John McAlonan is an accomplished executive leader whose career reflects more than four decades of driving organizational growth, operational excellence, and strategic transformation across the defense, industrial manufacturing, and technology sectors. As a President, Chief Operating Officer, engineer, military officer, and business strategist, he has consistently demonstrated the ability to build organizations capable of sustained performance while developing leaders who continue to create value long after his direct involvement. Throughout his distinguished career, John has earned a reputation for combining disciplined execution with visionary leadership, helping organizations navigate complex challenges while positioning them for long-term success in highly competitive and technically demanding industries.
John’s professional journey began with a strong technical and leadership foundation established at The Citadel, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering while graduating as a Distinguished Military Graduate and becoming a member of Tau Beta Pi, the prestigious National Engineering Honor Society. Upon graduation, he accepted a commission as an officer in the United States Army, where he served in operational testing and command-and-control assignments supporting advanced air defense systems. Working alongside experienced military leaders and engineers, he gained firsthand experience evaluating mission-critical technologies that would ultimately protect national security. These formative years shaped his disciplined approach to leadership, strategic planning, and decision-making, while reinforcing the importance of accountability, teamwork, and mission accomplishment under demanding conditions.
Following his military service, John transitioned into engineering roles supporting the U.S. Army Air Defense Artillery Test Directorate before joining Advanced Programming Concepts, an Austin based company that would later become Ultra Electronics Advanced Tactical Systems. As Senior Systems Engineer, he quickly demonstrated an uncommon ability to bridge the gap between technical innovation and customer needs. His engineering expertise, combined with strong communication and business instincts, enabled him to move beyond technical execution into customer engagement, business development, and executive leadership. This progression established a pattern that would define his career: consistently expanding his responsibilities while helping organizations achieve measurable growth.
Over the course of more than two decades at Ultra Electronics Advanced Tactical Systems, John advanced through increasingly significant leadership positions, including Director of Business Development, Vice President of Marketing and Sales, Senior Vice President, and ultimately President. During his leadership in sales and marketing from 1995 to 2004, the company’s order intake grew fivefold, increasing from approximately $5 million to $25 million. This momentum contributed to one of the company’s most successful periods of sustained growth and operational performance. Under John’s broader executive leadership, annual revenue doubled from approximately $25 million to $50 million in the first three years before increasing by an additional 30 percent in subsequent years. He also helped transform financial performance, quadrupling operating profit while improving cumulative operating margins from 11 percent to nearly 25 percent. During his tenure as President, the organization generated more than $614 million in orders, delivered over $610 million in revenue, produced approximately $150 million in profit, and generated more than $151 million in cash, consistently exceeding financial objectives across the majority of fiscal years.
John’s success at Ultra was built upon much more than financial performance. He cultivated an executive leadership team grounded in accountability, collaboration, and disciplined execution while leading organizations responsible for engineering, manufacturing, operations, sales, product development, and customer delivery. His expertise in strategic planning and organizational development enabled the company to successfully compete in highly regulated defense markets serving the United States military, allied nations, and international partners throughout Europe, Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, and South America. By combining technical credibility with commercial insight, John helped position the organization as a trusted provider of advanced command-and-control systems supporting military operations around the world.
In 2017, John accepted the opportunity to become President and Chief Operating Officer of Falcon Structures, an Austin-based industrial manufacturing company specializing in modular building solutions for demanding environments. Joining the organization during an important stage of its growth, he immediately focused on strengthening operational discipline while building the leadership infrastructure necessary to support long-term expansion. Serving as the Integrator within the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS), John unified sales, marketing, engineering, manufacturing, and delivery under a common operating framework designed to improve execution, accountability, and organizational alignment.
Under John’s leadership, Falcon Structures experienced remarkable growth, increasing revenue by approximately 78 percent between 2016 and 2025 while significantly improving operational efficiency. Rather than relying solely on additional facilities or excessive staffing increases, he optimized manufacturing processes, strengthened production planning, and implemented disciplined operating systems that enabled the company to sustain double-digit monthly revenue improvements. One of his most significant achievements was leading the company’s migration from QuickBooks and spreadsheet-based processes to the Epicor Kinetic ERP platform, personally performing much of the implementation effort and establishing an integrated operational foundation capable of supporting continued growth. His emphasis on cross-functional collaboration and data-driven decision making transformed the company’s ability to scale while maintaining high standards of quality and customer service.
Throughout his executive career, John has developed expertise that extends well beyond operational leadership. His experience encompasses strategic planning, organizational transformation, business development, manufacturing operations, engineering management, enterprise scaling, supply chain optimization, systems engineering, negotiation, earned value management, government contracting, risk management, and executive team development. His ability to connect strategy with execution has enabled organizations to successfully navigate periods of significant change while maintaining financial discipline and operational excellence. Whether leading complex defense programs or industrial manufacturing operations, John consistently demonstrates the ability to align people, processes, and technology around clearly defined business objectives.
John’s leadership has also been recognized through numerous organizational achievements and professional affiliations. During his presidency at Ultra Electronics Advanced Tactical Systems, the organization received the Defense Security Service Cogswell Award for Industrial Security Excellence in 2015, the Department of Defense’s highest recognition for industrial security performance. In addition the company was named among the “100 Best Companies to Work for in Texas” in both 2009 and 2010, reflecting John’s commitment to building organizations where high performance is matched by strong workplace culture. His long-standing membership in the Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO) further reflects his dedication to continuous learning, executive collaboration, and leadership development among accomplished business leaders worldwide.
Beyond the executive suite, John remains passionate about mentoring leaders and sharing the lessons accumulated throughout forty-one years of professional experience. Having successfully guided organizations through growth, transformation, and operational complexity, he believes leadership is ultimately about creating environments where people can perform at their highest potential while building organizations capable of thriving well into the future. By adding board service, he is motivated by a desire to continue contributing strategic insight, operational expertise, and governance experience to organizations seeking sustainable growth. John sees board work it as an opportunity to give back by helping companies strengthen leadership, improve execution, and achieve lasting success.
Personally, John maintains a lifelong passion for electrical engineering and enjoys studying history, continually seeking lessons that connect technological advancement, leadership, and organizational evolution. His broad international business experience across the United Kingdom, Europe, Japan, Korea, Australia, the Middle East, and South America has reinforced his appreciation for diverse perspectives and global collaboration. These experiences have shaped a leadership philosophy centered on integrity, disciplined decision-making, respect for people, and continuous improvement. He believes the most effective leaders build organizations that are resilient, adaptable, and prepared to meet future challenges with confidence.
John C. McAlonan II’s legacy is defined not only by financial performance or operational achievements but by the organizations he strengthened, the leaders he developed, and the cultures of accountability he helped establish. His uncommon combination of military discipline, engineering expertise, executive leadership, and business acumen allows him to bring balanced perspective to complex organizational challenges. Today, he continues to seek opportunities where his decades of executive experience can help boards and leadership teams create long-term value, strengthen governance, and position organizations for enduring success.
Character:
John consistently demonstrates integrity by placing organizational success ahead of personal recognition and by leading with accountability throughout every stage of his career. He builds trust through transparency, consistency, and a genuine commitment to developing people and fostering collaborative cultures. His dedication to service, continuous improvement, and giving back through board leadership reflects a career grounded in purpose and responsibility.
Knowledge:
His extensive experience spans engineering, defense, manufacturing, executive leadership, business development, and enterprise operations, providing him with an exceptionally broad perspective on organizational success. He possesses deep expertise in strategic planning, systems engineering, operational excellence, ERP implementation, and financial performance management. His ability to integrate technical knowledge with executive decision-making enables him to solve complex business challenges while creating sustainable competitive advantages.
Strategic:
John approaches every opportunity with a long-term perspective focused on sustainable growth, disciplined execution, and organizational resilience. He has repeatedly demonstrated the ability to transform businesses by aligning strategy, people, technology, and operations around clearly defined objectives. His leadership consistently balances innovation with practical execution, enabling organizations to improve performance while preparing for future opportunities.
Communication:
Communicating with clarity, credibility, and purpose, enabling diverse teams to align around shared objectives and execute with confidence. His leadership style emphasizes active listening, thoughtful collaboration, and transparent decision-making that builds trust across organizations. Whether engaging executive leadership, customers, employees, or board members, he effectively translates complex technical and business concepts into practical strategies that inspire action.
