Michael O.

Michael O. has a diverse work experience that spans over several years. Michael is currently working at Hypertherm as the Global Security Director, a role they began in October 2021. Prior to this, Michael served in the US Army for many years, holding various leadership positions. From 2017 to 2021, they held the position of Chief Executive Officer (Defense Coordinating Officer) FEMA Region 1, where they were responsible for coordinating and integrating the Department of Defense's homeland defense and defense support to civilian authorities. Before that, from 2014 to 2017, Michael served as the Director (Brigade Commander) at 4th Division Artillery, 4th Infantry Division, where they synchronized operations in the United States and Europe. Michael has also held positions such as Director (Brigade Commander) at 3 BCT (P)(R), 10th MTN DIV (LI) and Chief Operations Officer (Battalion Commander) at 3-6 Field Artillery, 1/10 MTN DIV (LI). These roles demonstrate their experience in leading and coordinating military operations both domestically and internationally.

Michael O. holds a bachelor's degree in Management from Appalachian State University, which they obtained from 1989 to 1992. Michael also completed a master's degree in Emergency Management and Disaster Relief with a focus on Crisis/Emergency/Disaster Management at Touro University from 2003 to 2004. In 2014 to 2015, Michael pursued a Masters in Strategic Studies from The United States Army War College. Michael later attended Harvard University in 2017 for executive education at the Harvard Kennedy School, specializing in Leadership in Homeland Security. Michael has also completed additional certifications, including "Cert Prep: Scrum Master" from LinkedIn in 2021. In 2019, they participated in courses at the Emergency Management Institute/FEMA and NORAD and USNORTHCOM J7 Training and Exercise Directorate. Currently, Michael plans to pursue a field of study involving Geopolitical Risk at the Florida Atlantic University - College of Business in 2023.