Richard Ross

Richard Ross currently serves as the Managing Partner of Decision Strategies Group. Prior to his role with Decision Strategies Group, he held the position of Chief Information Officer (CIO) and Senior Vice President of IT at Atlas Air until his recent retirement. In this capacity, he was responsible for overseeing Atlas Air’s global business systems, IT operations, general IT controls, emerging technologies, innovation, cybersecurity, and the cybersecurity aspects of the relationships between Atlas, its customers, and its partners, including the Federal government.

With over 40 years of experience in Information Technology (IT) spanning various industries, Richard has a well-documented track record of establishing robust, high-performing, and compliant operations in public companies, as well as driving success in privately funded startups. His extensive board experience includes serving as Chairman for an early-stage tech startup and offering advisory services to boards and management teams in multiple sectors, including Transportation, Healthcare, and Media. He also represented IT and Cybersecurity matters to the Atlas board.

Richard’s previous roles encompass serving as the first global CIO for Amerada Hess, founding Decision Strategies Group, a strategy and operations consulting firm, and holding the position of VP of IT for Salomon Brothers in London and Tokyo. He also served as Research Director for Gartner Group in its flagship Industry Service, worked as an engineer for Wang Labs and IBM, and functioned as a general business consultant for McKinsey & Company and Index. His extensive professional experience covers areas such as strategic restructuring, turnaround strategies, mergers and acquisitions, supply chain management, profitability improvement through reengineering and automation, customer and product line profitability, and the implementation and monitoring of corporate cybersecurity programs.

Richard has been an active participant in various industry groups, including his role as co-chairman of the National Defense Transportation Association’s (NDTA) Cybersecurity Committee, involvement with the Defense Industrial Base (DIB), contributions to the Chamber of Commerce’s Digital Security Working Group, participation in Airlines for America’s Cybersecurity Committee, and engagement with the Department of Homeland Security’s ADIAC. His accomplishments include being recognized as Innovative CIO of the Year by Salomon Smith Barney in 2001 and earning recognition from CIO magazine in 2002 for innovation related to seismic processing within his organization.

Richard Ross’s academic background comprises a B.S.E.E. in Electrical Engineering/Biomedical Engineering from Washington University in St. Louis and an M.S.E.E. with a dual major in Computer Science and Electrical Engineering from Northeastern University.