Speakers

Michelle Bartoli is the Budget Officer and Chief of Budget and Finance for the United States Department of Justice, National Security Division. She currently oversees the entirety of the Division's budget formulation and execution processes, including developing annual performance budgets, managing program level budget execution, tracking personnel resources, identifying areas for modernization and business process improvement, and providing financial analysis and review. She has more than 19 years of experience in the field of government financial and resource management, budget formulation, program evaluation, and policy analysis.

Evan Carey, PhD, is the Acting Director for the VA National Artificial Intelligence Institute (NAII), under the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Digital Health Office (DHO). Dr. Carey is also a clinical assistant professor in the department of Biostatistics and Informatics at the Colorado School of Public Health (CSPH). Dr. Carey is an experienced quantitative scientist and evaluator who has authored 29 peer reviewed publications and successfully competed for funding as a PI and Co-I for both VA and NIH awards. Dr. Carey is a passionate mentor and educator, regularly delivering workshops at national scientific meetings, mentoring junior clinical investigators on VA and NIH awards, and teaching graduate students at CSPH. Dr. Carey is a proud husband, father of two amazing daughters and a citizen of the Muscogee nation. He can often be found in the backcountry of Colorado on skis or a mountain bike.  

Traci DiMartini is the Human Capital Officer for the Internal Revenue Service which is part of the Department of the Treasury. In her role as HCO, Traci oversees all IRS recruitment, hiring, benefits and training for the Service’s 90,000 employees.   She is a passionate advocate for federal workers and is proud to partner with the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) which represents the IRS bargaining unit workforce.  Traci is an experienced Senior Executive and previously served as the Chief Human Capital Officer for GSA, Peace Corps and the EEOC before joining the IRS in June 2023.   She has over 20 years of federal service and is an alumna of USDA’s SES Candidate Development program and American University’s Key Executive Leadership program.   Traci received her Masters degree from Rutgers University’s Bloustein School of Public Policy with a concentration in Labor Policy and is a proud native of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 
 

A one-of-a-kind commander with a new perspective on organizational dynamics, General Stan McChrystal is known for helping elite teams tap into the potential of their people to better compete in a complex and interconnected world. Few can speak about leadership, teamwork, and international affairs with as much insight as he can.

Offering A Four-Star Perspective The son and grandson of Army officers, McChrystal has a legacy of service. He graduated from West Point in 1976 and was commissioned as an infantry officer. He later trained at the Special Forces School in Fort Bragg, North Carolina and spent much of his career commanding special operations and airborne infantry units. During the Persian Gulf War, McChrystal served in a Joint Special Operations Task Force and later commanded the 75th Ranger Regiment. 

In 2002, he was appointed chief of staff of military operations in Afghanistan. Two years later, McChrystal was selected to deliver the nationally televised Pentagon briefings about military operations in Iraq. From 2003–2008, he commanded JSOC and was responsible for leading the nation’s deployed military counter-terrorism efforts around the globe, assuming command of all international forces in Afghanistan in June 2009. President Obama’s order for an additional 30,000 troops to Afghanistan was based on McChrystal’s assessment of the war.

Rethinking how elite teams function. After retiring from the U.S. Army, General McChrystal turned his expertise to the business world. As the author of best-selling management books, General McChrystal offers a battle-tested system for detecting and responding to risk. He is also the Founder and CEO of the McChrystal Group, which helps Fortune 500 Companies strike the right balance between hierarchical and decentralized team mindsets and structures. Exclusively represented by Leading Authorities speakers bureau, McChrystal, a former Green Beret, is known for his candor, innovative leadership, and going the distance. Called “one of America’s greatest warriors” by Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, few can speak about leadership, teamwork, and international affairs/geopolitics with as much insight.

For more than ten years, the McChrystal Group has advised companies on how to thrive as the world changes. General McChrystal and his firm design custom business solutions and leader development programs to cultivate trust, empowerment, common purpose, and shared knowledge across your organization. With these skills, General McChrystal will explain how your organization can operate as a nimble “team of teams,” which is essential in today’s competitive and rapidly-changing business landscape.

Leading in Uncertain Times. A dynamic, powerful speaker, McChrystal impresses audiences with field-tested leadership lessons, stressing a uniquely inclusive model that focuses on building teams capable of relentlessly pursuing results. When old systems fall short, he believes true leaders must look for ways to innovate and change. Citing stories from his career, McChrystal reminds us that in a world where things are moving at a speed we’ve never experienced, we need leaders more than ever—and he teaches us how to rise to the occasion.
 

Pritha Mehra was named chief information officer (CIO) and executive vice president in November 2020, a role she had acted in since August 2020. She reports to the Postmaster General and chief executive officer.

As CIO, Mehra oversees one of the world’s largest technology infrastructures with five national deployment and solution centers, 32,000 network locations, 20,000 servers and more than 930 applications on more than 180,000 devices—processing more than 110 petabytes of data per year. She drives secure innovative capabilities to support the Postal Service’s mission to be the nation’s preferred delivery service.

Mehra is a thought leader on digital transformations and is focused on modernizing the USPS ecosystems, platforms and network to meet the demands of an increasingly competitive market environment, overseeing a network that supports 650,000 employees and the delivery of 127 billion mail pieces a year.

Before being named CIO, Mehra served as vice president of Information Technology (IT), where she pivoted the 1,800-person IT group to operate at scale through cloud-smart migration, transition to an agile framework and secure the development pipeline for more than 900 applications. She also served as vice president, Mail Entry and Payment Technology, where she led innovations for business customers that captured more than $40 billion in annual revenue and over $200 million in annual revenue shortage and savings.

Mehra has been honored with numerous awards, including Postal Service recognition for superior achievement and the Postmaster General Award. She was also named Top Boss in IT by FedScoop in 2021 and 2022. She holds a Bachelor of Science in computer science from the University of Maryland and a Master of Business Administration from Georgetown University. Mehra completed the Senior Executive Assessment and Development Center Program. She is a Lean Six Sigma Executive Green Belt.

Ms. Jessica S. Palatka is the Director of Human Resource Management and Chief Human Capital Officer (CHCO) and a member of the Senior Executive Service (SES), responsible for providing leadership, developing policies, and directing programs in all aspects of human resources and human capital management and administration for all bureaus of the Department of Commerce (DOC), covering nearly 58,000 employees located in all 50 states, every U.S. territory, and more than 88 countries. Ms. Palatka is a member of the Office of Personnel Management Chief Human Capital Officer Council Executive Steering Committee.

Concurrently, Ms. Palatka is an Adjunct Associate Professor for the University of Maryland, Global Campus, where she teaches undergraduate courses in Human Resources and Business. 

Ms. Palatka earned a Bachelor of Science cum laude in Management Science and Statistics, Decision and Information Technology in 2000 and a Master of Science in Human Resources Management in 2006 from the University of Maryland. Additionally, she earned a post graduate certificate from Cornell University in Human Resources in 2007. 

Previously, Ms. Palatka served as the Chief of the Human Resources Operations Center (HROC) for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Ms. Palatka also served as a Senior Leader (SL) while working as the Chief Human Capital Officer (CHCO) and Director, Human Resources Directorate (HRD) for the National Defense University (NDU). She also served as the Director of Human Capital Strategy for Sustainment for the Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR). 

Ms. Palatka holds the Human Resources Certification Institutes’ (HRCI) certification as a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) and the Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM) Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP) license. Ms. Palatka also holds a Level III certification in Life Cycle Logistics, a Level II certification in Program Management, a Level I certification in International Acquisition, and a Green Belt Lean Six Sigma Certification. 
 

Sandy J. Radesky serves as the Associate Director for Vulnerability Management at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). In this role, she leads CISA’s Vulnerability Management mission providing cyber risk reduction to proactively strengthen national infrastructure resilience.

Prior to this, Sandy served as the Deputy Command Information Officer (CIO) for US Fleet Cyber Command and US TENTH Fleet from December 2020 to February 2023. She oversaw the cyber portfolio, policy, and design to enable full spectrum Cyberspace Operations. Her efforts improved, integrated, and directly supported joint warfighters, national-level leaders, and other mission and coalition partners across global cyberspace operations. Notably, Sandy was selected by the Joint Staff for a Senior Executive assignment as the Director of Information and Technology and Analytics supporting the National COVID-19 response effort in the Countermeasures Acceleration Group (CAG) formerly known as Operation Warp Speed. She led a team of data scientists, logisticians and technologists who developed capabilities to streamline the distribution of over 400M vaccines and therapeutics to the American people during the rise of omicron variant.

Previous experience includes an operational assignment at Joint Force Headquarters  Department of Defense Information Network (JFHQ-DODIN), as the Deputy Director of Operations and several years at DISA in various roles, but foundationally critical to her  operational experience, her time as the Chief of Defensive Cyber Operations Security Operations at DISA Global Operations Command (DGOC) located at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois.

Sandy is also a veteran of the United States Air Force, in total, dedicating 25 years of service to the Nation.

Mr. Adarryl M. Roberts was appointed to serve as the Director, DLA Information Operations (J6), Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) on August 2, 2023.

As the Director, J6, Mr. Roberts is the DLA Chief Information Officer (CIO), responsible for coordinating and integrating policies, guidelines, procedures, and activities to ensure effective, efficient, and economical information technology (IT) planning, acquisition, and management in support of DLA and the Department of Defense (DOD) missions and objectives. He is responsible for the management and supervision of all DLA IT policies and planning, and investment management to include cyber resilience, technical architecture and infrastructure, emerging technology, research and development, data management, and IT acquisition program management throughout the Agency and DOD.

DLA is the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD)’s combat logistics support agency, providing worldwide logistics support for the material and personnel readiness and sustainment of the Military Departments and the Unified Combatant Commands under conditions of peace and war. It also provides logistics support to other DOD components and certain Federal agencies, foreign governments, international organizations, and others as authorized.

Prior to his selection as CIO, Mr. Roberts was appointed to the Senior Executive Service and selected as the Program Executive Officer (PEO) DLA on November 4, 2019.

As the PEO, Mr. Roberts was instrumental in leading DLA’s Digital Business Transformation efforts to modernize, transform, and fundamentally change the way DLA provides value to our customers. He was the corporate provider of acquisition management services and provided overall direction and guidance for the development, acquisition, testing, systems integration, product improvement, and fielding for assigned DLA programs on behalf of DOD wide sponsors.

Before being appointed as the PEO, Mr. Roberts served as the Portfolio Manager, Enterprise Sourcing, Medical, and Contingency (ESMC), DLA Information Operations, Program Executive Office responsible for oversight and acquisition expertise across the life cycle in support of the DOD and DLA user communities for 16 programs and 35 applications. Prior to his tenure as the ESMC Portfolio Manager, Mr. Roberts held a variety of increasingly responsible positions at DLA, including Director of the Business Systems Center of Excellence (BSCoE) working with Industry IT Business System partners within DOD to look at innovative ways to develop and sustain business systems, and Program Manager of Wide Area Workflow (WAWF).

After graduating from Fayetteville State University, Mr. Roberts enlisted in the United States Air Force where he served as the equivalent to a civilian Contracting Officer for the 81st Contracting Squadron at Keesler Air Force Base. Upon separation from the Air Force, Mr. Roberts worked as a Functional Analyst Lead for contract writing at CACI, Inc. He then entered Federal service as a Procurement Analyst with Army Business Center for Acquisition Systems before transferring to the Business Transformation Agency in 2008 serving as DOD agency lead for Federal Procurement Data System Next Generation, and Deputy Program Manager of Federal Business Opportunities, and later Program Manager of WAWF.

Mr. Roberts holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration and Management from Fayetteville State University in Fayetteville, NC and he is DAU certified at level three in Contracting. Mr. Roberts awards include the Air Force Achievement Medal, National Defense Service Ribbon, Outstanding Unit Ribbon, and Air Force Squadron/Group Company Grade Officer of the Year.

As a member of the Senior Executive Service since April 16, 2017, Ms. Swanson currently serves as the Chief Systems Engineer for the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics and Technology (ASA(ALT)). In this position, Ms. Swanson leads digital engineering across ASA(ALT), with a focus on implementation of agile software development, DevSecOps, and data centricity.

Ms. Jennifer Swanson previously served as the Director of the U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Command (CECOM) Software Engineering Center (SEC) headquartered in Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD. Ms. Swanson provided state of the art software engineering products and services throughout the Army. The SEC supports C5ISR systems with a portfolio that includes tactical, business and logistics systems. As Director, she oversaw a global mission, running an organization of approximately 3,000 military, civilian and industry employees, with an annual budget in excess of $600 million.

Her previous assignment was Deputy Program Manager (DPM), Mission Command, Program Executive Office for Command Control and Communications-Tactical (PEO C3T), where she oversaw development and fielding of the Army’s mission command suite of software, including Command Post Computing Environment (CPCE). Prior to DPM, she was also Director of Technical Management Division, PEO C3T where she managed the integration of tactical network packages providing mobile voice and data communications across the Brigade Combat Team (BCT) down to the dismounted Soldier with mission command software to provide complete capability to deploying BCTs.

Former assignments include Chief, Technical Management Division of PEO C3T’s former Project Manager, Tactical Radio Communications Systems (PM TRCS), Product Director of PM WIN-T’s Tactical Network Architectures and Configurations-Current, Evaluator with the Army Materiel Systems Analysis Activity and developer and division chief with the CECOM Software Engineering Center.

Ms. Swanson holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial and Systems Engineering from the University of Florida, and a Master of Science degree in Software Engineering from Monmouth University. She is Level III certified in Systems Engineering and Program Management.

Commander Williams, a native of Seattle, Washington, was commissioned in 2001.  Following commissioning, he attended flight school in Corpus Christi, TX and Whiting, FL earning his wings of gold in January of 2003.  Medically retired from the Navy in 2004, CDR Williams was found Fit for Duty in 2009 and returned to Active Duty as an Engineering Duty Officer.

CDR Williams’ professional experience includes HSL-40, Warehouse Supervisor for Ecolab, Supply Chain Associate for Sieger Engineering, Inventory Manager for Sieger Engineering, Financial Planning and Accounting for Sieger Engineering, Senior Cost Accountant for Ultra Clean Technology, Founder and Chairman of the Board for NPSSA, SPAWAR Systems Center Pacific, SPAWAR HQ APM-E, SPAWAR FRD 100 Readiness Engineering Team Military Deputy, NAVSEA PMS 408 DAPM, PEO Carriers PMS 312 PAPM, and OPNAV N2N6 Deputy Brach Head and Tactical Resource Officer.

Professionally, he simultaneously managed three departments while reporting directly to the Chief Operating Officer at Sieger Engineering, was one of a three member team (along with the Chief Financial Officer and Chief Executive Officer) working on and successfully completing the merger and acquisition of Sieger Engineering and Ultra Clean Technology, acted as the financial representative for the implementation of a new ERP system for the combined entity of Sieger Engineering and Ultra Clean Technology, and ran multiple special projects for the C-Level executives to include production cost reduction.

In his past role at SPAWAR Systems Center Pacific, CDR Williams served as the Engineering Process Office Director, Deputy Chief Engineer for GCCS-M and MTC2, PMW-150 G-TSCMIS APM, MTC2 Deputy APM, and C2P APM.  He was utilized by the Commanding Officer and Executive Director of SSC Pacific for his private sector experience to perform an independent financial analysis on the Enterprise Software Licensing as well as the Navy Data Center Rate Card.  CDR Williams also worked for SPAWAR HQ as an APM-E assigned to PMW-160 focusing on ADNS and Application Integration, and for FRD 100 Readiness Engineering Team focusing on bringing urgently needed new capabilities to the Fleet.  

At PMS 408, CDR Williams led the efforts for Counter Unmanned Aerial Systems (C-UAS), redefining the use of the JCREW C-IED system to become the preferred solution of US Fleet Forces for carriers, ships, and submarines for countering small unmanned aerial systems.  In PMS 312, CDR Williams served as the Principal Assistant Program Manager, responsible for all In-Service aircraft carriers from both a ship platform and Hull, Mechanical, and Electrical (HM&E) product perspective.  He additionally brought CVN 78 GERALD R. FORD from new ship construction into in-service, the first transition of a new class of aircraft carrier in over 50 years.

At OPNAV, CDR Williams directed efforts to collect and consolidate SATCOM requirements from Army, Navy, USMC, and Air Force in order to provide the consolidated list to Space Force- the first time a single service has been responsible for providing capabilities to the other Services.  He also led efforts to modernize High Frequency (HF) capabilities, a need that had been disregarded for years, but has regained interest as a result of changing geopolitical status.

CDR Williams is a fully qualified Engineering Duty Officer and Navy Pilot.  He holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the United States Naval Academy and a Master of Science in Systems Engineering from the Naval Postgraduate School.  He holds DAWIA certifications of Engineering Level 3, Program Management Level 3, and is an Acquisition Corps Member. He is also a commercial pilot for both single engine airplane (land) and helicopters as well as being instrument certified in both.  He is an avid sailor, having competed in many offshore races on both the east and west coast as well as having established a non-profit to support community sailing while he was in graduate school.

CDR Williams’ decorations include Meritorious Service Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, and Meritorious Unit Commendation.

Commander Williams has two boys ages 5 and 7. 
 

Jared Coyle is an AI technologist, creative leader, garlic enthusiast and family man. He is Chief AI Officer North America, responsible for helping leaders understand and adopt the latest in traditional and generative AI in their business processes. Jared has held leadership roles in global escalations, support, consulting and sales at SAP since 2013. Prior to SAP, he was a university professor and lead researcher in the field of Quantum Organic Optoelectronics. Jared has been recognized as one of 15 rising star employees at SAP by Business Insider and was given SAP’s highest award, the Hasso Plattner award. He holds multiple patents in intelligent software debugging and organic interferometric thin films.

Mike boasts an impressive tenure of 27 years in the dynamic world of Human Resources. During this journey, he has functioned in various capacities, including as a customer, an implementation consultant, and the Director of Customer Success. Most notably, Mike upheld the role of a Senior Director, Executive Engagement at SAP SuccessFactors - a global leader in cloud-based human capital management and organizational management solutions.
 
Currently, he serves as an Executive HR Value Advisor for SAP SuccessFactors Regulated Industries. Under this responsibility, Mike guides customers and prospects on their HR transformation journey, particularly focusing on helping highly regulated customers innovate and adapt to their ever-changing environment.
 
Before his illustrious journey at SAP SuccessFactors, Mike occupied several leadership roles, a testament to his accumulated wealth of knowledge and diverse experience. Prior to stepping into the corporate scene, Mike proudly served in the US Navy, further honing his leadership and cooperation expertise.
 
Away from professional commitments, Mike is a devoted family man who resides in Kansas City with his loving wife of 26 years, two daughters, and an exceptional son who has Autism. Mike is a passionate advocate for the Autism at Work community, dedicating his time to volunteering and supporting individuals with disabilities.
 

Frank Ruff, Vice President of Solutions, CBeyond

Frank Ruff has been a thought leader and visionary in the planning and analytics space over the past two decades. He has a proven track record of building effective teams and commercially successful products. Mr. Ruff has advised the largest companies in tech, financial services, energy, higher education, and now brings his expertise to the Federal Government.
 
In his new role as Vice President of Solutions, Mr. Ruff is responsible for leading a rapidly growing solutions team that is laser focused on bringing modern technology and efficient processes to the federal government. Frank also leads the customer success function so he’s also responsible for the overall success of our solution deployments. He works closely with all areas of the business to ensure cBEYONData solutions deliver value to our customers. Frank also serves as the chief solution architect ensuring that products are designed and built to the highest standards.

Will is a senior director and currently lead the Global SAP organization for Northrop Grumman

Will has been with Northrop Grumman for 17 years where he recently led a successful go live of the S/4 transformation project that include business process transformation, data transformation and the technical upgrade from ECC to S/4.  Prior to his current role, Will led the SAP Manufacturing and Supply Chain Service Line. 

Before joining Northrop Grumman, Will was a consultant for 11 years with both Accenture and Deloitte. 

Will holds a master of science degree from University of Minnesota at Twin Cities and a bachelor of science degree from Iowa State University. Both are in Industrial Engineering.

As Senior Vice President of Customer Success for SAP NS2, Jennifer Stafford is responsible for identifying the business needs of clients, visualizing opportunities through the use secure cloud solutions, and effectively communicating these ideas to sales teams and potential customers. Jenn leads the SAP NS2 secure cloud sales & renewals team and presales team to ensure customer retention, generate revenue, and uphold the SAP NS2 reputation of a secure cloud service provider. She has industry-specific expertise across various regulated sectors including Aerospace & Defense, Public Sector, Healthcare, Utilities, Oil & Gas, Logistics, and Transportation.

With a 15+ tenure at SAP and continuous work within regulated industries, Jennifer has become a trusted partner and thought leader to her customers. She brings a deep wealth of knowledge and expertise around the SAP ecosystem and industry-specific cloud regulations. Jennifer’s background across sales, consulting, and account management helps her understand the risks and opportunities involved with a cloud-first business strategy, especially concerning the complexity of cloud security. Her leadership and involvement with some of the largest highly regulated customers in the world allows her to understand the security parameters required to support even the most security-conscious customers in the cloud.

Jennifer is a graduate of Miami University, where she earned her Bachelor of Science in Business. She is passionate about bringing teams together, building partner networks, and driving revenue opportunities that accelerate business growth. With deep expertise across regulated industries, Jennifer has co-established transformational programs that support secure cloud adoption.

Rich is the Chief Customer Officer for SAP NS2 responsible for customer success across the SAP NS2 Secure Cloud portfolio. Rich has been with SAP for 19 years, 10 years with SAP supporting Supply Chain transformation globally with SCM/APO and the last 9 years in SAP NS2 supporting our US Regulated Customers in various leadership positions including as the Vice President of Customer Success and Head of Premium Engagements.