines (COG/STAC compliance) and data mesh architecture
- Established governance frameworks (Change Control Board, metadata standards, ingestion SLAs)
- Supported multi-agency missions (USGS, FEMA, NRCS) and disaster recovery programs
1997-2020
Highlights
- Led mission-critical operations and technology initiatives under high-stakes conditions.
- Managed multi-million-dollar assets and teams across global deployments.
- Developed leadership, risk management, and compliance expertise foundational to enterprise-scale programs.
Education
Bachelor of Science, University of Phoenix a { text-decoration: none; color: #464feb; } tr th, tr td { border: 1px solid #e6e6e6; } tr th { background-color: #f5f5f5; }
FAC-P/PM Level III – Federal Acquisition Certification for Program & Project Managers
Signifies mastery in acquisition governance, lifecycle management, and fiscal oversight for large-scale federal programs.
Additional Highlights:
- 29 years combined federal and military experience
- Expertise in $180M fiscal frameworks and $30M/year contract authority
- Advanced leadership in modernization and compliance-driven environments
