Major General (Ret.) John Wharton
ADVISOR
Major General (Ret.) John Wharton is an Advisor to VVC and has served the Nation for more than three decades. He has extensive experience in leadership, research, development, technology, innovation and logistics. He is currently a public and private sector advisor to numerous technology companies and government organizations. His focus is on national security and technology acceleration in support of national priorities and homeland security. He is a Managing Partner, at One Defense, an organization originating out of the Office of the Secretary of the Department of Defense as a next generation national security enterprise to foster an expanded defense technology innovation community of practice that incorporates DOD stakeholders, traditional defense industry, the start-up and venture capital communities, and the academic research community.
John also serves as Senior Advisor at The Chertoff Group, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Veteran’s Affinity Group, and to the U.S. Army’s Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics and Technology’s CTO.
In his last assignment, he served as Commanding General of the United States Army Research, Development and Engineering Command (RDECOM) at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland. There he led 13,800 scientists, engineers, and support personnel at more than 100 global locations controlling 75% of the Army’s R&D budget.
John has a degree from the United States Military Academy and a master’s degree in National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College.