"Leadership Part II Featuring I.am.NCO"
Wed Jul 16 2025
Join us for the newest edition of Leader Talk, and the second part of our Leader series focusing on leadership. This episode, John is joined by incredibly special guests from IamNCO, the Institute for Advanced NCO Leadership. Representing IamNCO are Daniel Elder, Dr. David Litteral, Lance Lehr, and Juan Ortiz Jr. There was some great discussion about the role of NCO's in our military, and how IamNCO works to advocate for our nations non-commissioned officers.
To learn more about the Institute for Advanced NCO Leadership, please visit iamnco.org
Below are short bios for each of our guests joining us this episode.
A portfolio entrepreneur, Daniel K. Elder, lives his vision to support service members as they transition back to the workforce. He formed a start-up defense contracting firm in July 2013, having previously worked as the Senior Director of Business Development at McLane Advanced Technologies. Dan had a successful 26-year career as a U.S. Army noncommissioned officer and senior enlisted leader. A four-time Hall of Fame inductee and graduate of the Sergeants Major Academy, his culminating assignment was as the Army’s senior-most enlisted Sustainer while serving as the Command Sergeant Major of the U.S. Army Materiel Command. Selected as the first Senior Enlisted Fellow for the Association of the United States Army and member of their Speakers Bureau, Mr. Elder is a citizen historian who has authored and edited numerous enlisted-focused books and publications, including Soldier for Life, the NCO Guide
(10th Ed.), and Sergeants Major of the Army (2nd/3rd Ed.). His latest book, NCO School, is scheduled for publication by the University of North Georgia Press in the Fall of 2025.
Dr. David J. Litteral, CSM, U.S. Army (Retired) Social Studies Teacher. He served in the U.S. Army for 32 years as a Combat Medic with numerous deployments as a Flight Medic and as the Command Sergeant Major of the 10th Combat Support Hospital, responsible for all hospital care from Baghdad to Basrah, Iraq. He oversaw the operations of the School of Army Aviation Medicine and later, the Department of Combat Medic Training. He was the 11th Commandant of The Army Medical Department Noncommissioned Officers’ Academy. David holds a BS in Management, an MA in History, and a Ph.D. in General Psychology. He and his wife, Charlene,
enjoy traveling and camping. They have been married for 43 years and have three grown children.
Mr. Lance P. Lehr is a seasoned executive consultant and a retired U.S. Army Command Sergeant Major with over three decades of distinguished military service and leadership experience. He currently leads L2 Consulting, providing strategic guidance in program management, business development, and executive leadership. In this capacity, Mr. Lehr supports multiple firms in expanding their federal portfolios and increasing revenue across sectors.
Mr. Juan J. Ortiz Jr. is an executive consultant with a combined 43 years of service in the U.S. Army/Department of the Army Civilian, including 27 years on active duty, retiring as a Command Sergeant Major. He also spent 15 years as a Department of the Army Civilian, ending his career as the Director of the NCO Professional Development Directorate at the NCOLCoE.
Currently, he is an independent consultant providing strategic guidance in program management, military education development, and executive leadership.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Join us for the newest edition of Leader Talk, and the second part of our Leader series focusing on leadership. This episode, John is joined by incredibly special guests from IamNCO, the Institute for Advanced NCO Leadership. Representing IamNCO are Daniel Elder, Dr. David Litteral, Lance Lehr, and Juan Ortiz Jr. There was some great discussion about the role of NCO's in our military, and how IamNCO works to advocate for our nations non-commissioned officers. To learn more about the Institute for Advanced NCO Leadership, please visit iamnco.org Below are short bios for each of our guests joining us this episode. A portfolio entrepreneur, Daniel K. Elder, lives his vision to support service members as they transition back to the workforce. He formed a start-up defense contracting firm in July 2013, having previously worked as the Senior Director of Business Development at McLane Advanced Technologies. Dan had a successful 26-year career as a U.S. Army noncommissioned officer and senior enlisted leader. A four-time Hall of Fame inductee and graduate of the Sergeants Major Academy, his culminating assignment was as the Army’s senior-most enlisted Sustainer while serving as the Command Sergeant Major of the U.S. Army Materiel Command. Selected as the first Senior Enlisted Fellow for the Association of the United States Army and member of their Speakers Bureau, Mr. Elder is a citizen historian who has authored and edited numerous enlisted-focused books and publications, including Soldier for Life, the NCO Guide (10th Ed.), and Sergeants Major of the Army (2nd/3rd Ed.). His latest book, NCO School, is scheduled for publication by the University of North Georgia Press in the Fall of 2025. Dr. David J. Litteral, CSM, U.S. Army (Retired) Social Studies Teacher. He served in the U.S. Army for 32 years as a Combat Medic with numerous deployments as a Flight Medic and as the Command Sergeant Major of the 10th Combat Support Hospital, responsible for all hospital care from Baghdad to Basrah, Iraq. He oversaw the operations of the School of Army Aviation Medicine and later, the Department of Combat Medic Training. He was the 11th Commandant of The Army Medical Department Noncommissioned Officers’ Academy. David holds a BS in Management, an MA in History, and a Ph.D. in General Psychology. He and his wife, Charlene, enjoy traveling and camping. They have been married for 43 years and have three grown children. Mr. Lance P. Lehr is a seasoned executive consultant and a retired U.S. Army Command Sergeant Major with over three decades of distinguished military service and leadership experience. He currently leads L2 Consulting, providing strategic guidance in program management, business development, and executive leadership. In this capacity, Mr. Lehr supports multiple firms in expanding their federal portfolios and increasing revenue across sectors. Mr. Juan J. Ortiz Jr. is an executive consultant with a combined 43 years of service in the U.S. Army/Department of the Army Civilian, including 27 years on active duty, retiring as a Command Sergeant Major. He also spent 15 years as a Department of the Army Civilian, ending his career as the Director of the NCO Professional Development Directorate at the NCOLCoE. Currently, he is an independent consultant providing strategic guidance in program management, military education development, and executive leadership. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.