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Executive Leadership

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During my 32 years in the Army I had the opportunity to defend this Nation in combat both in Iraq and Afghanistan, operate the Apache helicopter, live and serve in Poland and Germany, train, coach, and mentor some of the greatest people our Nation has to offer, and lead a workforce that covered the spectrum of diversity and social economic backgrounds, rise to the rank of brigadier general, and live a full and balanced life with my family…no regrets.

I began my leadership journey at the United States Military Academy and refined my leadership philosophy over the four years of leading Soldiers in combat. My collective experience was put to the test in 2016 when I was fortunate to be selected as the Executive Assistant to the 18th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (General (ret) Martin Dempsey) for over the two and half years in that position. It was a remarkable period of my career of learning, growing as a leader, and witnessing decision making and executive leadership at the highest levels of our government including the National Security Council, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Secretary of Defense, and the President of the United States (President Obama at the time). I loved this job despite the brutal hours and the pressure for perfection each and every day. Being surrounded by a team of unparalleled expertise, passion, and intelligence was humbling, but more importantly I was immersed in executive leadership and decision making at its best.

            It took me a few years to actually understand and conceptualize what I had experienced. Why were some individual’s better leaders? Was there a difference between leadership and executive leadership? The diagram below is my attempt to describe the “Executive Leaders Eco-system”. Executive Leadership is not a checklist, but instead a cycle that encompasses both human and organizational factors that promotes sound and decisive decision making benefiting the team and organization.

Executive leadership is not a thing but a space where the leader must organize, understand, and execute within. Those individuals who understand and embrace the complexity are successful both within the organization and in life. The best leaders are those who are masters of their environment. 

Authored By: John Novalis, Managing Director

John Novalis

John spent 32 years in leadership and executive level roles in the United States Army retiring as a Brigadier General. He currently resides in Keller, Texas and works for Bell Helicopter as Director, Advanced Programs and Weapon Systems Integration, leading sustainment, logistics, and digital enterprise initiatives for Bell’s Future Vertical Lift programs.   

A native of Williamsport, Pennsylvania, John joined the military after his graduation in 1987 from West Point with a degree in Economics. While in the military John served in key roles including Operations Officer, Multinational Corps Northeast (NATO) located in Szczecin, Poland where he directed Joint Operations and maintained U.S. strategic imperatives across North-Eastern Europe, and as Deputy Commander for Sustainment of the famed 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) his portfolio included the logistical planning, sustainment, and equipment readiness of Fort Campbell, Kentucky’s 21,000+ Soldiers and units. His role also included training and leadership development initiatives across a broad level of basic and advanced programs. 

One of his key strategic positions was being selected as Executive Assistant to the 18th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff where he assisted the Chairman in articulating independent military advice on strategic policies to the President of the United States and Secretary of Defense for over two years, traveling the world supporting the United States State Department diplomatic efforts. 

John spent several contingency deployments to include tours of duty to Haiti for humanitarian support; three years of combat operations in Iraq and one year in Afghanistan, providing him a unique perspective on crisis management and strategic planning. 

Before joining Bell, John served as a Highly Qualified Expert for the Department of Defense where he coached and taught senior leaders in the art and science of mission command and leadership fundamentals.

He is a combat aviator with over 500 combat hours and holds Master’s degrees from Webster University in Human Resources, and in National Security Strategy from the United States National War College.

John is happily married for over 32 years and blessed to be a grandfather. He currently sits on the Board of Directors for Free Form Fibers and gives his time between his family, church, and job, finding life balance and fulfilling his passions in aviation, leadership coaching, and the outdoors.  

Victory Strategies is a Veteran Owned Business.