Melissa D. Blakesly is a member of the Senior Executive Service, Director of Resources, Air Force Installation and Mission Support Center, Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas. In that capacity, she serves as the principal advisor to the AFIMSC Commander for all resourcing matters, delivering installation and mission support capabilities Air Force wide. She and her team effectively manage annual execution of more than $10 billion of combat and mission support funding, bringing accurate and timely intermediate-level guidance for financial services functions, including oversight of financial improvement and audit readiness efforts for these programs. She also provides executive leadership and vision for strategic and operational-level activities to formulate effective and analytically based resourcing policies. Her Directorate’s program execution ensures Air Force enterprise-wide installation and mission support requirements are integrated and centrally advocated through existing Air Force and Department of Defense planning, programming and budgeting processes.
Ms. Blakesly began her career in private industry and entered the federal civil service in 2008. Her career has been mainly focused on financial management and acquisition. She recently served as the Deputy Director of Financial Management and Comptroller, Headquarters Pacific Air Forces at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii. In that role, she provided direct support and advice to the PACAF Comptroller in formulating, justifying, and executing a $1.1 billion budget that supported 334 aircraft, 46,000 personnel, and PACAF assets of $50 billion.
Prior to that, Ms. Blakesly’s assignments included Deputy Director, Air Force Congressional Budget and Appropriations Liaison, Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Financial Management and Comptroller, the Pentagon, Arlington, Virginia; the Director of the Commander’s Action Group for the Auditor General of the Air Force through the Civilian Strategic Leadership Program; Workforce Development lead for the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Cost and Economics; Joint Strike Fighter Program in Arlington, Va., first as the Financial Manager of the test program and later as the lead Cost Analyst of the follow-on development program; and F-22 Program at Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, as a financial manager and cost estimator; and cost staff for the Air Force Lifecycle Management Center.
EDUCATION
1992 Bachelor of Arts, Business Administration, Piano Performance and Music Management, Blackburn College, Carlinville, Ill.
1999 Master of Music, Music History, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio
2008 Master of Business Administration, Wright State University, Dayton, Ohio
2015 Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala., by correspondence
2016 Alan L. Freed Associates Leadership in a Transformational Age: American Power and Global Order, Washington, D.C.
2018 Air War College, Maxwell AFB, Ala., by correspondence
2020 National Defense University, Eisenhower School of National Security and Resource Strategy, Distinguished Graduate
CAREER CHRONOLOGY
1. June 1992-October 2008, various assignments
2. October 2008-April 2010, Cost Analyst, Aeronautical Systems Center, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio
3. April 2010-June 2012, Cost Analyst and Financial Manager, F-22 System Program Office, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio
4. June 2012-February 2014, Budget Lead and Cost Lead, F-35 System Program Office, Washington, D.C.
5. February 2014-January 2016, Operations Research Analyst, Cost Integration, Policy and Workforce Development, Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Financial Management and Comptroller, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C.
6. January 2016-October 2016, Director, Commander’s Action Group, Office of the Auditor General, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C.
7. October 2016-July 2019, Deputy Director, Air Force Office of Budget and Appropriations Liaison, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington, D.C.
8. August 2019-June 2020, Student, Eisenhower School of National Security and Resource Strategy, Washington, D.C.
9. August 2020-December 2022, Deputy Director of Financial Management and Comptroller, Headquarters Pacific Air Forces, Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii
10. December 2022-present, Resources Director, Air Force Installation and Mission Support Center, Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas
PROFESSIONAL CERTIFICATION
Level III, Department of Defense Financial Management & Comptroller Certified Defense
Financial Manager
American Society of Military Comptrollers, Certified Defense Financial Manager
Level II, Acquisition Professional Development Program, Bus-CE
Level I, Acquisition Professional Development Program, Project Manager
MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
2022 Meritorious Civilian Service Award
2019 Meritorious Civilian Service Award
2018 DoD Senior Professional Women Association Excellence in Mentorship Award
2018 Air Force Association Legislative Liaison Civilian of the Year
Numerous Special Act/Service Awards
(Current as of February 2023)