Three new Trustees join the IWP Board

IWP is pleased to announce three new members of the Board of Trustees: RJ Blake, Kelley DeConciliis, and Alexander B. Gray.

RJ Blake, Founder and CEO of Blake Willson Group (BWG)

Mr. Blake is a dynamic leader with over 20 years of combined experience in leadership, entrepreneurship, finance and accounting, consulting, business strategy, and governance, who brings thoughtful insights and perspectives to the boardroom. He can draw upon a range of experiences from high-stakes situations – from leading soldiers in combat (OEF VI and VII) to building teams that can effectively operate in a challenging/fast growth environment – that allow him to successfully collaborate and engage with board members and senior executives alike.

As founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Blake Willson Group (BWG), he has guided BWG from a bootstrapped-startup to an award-winning fast-growth company serving the Department of Defense, Intelligence Community, and Federal Civilian agencies in harnessing technology to improve stewardship of the tax-payer dollar. Mr. Blake is passionate about developing leaders who thrive in a fast-growth environment and building a company with a mission that matters.

Mr. Blake is a cum laude graduate of the University of Maryland’s RH Smith School of Business with a Bachelor of Science in Accounting. A native of the Eastern Shore, he is an avid outdoorsman and currently resides in Arlington, VA with his wife and children.

Kelley DeConciliis, Senior Vice President of Integration (M&A), VT Group (VTG)

Kelley DeConciliis currently serves as Senior Vice President of Integration (M&A) for VT Group (VTG). She also serves as Vice Chairman on the IWP Board of Advisors and is an Adjunct Professor at IWP.

Before this, she served as Chief Operating Officer at a Woman Owned Small Business in Chantilly, VA working with the Intelligence Community.

Prof. DeConciliis served as Chairman of the Board of Directors at the International Stability Operations Association (ISOA), which represents over 145 government contractors that operate in high-risk austere environments. DeConciliis also serves on the Board of Directors for Operator Relief Fund, a nonprofit dedicated to providing medical services for our shadow warriors and intelligence operators suffering from PTSD, anxiety, and mental health issues in the field. She also serves on the Board of Directors for Paws of Honor, a nonprofit organization that covers medical expenses for retired working dogs from local law enforcement and government agencies.

DeConciliis brings 20 years as a trusted advisor on international overseas operations, business development, start-ups and acquisitions (Microsoft, Veritas, GDIT), counter-bioterrorism, expeditionary medicine, emergency preparedness, and exfiltration services.  In the private sector, DeConciliis managed operations for expeditionary medical services to the Department of State in Iraq and Afghanistan for both human and K-9 programs. DeConciliis led the second-largest supply chain for PEPFAR (President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief) at USAID to over 16 countries throughout Africa. She ran multiple complex CONUS and OCONUS medical programs for the world’s largest health care system under the Defense Health Agency (DHA) that was comprised of 60 Military Treatment Facilities (MTFs) around the globe, Forward Operating Bases (FOBs), detention centers, and the White House Medical Unit.

She also worked for Microsoft Corporation under Bill Gates’ Research and Development Sector, after Microsoft bought their 22-person start-up, Azyxxi, in 2006.

After 9/11, she worked on the “Federal ER One Project,” a national prototype for the next generation “all risks ready” emergency department working with the Department of Homeland Security – Biodefense in Washington, D.C. DeConciliis holds a Psychology degree from The Catholic University of America. She has been featured as a security and exfiltration commentator on CNN, Fox News, and The Washington Post. She holds a Top-Secret Security Clearance.

Alexander B. Gray, Chief Executive Officer of American Global Strategies LLC

Alexander B. Gray is the Chief Executive Officer of American Global Strategies LLC, an international strategic advisory firm that he co-founded with former U.S. National Security Advisor Robert C. O’Brien. In addition to the day-to-day management of the firm, Mr. Gray’s wide-ranging practice includes the defense, aerospace, maritime, and technology sectors. He is a graduate of the Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University (B.A. International Affairs) and attended Oklahoma State University.

Currently, he serves as Chairman of the Oklahoma International Trade Alliance (OITA); on the Oklahoma-Israel Exchange Commission, appointed by the Governor of Oklahoma; the Board of Advisors of the Commissioning Committee for the USS Oklahoma (SSN-802); the Advisory Board of State Armor, a nonprofit combating adversary-nation influence at the state level; the Board of Directors of The Knudsen Institute for Applied Research on Surge Theory, a research institution focused on the U.S. defense industrial base, the Policy Committee of the Oklahoma Defense Industry Association (ODIA); the Battlefields Committee of the Society of the Cincinnati, a historic and genealogical organization; the Board of Directors of the Alumni Association of Casady School in Oklahoma City, and he serves on the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition’s (USGLC) Oklahoma Advisory Committee and Conservative Foreign Policy Study Group.

Mr. Gray most recently served as Deputy Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff of the White House National Security Council (NSC), where he directed the daily operations of the National Security Advisor’s immediate office, as well as the budget, personnel, and security functions of the NSC.

Previously, Mr. Gray served in the White House as Special Assistant to the President for the Defense Industrial Base at the National Economic Council (NEC), the principal Executive Office of the President (EOP), and as the first-ever Director for Oceania and Indo-Pacific Security at the NSC. Mr. Gray was also a member of the 2016 Presidential Transition Team at the U.S. Department of State and served as Senior Advisor to former U.S. Congressman J. Randy Forbes (R-VA).