Lieutenant General (Ret) Sean MacFarland concluded nearly 37 years as a U.S. Army officer in 2018. For the next four years he was Vice President of Weapons Programs at General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems Group and served as a Senior Mentor/Highly Qualified Expert for the US Army. He continues to work as a consultant, speaker, and board member.
LTG MacFarland led cavalry and armored units at every level from platoon to corps. Along the way, he commanded an armored cavalry troop in Germany’s “Fulda Gap,” a tank battalion in the Balkans, and an Armored Brigade Combat Team in Iraq. As the brigade commander responsible for Ramadi, he played a leading role in fostering the Sunni Arab “Awakening” movement that has been credited with turning the tide of the war. He later went on to command Joint Task Force North, supporting border security, the 1st Armored Division at Fort Bliss, Texas, and the Third Armored Corps at Fort Hood, Texas, comprising over 100,000 Soldiers and most of America’s armored forces. From September 2015 to August 2016, he commanded Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve and the campaign against ISIS in Iraq and Syria, during which time coalition forces broke the stalemate, seized the initiative, liberated nearly half of the territory comprising the so-called “caliphate,” and set the conditions for victory.
Other notable assignments included Deputy CG for Leader Development and Education/Deputy Commandant of the Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, KS; Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations for the International Security Assistance Force/Deputy CG for Operations for US Forces Afghanistan during the “Afghan Surge” drawdown, and Deputy CG of the US Army Training and Doctrine Command where he oversaw Army recruiting, basic training, and ROTC, among other duties.
As an industry executive, he built a new profit and loss division responsible for hypersonic weapons, combat vehicle electrification, electro-optical systems, missile systems, projectiles, and advanced electronics, more than tripling revenue in three years and developing new technologies.
He is a Senior Fellow of the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard University and the Association of the US Army’s Institute for Land Warfare. He was a member of the Army Science Board and the Council of Foreign Relations and served as an adjunct professor at the Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University.
LTG MacFarland is a graduate of the United States Military Academy, the Command and General Staff College, the School of Advanced Military Studies where he earned a Master’s Degree in Military Art and Science, and the Industrial College of the Armed Forces (Eisenhower School), where he received a Master’s Degree in National Defense Resources Strategy. He also holds a Master of Science degree in Aerospace Engineering from Georgia Tech.
His awards include the Defense Distinguished Service Medal with “C” Device, three Distinguished Service Medals, and 21 other medals for achievements in peace and war. He also earned the Combat Action Badge, Joint Staff Identification Badge, Parachutist Badge, and Air Assault Badge.
In 2016, Time Magazine listed him as one of the 100 most influential people in the world.
