Advisory Committee

Coming Soon

Nicholas Gross is Senior Vice President of Integrated Solutions for AAR, an independent provider of aviation services to commercial and government customers worldwide.

In 2019, Gross was appointed a corporate officer in addition to his current role as Senior Vice President of Integrated Solutions, a business which manages commercial and government fleet management services and programs for customers around the world.

Gross joined AAR in March of 2016 as Vice President of Integrated Solutions – Government to oversee the development of custom solutions for government fleets worldwide, including aviation supply chain and contractor logistics support (CLS).

Before joining AAR, Gross spent over 16 years in international management, strategic development and project execution, including positions with Michael Baker International, KS International and KBR, Inc.

Gross is a U.S. Air Force veteran serving four years in the Civil Engineering Squadron with numerous international deployments. He holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration from Troy University.

Lee brings over 34 years of distinguished military service as well as unparalleled global leadership experience in national and international security policy, acquisition, sustainment, logistics, global supply chains, advanced manufacturing, civil engineering, strategic planning and military operations. 

Lee is President and CEO of The Levy Group, LLC and serves on the NASA Advisory Council (NAC). Appointed by the NASA Administrator, the NAC is the senior external advisory body to the administrator on program and policy matters related to the US space program. He is also on the Board of Advisors of VeriTX Ltd. 

During his final assignment with the Air Force, Lee was Commanding General of the Air Force Sustainment Center (AFSC), headquartered at Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. He served as CEO of the Air Force’s organization responsible for worldwide logistics, supply chain, sustainment, and maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) of Air Force, other US military, and allied aircraft, space, and cyber systems.

Lorenzo Marandola is President of M1 Composites Technology in Montreal, Canada. He founded M1 to serve the international aircraft and composites community. M1 is an approved composites repair center and manufacturer of advanced composites aerospace components. 

He is a graduate of Concordia University with a degree in mechanical engineering and holds a Project Management Institute certification. With over 25 years of experience, he is a former Director of Business & Technology Development at L-3 Canada and has held key positions in Engineering at Bombardier Aerospace and Service Investigator at Pratt & Whitney Canada. His management style focuses on growth, team building, and leadership. 

As the winner of the Regional Quebec Entrepreneurship Program in 2013 and the Dunamis Award for Best New Business in 2014. Lorenzo has managed the start-up of this new company achieving Transport Canada accreditations (AMO & DAO), AS9100, AS9110 & ISO9001 certification and quality accreditations, Canadian Controlled Good Program (CGP) approval, Boeing Licensed MRO facility and Aero Montreal MACH 4. The M1 Composites Montreal facility features state-of-the-art equipment and is rapidly expanding in scope of service. 

As Director of Aerospace, Jeff Martin brings aviation logistics knowledge and expertise in defense industrial production spanning over 27 years to RG.  Jeff’s earned a reputation for influencing change and deploying innovative solutions across large, complex production and maintenance operations.

He achieved the rank of Colonel and held numerous positions throughout the United States Air Force culminating as the Oklahoma City Air Logistics Complex Vice Commander.  Jeff served over 13 years within the Air Force Materiel Command where he honed his manufacturing, repair, and overhaul acumen.  He was also the Headquarters Air Force Logistics Panel Chair overseeing logistics planning, programming, budgeting, and execution (PPBE).  Joint assignments include the Army Command and General Staff College and Joint Forces Command where he integrated joint logistics into joint doctrine.  Command tours include the 402d Aircraft Maintenance Group and the 654th Combat Logistics Support Squadron.

Jeff has an M.A.S. in Aviation/Aerospace Management from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University as well as an M.S. in Strategic Studies from Air University.  He’s also attended the Depot & Arsenal Executive Leadership Program from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the Lean Six Sigma Executive Course from North Carolina State University.  Jeff holds a B.S. in Mathematics from Oklahoma State University.

Jeff is married to Melissa, and they have two boys Connor and Garret and they reside in Edmond Oklahoma.  Jeff enjoys attending OSU football, basketball, and baseball games.  He also enjoys camping and going down to the lake house in Kingsland, Texas. 

John McKenzie is an accomplished Information Security and Digital Transformation Executive with extensive experience in the Public and Federal Sectors. With a strong background in business-to-business (B2B) and Software as a Service (SaaS), John brings a wealth of knowledge in process improvement to the Federal and Military community.

John's dedication and expertise have been recognized through prestigious honors and awards, including the Pinnacle Award, Presidents Club/International Sales Award, Quarterly Sales Leadership Award, and Quarterly Sales Award.

With remote work capability in Salt Lake City and Hill Air Force Base, John has contributed extensively to the military community's Information Security and Digital Transformation needs. To learn more about John's professional background or to get in touch, please visit his LinkedIn profile at www.linkedin.com/in/w-john-mckenzie.

Mr. Sampels is the Associate Vice President, Defense Logistics, for the Linquest Corporation where he is responsible for developing and executing corporate strategy to grow the Linquest logistics portfolio in the Department of Defense. He is a highly experienced logistician, bringing over 35 years of expertise in logistics operations including systems acquisition; requirements planning; supply chain design; storage operations; global distribution; organizational, intermediate and depot level maintenance; and material disposition. He is certified by the Department of Defense in both Lifecyle Logistics and Program Management.

Mr. Sampels is a retired Air Force Colonel, successfully delivering logistics support services to the Air Force and Joint Warfighters around the world. He has served at all levels in the Air Force, commanded multiple organizations, and deployed in support of numerous operations and exercises around the world. Additionally, he is the Vice Chair of the National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA) Logistics Management Division and also serves on the boards of the Logistics Officer Association (LOA) and Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) Foundation."

Ted Sturgeon is the Vice President of Programs and Curriculum for the Institute for Defense and Business, a non-profit, 501C (3) Research and Education Institute located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, www.IDB.org

Ted is a retired Marine Aviator, retiring in 2007.

Ted has been customizing executive education programs for senior leaders for the Department of Defense and the Private Sector in the fields of Industrial Operations, Logistics, Life Cycle Sustainment, Continuous Improvement and Innovation since joining the IDB. Ted has worked extensively across the industrial base through education programs, best-practice benchmarking, and continuous improvement workshops over the past 17 years.

Sarah Williams was raised in Grand Marais, Minnesota, and commissioned a Second Lieutenant at the United States Air Force Academy in 1997 with a Bachelor of Science in Management. She has served in a variety of aircraft maintenance positions spanning five Major Commands and has deployed in support of Operations NORTHERN and SOUTHERN WATCH, JOINT FORGE, IRAQI FREEDOM, and ENDURING FREEDOM. In 2000, Sarah garnered a Master of Sciences degree in Organizational and Human Resource Development from Abilene Christian University.

Sarah began supporting C-130 aircraft maintenance at Dyess, AFB, Texas, and Hurlburt Field, Florida. She served a year at Kunsan AB, Republic of South Korea, with a follow-on to Eglin AFB supporting aircraft maintenance for F-16s and F-15s. After these operational tours she was selected for squadron command at Grand Forks AFB and Sheppard AFB. She then served on the Air Combat Command staff writing policy and training for 44,300 maintainers and led an operational planning team for the Joint Strike Fighter with nine partner nations.

After staff, Sarah served as a deputy group commander at Beale AFB, California, supporting the Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance mission with U-2 and Global Hawk aircraft. She then moved to Suffolk, Virginia, as an Observer/Trainer for the Joint Staff J7 Joint Force Development Directorate, advising combatant commands and senior leaders on best practices.

Sarah was most recently a logistics planner for HQ USSOCOM. She coordinated logistics support for 70,000 SOF personnel through acquisition, sustainment, and resourcing of SOF assets, developed planning input for DoD, Joint Staff, GCCs, Services and Government agencies on logistics, and performed strategic level campaign planning, development, and assessment of global SOF and compartmented activities. 

Sarah is a lifetime member of the Logistics Officer Association and Air Force Association. She is active in the local community in the National Defense Industrial Association, Women in Defense, The American Legion, and The Humane Society of Tampa Bay. She is on the advisory panel for the Military Aviation Logistics and Maintenance Symposium and is currently serving as an intern for the Global Special Operations Foundation.