JONATHAN COPLEY
Abingdon,MD
Summary
Experienced strategic operations leader overseeing $24M budgets for 1,700+ boats. Implemented fleet sustainment actions, producing $600K in savings, and strengthened readiness through effective resource management. Coordinated cross-functional operational surges and advised senior leaders on investment priorities. Improved planning processes and led teams to achieve operational and sustainment objectives.
Overview
1
1
Certification
16
16
years of professional experience
Work History
BRANCH CHIEF ENTERPRISE SMALL BOAT FLEET SUSTAINMENT
U.S. Coast Guard, Surface Forces Logistics Center
Abingdon, MD
01.2024 - Current
- Lead enterprise readiness and lifecycle support for more than 1,700 boats across 47 asset classes at more than 550 Coast Guard units. Direct an approximately 80-person military, civilian, and contractor organization across 12 locations and manage approximately $24 million in annual resources supporting assets responsible for roughly 45% of Coast Guard operating hours.
- Led a $23.2 million operational surge involving 58 assets and 276 personnel, aligning people, funding, logistics, and technical support with urgent operational priorities.
- Directed a fleet-wide sustainment initiative affecting 174 boats that extended asset availability and generated an estimated $600,000 in annual savings.
- Coordinated cross-functional responses to fleet-wide readiness challenges, aligning operational commands, technical authorities, logistics organizations, and industry to identify root causes, update standards, and restore capability.
- Redirected $2 million in enterprise inventory to support emerging border-security mission and led high-priority initiatives that restored operational capability while balancing competing fleet demands.
- Led workforce development, personnel management, and resource prioritization across a geographically dispersed workforce, advising senior stakeholders on readiness, risk, and investment decisions.
EXPEDITIONARY LOGISTICS OFFICER / STRATEGIC LOGISTICS PLANNER
U.S. Coast Guard
01.2022 - 01.2024
- Coordinated support for Coast Guard and Department of Defense operations, exercises, deployments, and contingency requirements across Europe, Africa, and the Indo-Pacific, align operational priorities with enterprise and joint support capabilities.
- Coordinated as Coast Guard liaison to U.S. Navy Sixth Fleet in Rota, Spain, providing support for cutter deployments, escort and homeport transit, and operations in West Africa.
- Represented Coast Guard interests in Department of Defense and allied planning forums and war games, assisting senior stakeholders in evaluating operational requirements, risks, and sustainment options in contested environments.
- Advised senior leaders on deployment support and resource requirements, and developed cross-organizational solutions for forces operating in austere and distributed environments.
- Supported U.S. Africa Command exercises that strengthened maritime partnerships with 38 nations and developed courses of action for first-ever Coast Guard port calls in Baltic and African nations.
ENGINEER OFFICER MEDIUM-ENDURANCE CUTTER
USCGC SPENCER
01.2019 - 01.2022
- Led a 3537 person department aboard a 270-foot cutter conducting national-security and maritime operations with responsibility for workforce readiness, training, maintenance, resource management, and safe operation of critical shipboard systems.
- Managed department resources, workforce qualification and development, and contractor performance as principal advisor to the commanding officer on readiness, risk, and operational capability.
- Directed major readiness and maintenance periods valued up to approximately $900,000, coordinating government organizations, commercial partners, supply support, and shipboard personnel to return the cutter to operations.
- Achieved cost avoidance of approximately $200,000 through disciplined project and contract execution during one major maintenance period.
- Provided operational perspective for $234 million service-life-extension effort impacting eight cutters, linking fleet experience with enterprise investment and sustainment decisions.
PROJECT MANAGER / PORT ENGINEER SPECIALIZED VESSEL FLEET SUSTAINMENT
U.S. Coast Guard, Surface Forces Logistics Center
Abingdon, MD
01.2014 - 01.2017
- Managed portfolio of maintenance and lifecycle-support projects for specialized Coast Guard vessels, ensuring operational readiness for aids-to-navigation, icebreaking, construction, and maritime operations.
- Managed scheduled and emergent projects for seven 175-foot buoy tenders, integrating requirements, contracts, schedules, funding, stakeholder priorities to enhance operational availability.
- Managed approximately $10 million in annual resources and coordinated vessel crews, program stakeholders, contracting personnel, technical authorities, and commercial repair facilities.
- Led complex projects from requirements development through execution and closeout, balancing cost, schedule, risk, contractor performance, and operational readiness.
- Developed program-management, contract-oversight, and resource-stewardship expertise within the Coast Guard's enterprise sustainment organization.
SHIPBOARD ENGINEERING & OPERATIONS OFFICER
U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Assignments
01.2011 - 01.2014
- Led shipboard leadership assignments overseeing personnel, training, maintenance, damage control, and operational readiness to ensure mission success.
- Facilitated extended maritime operations and deployments, supporting Joint Interagency Task Force South missions while gaining firsthand experience in Coast Guard operations and interagency collaboration.
- Established operational foundation in mission execution, personnel leadership, and cross-functional team management, contributing to overall mission readiness.
Education
M.S.E. - Systems Engineering
Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, MD05-2026
B.S. - Mechanical Engineering
Old Dominion University
Norfolk, VA05-2019
B.S. - Biological Science
Lee University
Cleveland, TN05-2011
Skills
- Fleet operations management
- Project management
- Resource allocation
- Risk management
- Risk analysis
- Strategic planning
- Data analysis
- Systems engineering
- Technical documentation
- Stakeholder engagement
- Team collaboration
- Work prioritization
- Decision-making
- Client relations
- Strong team-builder
- Employee development
- Multi-tasking
Certification
Project Management Professional (PMP), Level III Acquisition Program Manager
PROFESSIONAL LEADERSHIP
- Project Management Institute, Director of Education, Hampton Roads Chapter
- Project Management Institute, DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION, Lead professional education and workforce-development initiatives for the regional project-management community, connecting working professionals with certification preparation, instructors, scholarships, and continuing-development opportunities., Help lead a volunteer instructional team of more than 10 instructors supporting Project Management Professional certification preparation and professional development., Contributed to certification-preparation efforts that helped more than 50 professionals earn the PMP credential and supported education initiatives including approximately $5,000 in scholarships., Hampton Roads Chapter | Volunteer
Timeline
BRANCH CHIEF ENTERPRISE SMALL BOAT FLEET SUSTAINMENT
U.S. Coast Guard, Surface Forces Logistics Center
01.2024 - Current
EXPEDITIONARY LOGISTICS OFFICER / STRATEGIC LOGISTICS PLANNER
U.S. Coast Guard
01.2022 - 01.2024
ENGINEER OFFICER MEDIUM-ENDURANCE CUTTER
USCGC SPENCER
01.2019 - 01.2022
PROJECT MANAGER / PORT ENGINEER SPECIALIZED VESSEL FLEET SUSTAINMENT
U.S. Coast Guard, Surface Forces Logistics Center
01.2014 - 01.2017
SHIPBOARD ENGINEERING & OPERATIONS OFFICER
U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Assignments
01.2011 - 01.2014
M.S.E. - Systems Engineering
Johns Hopkins University
B.S. - Mechanical Engineering
Old Dominion University
B.S. - Biological Science
Lee University