Academy of Distinguished Alumni

General Jim Archer is a 1972 graduate of Virginia Tech with a B.S. in industrial engineering and operations research. He was a Distinguished Military Graduate of the Corps of Cadets and commissioned as an Armor Officer. He served six years on active duty, including three and a half years in Germany with 3rd Squadron, 7th Cavalry.

Jim earned an MBA Degree from Emory University on an Army Fellowship. Following active duty, he worked for Corning Glass Works in Greencastle, PA, first as an industrial engineer and subsequently as Supervisor of Packaging Systems Engineering in the Consumer Products Division. He was a two-time recipient of the President’s Manufacturing Club Award. Concurrently, he served in the Army National Guard for five years. In 1983, he joined his family’s beverage distribution business in Salem, VA retiring in 2017 as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. The firm grew from approximately fifty employees to over 500 now and is one of the largest beverage distribution companies in Virginia.

In Salem, he also transferred to the Army Reserve, serving for twenty-five years, retiring in 2008 as a Major General and Commanding General of the 95th Division (Institutional Training). In his final assignment, he commanded some 6,000 soldiers from coast-to-coast training our Army, while deploying units to Afghanistan to train the Afghan National Army. General Archer received the Distinguished Service Medal, the Legion of Merit, the Meritorious Service Medal (4 awards) and is a graduate of the Army War College.

He is a Melvin Jones Fellow of the Salem Host Lions Club for 34 years, on the board of Southwest Virginia’s ‘The Crooked Road,’ Vice President of the Salem Education Foundation, former member of the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets Alumni Board, a representative on the Commandant’s Advisory Group, and a member of National Strategic Leaders 4 America. He enjoys reading American History and writing, among other interests. Jim resides in Salem with his wife of 51 years, Nancy. They have one daughter, Leigh, an attorney and self-employed at Arrow Human Resources Consulting, LLC., and a son, Jim, Senior Director of Solutions at General Dynamics Information Technology. Jim and Nancy are the proud grandparents of four.

Dr. Ranjana Mehta is professor in the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering at the University of Wisconsin Madison. She is a leading expert in neuroergonomics, the study of brain and behavior at work, and her current human factors research program focuses on human health and performance augmentations in high-risk environments, such as emergency response and energy sectors.

Her research has attracted more than $19.83 million in extramural funding from NIH, NSF, NASEM, and DOD, resulted in over 172 publications, and several plenaries and keynotes across academic and industry venues, and recognized through numerous honors, notably the Ideas* Faculty Fellow by NASA, the Early Career Research Fellow by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Gulf Research Program, IISE Award for Technical Innovation in Industrial Engineering, and the Human Factors Prize on Equity and Inclusivity from the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society.

As a citizen of the Industrial & Systems Engineering community, she has maintained a high level of external service at the national and international levels via numerous elected and appointed positions within professional societies, conferences, and standards development committees and as an associate editor of several human factors/ergonomics journals. Ranjana graduated from Virginia Tech with her M.S. in industrial and systems engineering (human factors) in 2009 and a Ph.D. in 2011. She currently resides in Madison, Wisconsin with her family.

Mehul Sanghani graduated from Virginia Tech with bachelor’s degrees in industrial and systems engineering and psychology. He is the founder and CEO of Octo, a technology firm focused on solving national security’s most complex problems. Mehul is a PROUD Blacksburg, Virginia native who immigrated with his family to the United States from India in 1979 when he was only three years old. As owners of a small motel in Blacksburg, the Red Carpet Inn, his parents instilled in him a fierce work ethic and appreciation for opportunity.

He took a leap of faith to found Octo at the age of 30 with encouragement from his family and others, and since its founding in 2006, the company has experienced tremendous and exponential success under his leadership. Octo was repeatedly recognized as one of the fastest-growing private businesses in the country and the firm he founded eventually grew to be over 1,600 employees across the country – catching the attention of a number of Fortune 100 companies as an acquisition target by the end of 2022. In January of 2023, IBM announced to its shareholders live on CNBC that they were acquiring Octo for just over $1.3 Billion – a transaction that is the largest acquisition in the history of IBM’s Consulting division.

Mehul’s dedication and hard work has provided him with the opportunity to impact many others through philanthropy and volunteer service. He and his wife, Hema Sanghani, also a Virginia Tech graduate, have made historic donations to their alma mater to establish The Market of Virginia Tech to serve students experiencing food insecurity, endowed the landmark Sanghani Center for Artificial Intelligence and Data Analytics, and established the Sanghani Player Lounge to support the Virginia Tech football program. Mehul is a former member of the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors and currently serves on the Innovation Campus Advisory Board and the Pamplin Business School’s Advisory Board.

David Wayne Snodgrass, born in 1939 in Abingdon, Virginia, graduated from Virginia Tech in 1962 with a B.S. in electrical engineering. He embarked on a career at Douglas Aircraft in California, coordinating engineering for missile and space vehicle programs during the escalation of the Cold War. During this time, he took engineering night courses at UCLA and USC, which he transferred to Virginia Tech to complete his B.S. in industrial engineering and operations research in 1968. Wayne took on a series of escalating roles across various aerospace and defense organizations.

At Douglas Aircraft Company, he worked on programs like the Spartan ABM and Saturn SIVB. When he worked at McDonnell Douglas Corporation between 1970 and 1980, he managed Army Programs, including the Dragon ATM and Battlefield Missiles. He transitioned to Gould Electronics Corporation in 1981 and contributed to undersea systems like the Mk 48 & ADCAP Torpedo and climbed the ranks to General Manager. In 1987, he started at Westinghouse Electric Corporation, which led him to oversee submarine combat and sonar systems, culminating as VP and General Manager. From 1997 to 2004, he worked at Northrop Grumman Corporation and served as Sector Vice President, integrating seven aerospace and defense companies into a single sector.

Throughout his career, Wayne focused on systems engineering, continuous improvement, and was a proponent of Total Quality Management, Lean Six Sigma, achieving industry recognition such as the Malcolm Baldrige Award in 1986, the Small Business Administration’s Eisenhower Award for Excellence in 1992, and Industry Week’s Best Plant Award in 1993. His commitment to quality management led to significant business growth and sector-wide accreditations.

After retiring, Wayne remained active in community service, taking leadership roles in 22 non-profit organizations, 12 of which he served as a board member, and five as president. He is still active in four of these organizations. His post-retirement life continued to reflect his dedication to improvement and service, mirroring his professional ethos of innovation and excellence. Wayne shares that his business career and retirement have been true blessings for a curious Hokie from Southwest Virginia.

Jennifer is a dynamic and transformational executive with more than 25 years of extensive operational experience, consistently leading large P&Ls in both the Consumer and Business markets. Throughout her career, Jennifer has been instrumental in shaping industry history. She played a prominent role in the landmark acquisition of AT&T Wireless during Cingular Wireless’ expansion, marking the largest cash transaction in U.S. history at the time. She also played a key role in the introduction of the first iPhone and led market-shifting customer-centric initiatives that changed competitive dynamics.

Jennifer built AT&T’s premium prepaid wireless business from the ground up, launching start-up Aio Wireless and overseeing the merger integration of Cricket Wireless after AT&T’s acquisition in 2014. As President and CEO of Cricket, Jennifer propelled it to become the fastest growing brand in the industry, now a thriving $6B+ business with more than 13M customers. Recognized for her strategic thinking and engineering approach to problem-solving, Jennifer is an inspirational leader and skilled communicator. She excels in building diverse high-performing teams and fostering vibrant cultures that push boundaries and achieve remarkable outcomes.

In her current role as Executive Vice President and General Manager for AT&T’s Mid-Markets business, Jennifer is spearheading the transformation of the $10B+ business, targeting growth in underpenetrated markets. Her leadership focuses on driving efficiency, deploying marketing and distribution strategies, and reinvigorating company culture. Acknowledged as one of the “Influential Women in Wireless” by Fierce Wireless and recognized among the National Diversity Council’s “Top 50 Most Powerful Women in Technology,” Jennifer has also received a Bronze Stevie Award for “Female Executive of the Year.”

Jennifer holds a bachelor’s degree in industrial and systems engineering from Virginia Tech and an MBA from Kennesaw State University. She previously served on the Board of Directors for the Yellow Pages. Actively involved on the Advisory Board for Virginia Tech’s Apex Center for Entrepreneurs, Jennifer is a vocal advocate for STEM education and a widely followed blogger, currently the most followed AT&T executive on LinkedIn. Jennifer lives in Dallas, TX with her husband of 27 years and has two adult children.

After earning the B.S. in mechanical engineering at West Virginia University (1964), Dr. Wilhelm worked for the General Electric Company for five years, the first three of which were in the Manufacturing Training Program, before starting graduate school full time. He earned an M.S. (1970) and Ph.D. (1972) in industrial engineering and operations research at Virginia Tech and taught at The Ohio State University before relocating to Texas A&M University, where he was subsequently named the inaugural Sugar and Mike Barnes Professor (2000).

He is a Professional Engineer registered in Ohio and is a Life Member and Fellow of the Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers (IISE). He served the IISE in a number of roles, including Vice-President of Publications (1997-1998), Editor-in-Chief of IISE Transactions (1993-1996), Editor of the Planning/Scheduling/Control Department of IISE Transactions (1990 – 1992), Director of Operations Research Division (1988-1989), and President of Chapter No. 1 (1979-1980). His research was recognized with the David F. Baker Distinguished Research Award in 1996 and the Gold Medal Award in 2011, which are conferred by IISE and the Society of Manufacturing Engineers, respectively. He taught courses on integer programming, linear programming, scheduling, and production planning and inventory control. His research interests primarily involved basic and applied aspects of integer programming with applications in designing assembly systems; configuring healthcare facilities; locating direction finders; designing sensor surveillance and response systems for homeland security; and designing supply chains for assembly systems, international enterprises, and second-generation biofuel.

Wil and his wife, Vida, have been married for over 60 years. Their daughter lives in College Station; her daughters, Rachael and Natalie, recently moved to New Orleans. Their son, Byron, lives in Houston with his wife, Erin; son, Barrett; and daughter, Addison.

Deborah Youmans is a seasoned information technology professional with a distinguished career spanning over two decades. She is currently serving as the Chief Information Officer (CIO) and Vice President at The MITRE Corporation, where she leads a team of more than 400 IT professionals in the Enterprise Computing and Information Systems division. Her responsibilities encompass a wide range of areas including innovation and experimentation, information security, enterprise information technology, and business and knowledge services.

Prior to joining MITRE, Deborah was a Vice President and Deputy CIO at Booz Allen Hamilton, where she was instrumental in setting the strategic and technical direction for a team of over 500 members. She focused on the development and delivery of enterprise solutions across Booz Allen Hamilton's extensive user base of 30,000. Her tenure at Booz Allen Hamilton also included a significant period as the Director of Booz Allen Information Systems, where she led the enterprise implementation of cloud services and applications and managed the operational support of key systems. Deborah's expertise is not limited to her roles in executive leadership; she has a strong background in software development, having managed several client delivery projects for the FBI and leading a strategic investment partnership with Microsoft earlier in her career at CACI International. Her leadership extends to every phase of the software development life cycle, from requirements to operations across multiple projects and agencies.

In addition to her professional accomplishments, Deborah holds an MBA from the University of Maryland and a B.S. in industrial and systems engineering from Virginia Tech. She is also a certified Project Management Professional (PMP). Her commitment to excellence and innovation in the field of information technology is evident in her impressive career trajectory and her contributions to the tech industry. Deborah currently resides in Loudon County, Virginia with her husband, Gregory, and her two active teenage sons. Deborah volunteers at Loudon County Animal Services and was an Ashburn Farm Swim Team Board Member from 2019-2023.