September Virtual Speaker Series

GUEST SPEAKERS (PANEL):

CDR (Ret) Brian Aker

GUEST SPEAKERS' BACKGROUND:

Brian Aker was assigned to CNO-IP from September 2000 to November 2003, serving as an IP Watch Officer, National Military Joint Intelligence Watch Officer, CNO/SECNAV Briefer and Senior Watch Officer. Brian retired in 2015 after serving 25 years.

Jeff Kargol is a 1993 graduate of Texas A&M University and enlisted in the Navy as an Intelligence Specialist shortly after graduation.  He was commissioned as a Naval Intelligence Officer in 1997 and served in a host of sea and shore assignments retiring as a Captain in 2022 after 29 years of service.

Assignments at sea included: USS GEORGE WASHINGTON (CVN 73), Intelligence Officer for Strike Fighter Squadron ONE FOUR SIX (VFA-146), Carrier Air Wing NINE (CVW-9), and Carrier Strike Group Twelve (CSG-12).

Shore assignments included: the Office of Naval Intelligence; Instructor, Navy and Marine Corps Intelligence Training Center; Joint Staff J2; 2 tours with the Chief of Naval Operations Intelligence Plot (CNO-IP), first as a watch officer and Flag Brief and later as the Officer in Charge.  Educational experience includes a Master of Arts from the Naval War College and a Master of Science from the Dwight D. Eisenhower School for National Security and Resource Strategy.  His final job on active duty was serving as the Deputy Director of OPNAV N74 NSP / Integration.

He assumed his current duties as the Director of Operations for OPNAV N39 / Navy Strategy Coordination Cell (N-SC2) in October 2022.

Mr. Kargol and his wife Rita have two children (Benjamin (24) and Rachel (21) and reside in Alexandria, VA. 

Victor Minella was raised in Pachuta, Mississippi, enlisting in the U.S. Navy as a Hospital Corpsman, was later commissioned as a Naval Intelligence Officer and as a Senior Executive, rose to the position of Under Secretary of the Navy, the 2nd highest civilian position in the Department of the Navy (DON), serving as the Chief Management Officer and Chief Operating Officer, with responsibility for over 800,000 Sailors, Marines, and civilians and an annual budget of more than $250 billion.

He also served as the first Deputy Under Secretary of the Navy for Intelligence & Security from 2022-2025 leading the DON as the Senior Agency Official for DON Intelligence and Security overseeing all DON planning and execution of special programs, sensitive activities and intelligence operations. This position included responsibilities as the Special Operations and Irregular Warfare advisor to the Secretary of the Navy. He has led through crises, including 9/11 and the ensuing wars and conflicts, built coalitions across government and industry, and championed innovation in national security and counter-terrorism as a Civilian Program Executive. He has extensive knowledge in Special Operations, Clandestine and Covert Intelligence Activities, Counter-Intelligence, Information Operations, Security, Insider Threat, and Strategic Risk Management. He has been publicly recognized for his exceptional service by the President of the United States, the Secretary of the Navy, the Commander, U.S. Special Operations Command and the Director, Central Intelligence Agency. He is a Graduate of the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss), the Harvard Kennedy School, Senior Executives in National and International Security Program and UNC Kenan-Flagler Defense Executive Leadership Program.

He is now the Chief Executive Officer for Minella Global Strategies, LLC where he brings over three decades of experience with the same commitment to purpose and results in the private sector— working with agencies, executives, and organizations navigating change, innovation, growth, and strategic uncertainty.

Brian Nicholson retired in 2015 after 30 years as a Navy Intelligence officer.  He served as OIC of CNO-IP from Sep 2001 until July 2002.