John P. Williams – Principal

John Williams started Powell Strategies with two goals in mind – to do great work for organizations with worthwhile missions, and to build a team of quality, goal-oriented people. Five years later, Powell Strategies continues to see significant growth and enjoys the support of a remarkable team of professionals.

 

In the years before starting Powell Strategies, John spent his first career as a U.S. Marine.  As a civilian, John has taught on the faculty at the U.S. Naval Academy, managed a studies and analysis program in the National Security Analysis Department at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, and was the COO at the Institute for the Study of War.

 

This diverse set of experiences provided the foundation for Powell Strategies’ success: technical expertise, a dedication to getting the job done right, and a flexible and agile approach that creates a positive, customer-focused environment.

 

John is a certified Project Management Professional®, a graduate of the Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce Veteran Institute for Procurement, and an alumnus of the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program at Babson College.

 

John earned his M.A. in National Security Affairs from the Naval Postgraduate School and a B.A. in English Literature from the Virginia Military Institute and completed the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Seminar XXI program.

 

  • Awards

    Powell Strategies received the 2021 HIRE Vets Gold Medallion Award for our commitment to hiring veterans and military spouses. This award signals our commitment to helping veterans reach their employment potential. This marks the second year in a row Powell Strategies has earned the Gold Medallion Award.

  • Awards

    On December 07, 2020, Powell Strategies is pleased to announce it has been named on the prestigious 4th annual Vet100 list - honoring the fastest growing veteran-owned and operated businesses from the annual Inc. 5000 list! The ranking, created in partnership with Inc. magazine and Syracuse University’s Institute for Veterans and Military Families (IVMF), was born out of the iconic Inc. 5000 list of America’s fastest growing private companies.

  • Awards

    Powell Strategies was recently honored by the 2020 AVA Digital Awards, receiving the platinum award in the Digital Marketing, Social Campaign category for our work supporting the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health. We were also honored at the 2019 MarCom awards with a platinum award in the Print Media category, a gold award in the Video/Audio category, and three honorable mentions.

  • VIP

    The first program of its kind in the nation, the Veteran Institute for Procurement is conducted by professional subject-matter specialists in the essentials necessary to win government contracts: law, accounting, insurance, human resources, marketing and proposals. It also provides participants with access to Federal and prime contracting executives along with a national network of veteran owned small businesses that they can team with on opportunities.

  • Goldman Sachs

    Powell Strategies Principal John Williams was among 137 entrepreneurs from 34 states, Washington D.C, and Puerto Rico who graduated from the Babson Cohort of Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses, a national program created to help entrepreneurs create jobs and economic opportunity by providing greater access to education, capital, and business support services. The small businesses in this group represent a total of $240M in revenues and over 3,000 jobs from a broad range of industries.

  • Military Spouse Employment Partnership

    MSEP is part of DoD's broader Spouse Education and Career Opportunities (SECO) initiative, seeking to strengthen the education and career opportunities of military spouses by providing career exploration opportunities to help them understand their skills, interests, and goals; education and training to help them identify academic, licensing, or credentialing requirements that can help them reach their career goals; and employment connections that help them find and maintain a rewarding career.