Major General John F. Wharton (US Army Ret)

John Wharton is senior adviser to Potomac International Partners. He is a Managing Partner, at One Defense, an organization originating out of the Office of the Secretary of the Department of Defense, focused on national security and technology acceleration in support of national security and homeland defense. He most recently served as Commanding General of the United States Army Research, Development and Engineering Command at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland. There he led 13,800 scientists, engineers, and support personnel at more than 100 global locations controlling 75% of the Army’s R&D budget. Subordinate organizations included: The Army Research Laboratory, the Edgewood Chemical and Biological Center and the five Research and Development Centers: Armament (Picatinny Arsenal, NJ); Aviation and Missile (Redstone Arsenal, AL); Communication and Electronic (Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD); Soldier Support (Natick, MA); and Tank and Automotive (Warren, MI). Before RDECOM, he served as the Commanding General, U.S. Army Sustainment Command and Rock Island Arsenal, Illinois. Prior to that he was the Chief of Staff at the U.S. Army Materiel Command and the Commanding General, AMC-Southwest Asia/U.S. Army Central G-4/CFLCC C-4. John has also commanded units in Afghanistan, Iraq, Kuwait, Korea, and the Sinai. He has a degree from the United States Military Academy and a master’s degree in National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College. He has also served as a Visiting Senior Research Fellow, Institute for National Strategic Studies (INSS), National Defense University (NDU) in Washington, DC and Senior Advisor to the National Security Technology Acceleration Program (MD5) providing our Nation’s leaders with expertise regarding science and technology, innovation, and engineering affecting national security.