Mr. James Holly is the Director of the Influence and Perception Management Office within the Office of the Secretary of Defense at the Pentagon. He leads a staff to oversee the development of strategy, plans, policy, oversight, and governance of influence, deception, perception management (reveal/conceal defense capabilities), and intelligence support to influence activities. 

Among other roles, he has previously served as Director of Special Programs for the U.S. Joint Special Operations Command, Intelligence Officer for a Combined Joint Task Force in Afghanistan, and Intelligence Chief for a paramilitary organization in Iraq. He is a certified Counterintelligence Officer/Agent, Interrogator, Immigration Officer, Fraud Detection and National Security Officer, Diplomatic Security Service graduate, Federal Law Enforcement Training Center graduate, Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) Sergeant, Sniper, Paramilitary Operations Officer, Signature Reduction Officer, Virginia Realtor, and is a U.S. Army veteran. 

Originally from Arizona, Mr. Holly currently lives in northern Virginia, where he enjoys spending time with his wife and children while exploring an eclectic range of hobbies from motorcycles to reading, or museums to homebrewing. He holds a master’s degree from Penn State, has been a lecturer at several universities, a Government Advisor to the Defense Science Board, and a Senior Executive Fellow at Harvard.