Chris Harpster

WORK HISTORY

EDUCATION

ABOUT CHRIS HARPSTER

IntroductionLeader Problem Solver U.S. Army Veteran l Mechanical Engineer EntrepreneurI am a proven leader with 12.5 years of experience as an officer in the U.S. Army, with passions for engineering design & acquisitions. I find joy in learning & continually improving. Leadership PhilosophyI believe that people are the most important asset in every organization, high performing teams must manage talent well. I enjoy leading people to develop and achieve personal, professional, & organizational goals. I believe that by empowering individuals & genuinely caring for their needs (even the uncomfortable ones), organizational goals are naturally achieved.Leadership GoalsI strive to build flat teams remain adaptive, locate at the decisive point of a problem. I have a proven ability to lead org. progress in ambiguous & high-stress environments.ExperienceMy professional background includes organizational leadership, program management, partnership development, federal procurement & operations. I am an expert in organizational leadership, planning, and communications. I have broad experience collaborating with internal and external stakeholders to manage risk, plan critical acquisitions & contractual agreements. Career SummaryIn my current role as a DoD/DoW tech-integrator, its my goal to help small businesses bring their disruptive tech to the defense end-users as rapidly as possible! This builds on my most recent experience as an Army Acquisitions Officer, where I built partnerships to achieve contracted solutions to military problems. I was a Warranted Contracting Officer, and have a working knowledge of Federal Acquisition Regulations, procurement law, and DoD instructions. I am also DAWIA Contracting Certified, with over three years of experience. clearance. As a former Infantry Officer with two successful commands, I have 9 years tactical & operational-level leadership experience leading teams of 44 to 564 people. I last held a TS/SCI clearance. Engineering PassionI am a degreed Mechanical Engineer and passionate about design, form, function, root cause analysis, and process improvement. I enjoy optimizing processes and designing physical / systematic solutions to problems.Woodworking PassionIn my free time, I maintain a small business called BenchTop Woodworks, providing woodworking products, education, and digital plans, to help others \"maximize their shops!\" I\'ve developed and brought to market over 18 physical and digital products. I am a lifelong woodworker, I enjoy the natural created beauty in each piece of lumber.