James Moreland

Dr. James D. Moreland Jr. is an internationally recognized leader in mission engineering, defense innovation, and systems integration, with over 38 years of distinguished service across government, industry, and academia. He currently serves as the Principal Engineer for MEI Innovative Solutions, Inc., where he provides strategic advisory services to government, industry, and academic institutions on national security, mission engineering, emerging technologies, and system-of-systems integration.

Dr. Moreland recently concluded five years at Raytheon Technologies, where he served as Vice President of Strategy and Transformation and subsequently as Vice President of Mission Engineering and Integration in the Air and Space Defense Systems business sector, overseeing enterprise-level mission effectiveness initiatives. He continues to support national science and security efforts as a senior fellow with the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies and the Mitchell Institute. He also advises the National Science Board on matters related to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), including implementation of the CHIPS and Science Act. In 2026, he will assume a seat on the Air Force Scientific Advisory Board as an appointee of the Secretary of the Air Force.

Dr. Moreland retired from the Senior Executive Service (SES) in 2020 as Executive Director for Mission Engineering and Integration within the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment (OUSD(A&S)). In this role, he was the thought leader and pioneered mission engineering practices across the Department of Defense (DoD), led portfolio-based capability assessments, and developed policies to align defense investments with mission priorities. He also served as a senior science advisor to the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy on national security technology issues.

From 2017 to 2019, Dr. Moreland served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Tactical Warfare Systems, managing joint platform and weapon portfolios exceeding $200 billion annually. He was the principal acquisition and technical advisor to the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics OUSD(AT&L) and OUSD(A&S), guiding milestone decisions across major defense programs.

He entered the SES in 2014 as Executive Director for Naval Warfare within the OUSD(AT&L), overseeing naval acquisition programs valued at over $60 billion per year. In this capacity, he directed key defense acquisition boards, strategic portfolio reviews, and programmatic decisions spanning surface, subsurface, air, and maritime systems aligning $60 billion in investments with mission priorities.

Earlier in his career, Dr. Moreland served as Chief Engineer of the Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division (NSWCDD), where he established technical standards across research, development, test, and evaluation (RDT&E) activities and led innovation in advanced warfare capabilities. He also held dual technical appointments as the Technical Warrant Holder for joint warfare analysis at the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) and Technical Area Expert for integrated architectures and interoperability at the Marine Corps Systems Command (MCSC). His prior roles included senior engineer within the Navy’s Force Integration Assessment Directorate under the Chief of Naval Operations and serving as Division Head for Warfare Analysis and Force Integration at NSWCDD, where he directed system-of-systems analysis, future capability assessments, and acquisition decision studies.

Dr. Moreland’s government service began at NSWCDD and the Joint Warfare Analysis Center, where he led design of complex systems, effects-based targeting, adversarial systems analysis, and real-time planning across the full spectrum of military operations. He also held early engineering roles with MPR Associates Inc., designing submarine and power plant systems.

He holds a Ph.D. in Engineering from George Washington University, an M.S. in National Resource Strategy from the Industrial College of the Armed Forces, an M.S. in Systems Engineering from Virginia Tech, and a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Maryland.

Dr. Moreland’s many honors include the OSD Exceptional Civilian Service Award, Navy Distinguished Civilian Service Award, Navy Superior Civilian Service Award, and multiple Joint and Navy unit commendations, among others. He is an internationally published expert, recipient of best technical paper awards, and a frequent speaker on mission engineering, complex systems integration, and defense strategy. Dr. Moreland will publish his book, Mission Engineering and Integration: Approach and Principles Leading to Integrated Solutions, with Springer Nature in 2026.

In addition to his advisory work, Dr. Moreland contributes to academic advancement as a Doctoral Research Advisor and Adjunct Professor, teaching and mentoring at leading institutions including the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Maryland, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Johns Hopkins University, University of Virginia, Randolph-Macon College, University of New South Wales, and Old Dominion University. Dr. Moreland is an active contributor to several leading international professional societies, including serving as an IEEE Senior Member, AIAA Associate Fellow, INCOSE Member, and Engineers Australia Fellow. Through these organizations, he advances the practice of mission engineering, systems engineering, and technology management across defense, aerospace, and broader industrial sectors while supporting professional collaboration, standards development, and techn…

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