Director of Strategy & Operations · Retired Army Major

Brandon
Paniagua

Retired Army Major · Black Hawk Pilot · Strategy & Operations Leader · MBA, UNC–Chapel Hill

21+
Years Military Service
1,200+
MEDEVAC Missions/Year Led
$300M+
Programs & Assets Managed
180+
Professionals Developed Annually
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About

Mission-Driven.
Operationally Sharp.

Brandon Paniagua is a retired U.S. Army Major and Black Hawk pilot with more than two decades of experience building and running high-stakes operations — from emergency medical aviation programs and graduate-level training organizations to federal business operations.

He currently serves as Director of Strategy & Operations at Better Process Group LLC (BPG), a federal SDVOSB, where he advises the firm's Managing Partner, runs its capture and operations cadence, and built its CRM and KPI dashboard framework from scratch. It's the latest chapter in a career defined by taking ownership of complex, people-heavy operations and making them measurably better.

Brandon holds an MBA from UNC–Chapel Hill and a Master's in Organizational Leadership, and is certified as a CSM®, CSPO®, and Six Sigma Black Belt.

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MBA — UNC Chapel HillOrganizational strategy, marketing, and growth leadership
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CSM® · CSPO® · Six Sigma Black BeltAgile delivery, product ownership, process excellence
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Retired Army Major — 21+ YearsAviation, MEDEVAC command, emergency operations, training & program leadership
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Director of Strategy & OperationsBetter Process Group LLC — federal SDVOSB (2024–Present)
"Our commitment to quality and compliance isn't just a promise—it's a partnership." — Brandon Paniagua
$25M
Cost Savings Delivered
60%
Efficiency Improvement
100%
Operational Readiness Rate
91%
Mission Success Rate
Experience

Career Timeline

From Black Hawk cockpits to C-suite boardrooms—a career defined by mission, leadership, and measurable results.

Feb 2024–Aug 2026
Director of Strategy & Operations
Better Process Group, LLC · Panama City Beach, FL
Trusted operations and strategy advisor to BPG's Managing Partner, running the firm's capture cadence, CRM/KPI infrastructure, and commercial and government pricing strategy.
  • Serve as a trusted advisor and strategic thought partner to the firm's Managing Partner, running the Weekly Growth Sync, a standing capture and operations cadence that keeps delivery, pricing, and compliance aligned across 18+ simultaneous federal initiatives
  • Built the firm's Dynamics 365 CRM and KPI dashboard framework from scratch, including compliance tracking and a capture scoring model, giving leadership real-time visibility into pipeline health and risk
  • Directly developed customer pricing models and cost proposals for the firm's commercial and government engagements, translating capture opportunities into signed, revenue-generating agreements
Apr 2022–Jan 2024
Director, Graduate Professional Program Operations
Department of Aviation Medicine, U.S. Army · Fort Novosel, AL
Owned governance, compliance, and quality assurance for a U.S. Army graduate-level professional program, directing a large faculty and vendor network.
  • Maintained inspection-ready compliance documentation across every external review by owning the governance rhythm and assessment integrity for a graduate-level program serving 180+ annually
  • Directed 50+ instructional modules and 25+ faculty and vendor partners under full delegated authority, ensuring consistent quality and delivery across every program cycle
Mar 2020–Mar 2022
Operations Director, Emergency Air Medical Services
U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence · Cairns Army Airfield, AL
Led a 71-person 24/7 emergency air medical services organization, redesigning dispatch operations and negotiating civilian interagency agreements.
  • Cut median emergency response time in half, from 28 to 14 minutes, and raised mission success from 62% to 91% by redesigning a fragmented, multi-stakeholder dispatch and approval process end to end
  • Sustained zero safety incidents across two years of continuous 24/7 operations for a 71-person emergency response organization accountable for a $145M aviation program supporting an installation community of approximately 15,000, including through pandemic-driven staffing constraints
  • Replaced an unowned, ad hoc coordination process with formal interagency agreements by negotiating standardized performance and handoff standards with civilian EMS providers and hospitals
Jun 2016–Feb 2020
Training & Performance Program Manager
U.S. Army Medical Center of Excellence · Joint Base San Antonio, TX
Built and delivered training and readiness programs for mid-career Army professionals, scaling instructional capacity and large-scale exercise support.
  • Increased program capacity by 35% by building the business case that secured funding for 8 additional instructors, while personally delivering instruction to 580+ mid-career professionals
  • Planned, prepared, and executed 6 large-scale training exercises directly supporting 1,500 personnel and 42 aircraft, while validating readiness for more than 2,000 additional personnel and 80 aircraft across worldwide deployments
May 2010–Jun 2016
Operations Officer, Emergency Air Medical Services
U.S. Army Forces Command · El Paso, TX
Managed a $136M emergency medical aviation program, including full lifecycle support for a combat deployment to Afghanistan.
  • Managed a $136M emergency medical aviation program through an overseas deployment (Afghanistan), coordinating the deployment, sustainment, and redeployment of 15 aircraft and 109 personnel
  • Synchronized a 5,000+ hour annual flight operations program and cross-departmental training objectives as assistant operations officer for a multi-unit aviation organization
Jun 2002–Apr 2010
Logistics & Supply Chain Manager
U.S. Army Europe · Global Assignments
Built supply and property-accountability systems from the ground up across multiple overseas deployments and international assignments.
  • Built supply and property-accountability systems from the ground up across two overseas deployments (Iraq) and international assignments (Germany), sustaining 100% accountability of $15M+ in equipment
  • Stepped into a senior leadership gap for 12 months as acting site leader, executing a full unit relocation and a $1M+ equipment transfer with zero accountability discrepancies
Core Competencies

Where I Operate

Bridging military precision with strategic and operational leadership across programs, training, logistics, and federal business.

01
Federal BD & Capture Management
End-to-end opportunity pursuit from pre-RFP market research through proposal submission. Skilled in GovWin, SAM.gov, pipeline management, go/no-go decisions, and compliance matrix development.
GovWin SAM.gov Capture NAICS
02
Proposal Writing & Strategy
Author of RFI responses, white papers, technical proposals, compliance matrices, capability statements, and past performance narratives for GWAC, IDIQ, and set-aside vehicles.
GWAC IDIQ RFI/RFP SDVOSB
03
Strategic Partnerships & Teaming
Negotiated and executed teaming agreements with large primes, mid-tier integrators, and SDVOSB partners. Built partnership white papers, NDA frameworks, and value-sharing models.
Teaming NDA CTA JV
04
Operations Architecture
Designed operations workspaces, BD pipeline trackers, opportunity intake forms, performance metrics templates, and CRM/KPI dashboard frameworks from the ground up.
CRM Dynamics 365 Power BI Planner
05
Program & Training Management
Built the business case and staffing model to grow instructional capacity, delivered training to 500+ professionals, and owned compliance and governance for a graduate-level program.
Curriculum Design Governance Compliance Workforce Development
06
High-Stakes Mission Leadership
21+ years commanding aviation and emergency response operations, managing multi-million dollar assets, leading multinational exercises, and executing under extreme pressure with zero margin for failure.
MEDEVAC Aviation DSCA OC/T
07
Emergency & Crisis Operations
Redesigned a fragmented multi-stakeholder dispatch process end to end, cutting response time in half and raising mission success from 62% to 91% for a 71-person, 24/7 emergency organization.
Crisis Response Interagency Coordination Process Redesign Safety
08
Logistics & Supply Chain
Built supply and property-accountability systems from the ground up across multiple overseas deployments, sustaining 100% accountability of $15M+ in equipment.
Deployments Property Accountability Supply Chain Site Leadership
Selected Work

Proposals & Projects

A sample of strategic documents, proposals, and operational deliverables produced or led at BPG.

GSA · GWAC
Alliant 3 GWAC Proposal
Authored full technical and compliance proposal in response to GSA solicitation #47QTCB24R0009 for the Alliant 3 Governmentwide Acquisition Contract — a flagship IT services vehicle with multi-billion dollar ceiling. Served as primary POC and submission lead.
Vehicle:  IT services GWAC · Submitted March 2025 · Full proposal ownership
GWAC Proposal
DoW · DMA
Transforming the DoW Public Web Enterprise
Led SDVOSB submission responding to Sources Sought HQ0516-FY-25-0010. Proposed BPG as prime integrator for Department of War public website migration to modern CMS, cloud architecture, and Zero Trust/RMF security compliance. Included full teaming model and contract vehicle strategy.
Outcome:  Full SDVOSB capabilities response submitted · Teaming framework built
Sources Sought Response
GSA · MAS
GSA MAS Pricing Proposal (SIN 541611)
Constructed full GSA Multiple Award Schedule pricing proposal for services and training under SIN 541611 and adjacent SINs. Developed labor category matrix, rate cards, and compliance documentation aligned to Refresh #30 requirements.
Status:  In progress · Pricing architecture complete · Supporting packet assembled
Contract Vehicle Pursuit
USSOCOM
SOF Global Services Delivery (SOFGSD)
Led BPG's strategic positioning and teaming coordination for the SOFGSD vehicle — a $3.2B 100% small business set-aside from USSOCOM. Managed NDA execution with AIT, capabilities alignment, and CMMC Level 2 positioning as key differentiator.
Vehicle:  $3.2B ceiling · 100% SB set-aside · CMMC L2 differentiator
Capture / Teaming
Ecosystem

Strategic Partners

Part of Brandon's BPG role has been building and managing the firm's partner network — each relationship structured with formal agreements and defined value exchange.

Kforce
National staffing and IT solutions firm. BPG's teaming partner for federal staffing, secure facility access, and scalable talent delivery on DoD programs. Formal partnership agreement in place.
Lenovo Federal
BPG holds Lenovo 360 Engage authorization as a service delivery partner for Microsoft-focused device and cloud deployment SKUs targeting federal and regulated customers.
AIT / SOFGSD
Teaming arrangement for USSOCOM SOFGSD pursuit. NDA executed, CMMC Level 2 positioning coordinated, and capability alignment completed for $3.2B small business vehicle.
Document Portfolio

Deliverables Produced

A sample of the written and operational artifacts produced or directed at BPG.

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Alliant 3 GWAC Full Proposal
GSA · March 2025
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DoW Public Web Enterprise SDVOSB Response
Department of War · Dec 2025
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Strategy & Operations Workspace Design (Dynamics 365)
Internal · Ops Architecture
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Past Performance Portfolio (Brandon + BPG)
Military · Federal IT · Proposal Asset
Credentials

Certifications & Qualifications

Professional certifications, ratings, and service credentials held by Brandon.

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Project Management Professional (PMP)
Project Management Institute (PMI) · July 2026
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Certified ScrumMaster (CSM)
Scrum Alliance · Sep 2022
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Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO)
Scrum Alliance · Feb 2023
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Certified Six Sigma Black Belt (CSSBB)
Jan 2022
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AI and Business Strategy
LinkedIn Certificate · Nov 2025
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Google Project Management
Certificate · Sep 2023
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Professional Certificate in Emergency Management
ANAB-ANSI · July 2023
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Professional Certificate in Safety and Occupational Health
ANAB-ANSI · Oct 2022
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Instrument Rated Helicopter Pilot in Command (PIC)
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
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Part 107 Small Unmanned Aerial Systems (sUAS) Pilot
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
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Veteran, U.S. Army
Major, Retired
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Secret Clearance
Inactive since 2019 · Reinstatement-eligible
Contact

Let's Connect

Whether you're hiring for an operations or strategy leadership role, evaluating a potential partner, or just want to connect—Brandon is ready to talk.

↗ linkedin.com/in/brandon-p-65525010a ✉ brandon.lee.paniagua@gmail.com ☎ 252-947-5434
Connect on LinkedIn ↗