Speakers

Major-General (MGen) Iain Huddleston enrolled in the Canadian Armed Forces in 1989, graduating with a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering from the Royal Military College in 1994. After completing wings training in 1995, he flew with both 415 and 404 Maritime Patrol Squadrons flying the CP-140 Aurora at 14 Wing Greenwood in Nova Scotia. 

In late 2002, he was posted on exchange with the Royal Air Force (RAF) in Scotland, where he flew the Nimrod MR2 with 206 and then CXX Squadron. Promoted to Major in 2003, MGen Huddleston deployed to the Middle East twice with the RAF, operating from Muscat, Oman and Basrah, Iraq.  

Returning to Canada in August 2006, he was selected as aide-de-camp to the Chief of the Defence Staff, General (retired) Rick Hillier. 

In 2009, he was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel and appointed Commanding Officer 429 Transport Squadron, operating the CC-177 Globemaster III at 8 Wing Trenton. MGen Huddleston deployed to Kandahar Airfield in Afghanistan as the Joint Headquarters Plans Officer, serving thereafter with the Strategic Joint Staff and Defence Renewal Team in Ottawa.  He was promoted to Colonel in June 2013 and appointed Commanding Officer 14 Wing Greenwood where he led the Long Range Patrol Force in operationalizing and deploying the modernized Block III CP-140 Aurora on Operation IMPACT. 

In 2015, MGen Huddleston attended the Royal College of Defence Studies in London, UK and then returned to Canada to become Director Fleet Readiness at 1 Canadian Air Division Headquarters in Winnipeg, Manitoba. In June 2018, he was promoted to Brigadier-General and served as both 1 Canadian Air Division Deputy Commander Force Generation and Deputy Commander. Posted to the Air Staff in Ottawa in July 2020, he became Director General Air and Space Readiness and, upon his promotion to Major-General in May 2021, he served as Chief of Staff for the Canadian Joint Operations Command Headquarters. 

In July 2022, MGen Huddleston assumed command of 1 Canadian Air Division in Winnipeg, commanding the Division for two years until he was posted back to Ottawa in July 2024 as the Deputy Vice Chief of the Defence Staff. He has 5,600 total flying hours across several airframes and resides in Ottawa with his wife and two children.

Mr. McFarland is the Technical Director for the Capability & Resource Integration Directorate (J8) at United States Space Command. He serves as the principal technical advisor to the Director as the command establishes space warfighting requirements. He serves as the government program lead for the USSPACECOM Laboratory, overseeing science & technology investments and prototyping for the command. He also oversees the development of command analytic capability as represented by the Capability Assessment and Verification Environment (CAVE), a high-performance computing lab incorporating physics, engineering, and mission-level modeling tools.

Mr. McFarland has more than 15 years of experience with modeling, simulation, and analytics within the Department of Defense. His first position in the Department was at the Joint Warfare Analysis Center, where he led the command’s applied statistics community of interest and managed the development of innovative environmental and threat monitoring in support of multiple combatant commands. In subsequent positions in the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations and the Marine Corps’ Operational Analysis Directorate, he developed computational models supporting the services’ Program Objective Memorandum development and was the Marine Corps lead for a White House-directed study of munition divestment. He also published statistical reports on the Marine Corps’ officer training and Exceptional Family Members programs. He volunteered to deploy with the Marine Corps unit supporting crisis response in Africa and developed new techniques to prioritize senior leader engagements on the continent and support embassy emergency action plans.

As the Studies, Analysis, and Lessons Learned Chief at United States Air Forces Europe – Air Forces Africa (USAFE-AFAFRICA), Mr. McFarland was on the leading edge of a Department of the Air Force-wide effort to “operationalize” the operations research field, applying rigorous mathematical methods to command problems including force employment and near-peer deterrence. He also advanced relationships with NATO partners via integration with multiple NATO Science and Technology Organization research task groups. His work during this period led to recognition across the Air Force and joint analytic communities for high-impact support to service members in conflict environments in the present day. Mr. McFarland has extensive expertise in defense analytics, with particular emphasis on computational modeling and applied statistics. He designed the USAFE-AFAFRICA Pandemic Analysis – COA Evaluation & Recommendation (PACER) tool, based on advanced agent-based modeling techniques, which was used by multiple Air Force and joint commands to plan for continuity of operations during the COVID pandemic. He conducted first-of-its kind causal inference analysis of intelligence collections data that informed operational planning. He also led the rapid development of mission-level combat simulations in support of crisis operations in the EUCOM area of responsibility that demonstrated the utility of these models for real-world operational planning.

In addition to his professional work, Mr. McFarland has conducted statistical and game-theoretic analysis of congressional and judicial behavior which has been presented at professional academic conferences. He lives in Colorado Springs, Colorado with his wife Kit and daughter Evangeline (17). His oldest child Robin (19) attends Georgetown University.

Mr. Ficken is Chief Data and Artificial Intelligence Officer at Space Operations Command, Peterson SFB, Colorado Springs Colorado. He is responsible for enabling decision advantage by accelerating Space Operation Command’s adoption of data, analytics, and artificial intelligence within the kill web.

Leads diverse team of government and contractor professionals primarily composed of data scientists. His team is operationalizing automated target recognition from satellite imagery, integrating data from a key Space Force electromagnetic weapon system into the DOD and IC, and is improving mission planning by revealing untapped insights at scales that exceed human capacity. In August 2005, Mr. Ficken enlisted in the Navy where he completed Intelligence Specialist training and specialized in strike planning. His tours of duty included the Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center, a deployment on the USS Bonhomme Richard, and Cruise Missile Support Activity Atlantic. During these roles, he contributed to successful combat operations, generated all-source intelligence products, and generated hundreds of targeting packages including weapon solutions. After his enlistment ended in 2013, Mr. Ficken contributed to the development of future versions of the Tomahawk missile system as a defense contractor.

Following his work as a contractor, he transitioned to the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) in 2015. His assignments within the agency spanned four offices including, Source, Data Corps, Futures, and Analysis. Two of those assignments involved highly complex modeling and simulation of reconnaissance satellites. His analyses permanently improved national-level space architectures. He contributed to their data science program including hiring, and mentoring data professionals, earned a leadership role within the Supervisory Council, and was a Branch Chief. Prior to his current position, Mr. Ficken was the Data Analytics Branch Chief, U.S. Space Command, Peterson SFB, CO.

Richard Yu serves as the Director of the Digital Superiority Directorate (J6) and Chief information Officer for the United States Space Command (USSPACECOM). In his role, he ensures the robustness of command, control, communication, and computer systems, assuring USSPACECOM's global reach. Mr. Yu’s responsibilities include spearheading the command's Data, Analytics, and Artificial Intelligence implementation strategy into USSPACECOM's operations.

He is also responsible for designing, employing, and defending, USSPACECOM's Joint Communication System (JCS), a leap-ahead technology initiative in the efficiency and effectiveness of future Trans-Regional Missile Defense and space combat operations. Mr. Yu also holds the title of Authorization Official for Joint Space Mission Systems. This role places him in charge of ensuring the end-to-end cybersecurity compliance, managing cyber risks, and cryptographic modernization for USSPACECOM mission systems. Through hisleadership in digitalstrategy and cybersecurity, he plays a key role in maintaining and advancing the United States Space Command’s digital superiority.

Prior to his current position, Mr. Yu served as the senior executive Capability Developer for the U.S. Army’s Space, High Altitude and Strategic Missile Defense capabilities at the Space and Missile Defense Center of Excellence, U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command (USASMDC), with full responsibility to develop, direct, and execute plans and programs that allow USASMDC to accomplish its core mission and prepotency responsibilities. In this capacity, Mr. Yu led the development of Army’s first Space formation for the Theater Army with full complement of effects to conduct operations for space control, navigation warfare, tactical satellite operations, obfuscation, and high-altitude operations. In addition, Mr. Yu led the Title X capability development to complement the Strategic Missile Defense material solutions developed by the Missile Defense Agency to protect our nation and partners from strategic
missile threats.

Mr. Yu has over 33 years of operational and acquisition experience in government civilian positions within the Department of the Army, Department of the Air Force, Missile Defense Agency (MDA), North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and the Office of Secretary Defense (OSD). His operational experience includes serving in key leadership positions at the U.S. Strategic Command, Joint Functional Component Command for Integrated Missile Defense. His acquisition experience in major programs include: NATO Bi-Strategic Command Alliance Information Systems (Bi-SC AIS), Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD), Ground Based Midcourse Defense (GMD), F-16 Block 60, Chemical / Biological / Life Support systems, and Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS).

Mr. Yu received his Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Texas at Austin, and later earned a Master of Science in Systems Engineering from the University of Alabama in Huntsville. He attended the National War College and was competitively selected (and deferred) as the senior civilian at the Air Force Air Command and Staff College. Mr. Yu is a member of the Defense Acquisition Corp and level III certified in Program Management,
Systems Engineering, and Test & Evaluation. Mr. Yu received many awards in his career, to include: the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) Joint Distinguished Civilian Service Award, Office of the Chairman of the JCS Joint Meritorious Civilian Service Award, the Office of the Secretary of Defense’s Medal for Exceptional Civilian Service, the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization Award for Significant Technical Achievement, and the Air Force Systems Command Engineer of the Year Award.

Walton Smith is a technology leader with over two decades of experience driving innovation and growth. Currently, he is the Managing Director of Public Sector Cloud at World Wide Technology (WWT), where he leads cloud platform and AI tool development for government, education, and intelligence agencies. He is also responsible for developing and implementing technology strategies that meet customer needs. Previously, as AVP of Strategic Alliances, he oversaw WWT's core public sector partnerships and spearheaded technology strategy, vision, and execution.

Walton is passionate about leveraging technology to solve complex business challenges. His expertise includes cloud computing, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and machine learning. He is known for his ability to translate complex technical concepts into actionable and measurable strategies.

Prior to WWT, Walton held leadership positions at companies including Booz Allen, where he was Vice President of the Strategic Innovation Group. He also led Booz Allen's Collaboration, Mobility and Social Media practice and the internal corporate investment strategy to bolster Knowledge Management and Information Sharing Programs.

Walton earned a BA in Political Science from Brown University and an MBA from Vanderbilt University.

As the Vice President of Federal Sales at Google Public Sector, Jim Kelly brings nearly 30 years of extensive federal market leadership and sales experience helping federal customers bring their technology strategies to life. 

Before joining Google Public Sector, Jim served at Dell Technologies in roles spanning federal sector management for the U.S. Army and U.S. Department of Defense Joint Solutions organizations, as Vice President for the U.S. Department of Defense and intelligence business and finally as Senior Vice President of North America Federal Sales. He has a proven track record in business operations, strategy development, solution sales and providing the technology and expertise needed to transform and protect the data of federal customers. 

Jim’s experience in service to federal agencies also includes his tenure as Senior Director for the U.S. Army at Microsoft where he was responsible for product sales, strategy development and oversight of services sales. Prior to Microsoft, Jim was at Symantec where he drove sales and management of the U.S. Army and Defense Agencies business providing the U.S. Department of Defense with insight into security best practices to support their defense security posture. 

At Google Public Sector, Jim applies his understanding of federal enterprise and program strategies, credibility with decision-makers and extensive relationships with industry partners to assist the federal community in achieving their mission and business goals through digital transformation, security and cutting-edge technology.

Josh Marcuse is the Director of Strategic Initiatives in the Office of the CEO of Google Public Sector. He is the lead for Responsible AI, and serves on the advisory board of CapitalG, Alphabet's independent growth fund. He joined Google in 2020 and has led teams in public sector strategy & innovation and business development, for the U.S. and internationally. He is also a Senior Associate at the Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS). Previously, Josh served as the first executive director of the Defense Innovation Board, a government group of distinguished leaders focused on bringing technological and cultural innovations of Silicon Valley to the Department of Defense (DoD). Josh has more than a decade of experience in defense modernization, and served as the innovation advisor to the DoD CTO and held roles in the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) for Policy, Personnel & Readiness, and the Chief Management Officer. Prior to DoD, Josh worked at the Center for CSIS, Booz Allen Hamilton, and the Council on Foreign Relations. Josh is the founder or co-founder of three non-profits: Globally, Young Professionals in Foreign Policy, and the Federal Innovator Network. He is an advisor or board member to several nonprofits, including Tech Talent Project, Special Competitive Studies Project, DayOne Project, Schmidt Futures; and several defense startups and investment firms, including the Defense Advisory Board of Bessemer Venture Partners.

Ahmed leads a matrixed team to position the power of Google to support the national security mission of the United States. He has worked to help the US Federal government take advantage of technology solutions for over 20 years.

Prior to Google, Ahmed spent 10 years at VMware helping various clients take advantage of the latest VMware technology for mission operations. Ahmed spent the formative years of his career working as an engineer for the Department of Defense mostly in the computer security field.

Ahmed is a graduate of the University of South Carolina Honors College with a BS in Chemical Engineering. He published a senior thesis titled “Liquid Extraction of Hydrogen Isotopes” in conjunction with the Dept of Energy Savannah River Site for the purposes of trying novel techniques to clean contaminated groundwater at one of the country’s former nuclear weapons production facilities.

On a personal note Ahmed has been married for 15 years to his lovely wife Debbie and is the proud father of four amazing children; Adam, Zach, Gabriel, and Hannah.

Malissa deWindt McClintock serves as a Security Solutions Engineer at Google Public Sector, where she collaborates with Security Sales and Google Cloud teams to address technical and compliance challenges to develop innovative solutions for clients.  

Beginning her career as Education Coordinator at the Art Museum of Western Virginia, she transitioned to a technical role when joining the Unisys Federal Security Operations Center (SOC) as a Senior Security Operations Engineer. She has held both the position of Business Development Representative and Customer Success Manager at Cybrary as well as Director of Customer Success at SightGain.

Certified as a Google Cloud Security Engineer, she holds a Master of Arts  in Liberal Studies from Hollins University and a  Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy/Religion from Mary Baldwin College.

Scott is a Customer Engineer at Google on the Department of the Air Force team, bringing over a decade of experience in DevOps and Cloud Engineering. He recently transitioned from Tanium, where he specialized in securing cyber assets for the DoD and Federal Civilian space. Prior to that, he served as a Cloud Engineer at AWS, assisting clients in architecting and deploying scalable solutions. Scott holds a B.S. in Computer Science and Math from Utah State University and maintains a TS/SCI Clearance.