Major General John G Howard, MNZM (Ret)
Senior Fellow
General John Howard is a retired military leader who now works with boards and senior executives as a private advisor on strategy, risk and organisational
performance. John's consulting work focuses on helping executive teams interpret complex strategic operating environments, align strategy and risk, and make clear decisions when the stakes are high and the information is imperfect. He brings a calm, inquiring strategic lens to decision making at the highest level, drawing on over four decades of service in some of the most complex defence, intelligence and national security environments.
John has held a number of senior military leadership roles including Commanding Officer of the 1st Battalion, Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment; Commander of the Deployable Joint Interagency Task Force; before being appointed the inaugural Chief of Defence Intelligence for the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF). In that role he was responsible for shaping NZDF's strategic intelligence enterprise, integrating complex information environments and supporting government decision makers under conditions of uncertainty. This role saw John serving as a principal across a full range of Five Eyes intelligence boards as well as at the highest level in Military Intelligence NATO.
Internationally, John has held significant appointments within the United States defence and intelligence system, including serving as the responsible Officer in the role of Deputy Director for Commonwealth Integration at the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency, Washington (the world's largest All Source Intelligence Agency). In this role he was the only non-US executive officer serving across all 18 agencies and departments of the US Intelligence Community. He has also served as a senior national officer at U.S. Central Command, Tampa. These positions placed him inside the core of the U.S. and Five Eyes Intelligence Community and saw him working daily with senior civilian and military leaders on some of the most demanding global security problems.
Alongside his operational and intelligence experience, John has led sensitive work with international governmental organisations at the highest levels, building an extensive global network across defence, security, diplomatic and multilateral institutions, including NATO. He holds a Master of Management & International Defence Studies, and a Master of Strategic Studies. John is a graduate of the Company Directors Course from the Institute of Directors for New Zealand. John was appointed as a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for his strategic leadership in East Timor. He was presented with the US legion of Merit (Officer Grade) from the US Secretary of Defence, and has twice been awarded the US Meritorious Service Medal.
Email: john.howard@nzinitiative.org.nz
