Rear Admiral Mike Ryan assumed the duties of Deputy for Operations, Policy & Capabilities located in U. S. Coast Guard Headquarters, Washington D.C in May 2022. He is responsible for establishing and providing operational strategy, policy, capability and resources to meet national priorities for U.S. Coast Guard missions, programs and services in support of the Deputy Commandant for Operations.
His prior flag assignment was as Commander of Coast Guard Cyber Command, where he conducted operations and delivered effects in and through the cyberspace operational domain from 2019-2022. He also served as the Assistant Commandant for Capability (CG-7) from 2017-2019, ensuring Coast Guard forces were postured to meet mission requirements. He previously served as the Executive Assistant to the 25th Commandant of the Coast Guard and Executive Director for the Deputy Commandant for Mission Support (DCMS). He also led the Officer Personnel Management (OPM) division at the Personnel Service Center where he directed career actions for the service’s 9000 officers.
Operationally, he served as Deputy Sector Commander of Sector Northern New England in directing mission execution in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Northeastern New York. His afloat tours include serving as Commanding Officer aboard USCGC KATMAI BAY and Executive Officer aboard USCGC BISCAYNE BAY conducting icebreaking operations in the Great Lakes, and Operations Officer aboard USCGC RED BIRCH executing Aids to Navigation missions in the Mid-Atlantic.
Using his C4IT specialty, he commanded the Operations Systems Center (OSC) with responsibility for software development and sustainment of enterprise information technology systems. He also commanded Electronic Systems Support Unit St. Louis, providing support for 77 operational and shoreside units in the Midwest. He was a ‘plank owner’ for the USCG Differential Global Positioning System during his tour at the Electronics Engineering Center in Wildwood, NJ, and served as Information Systems Branch Chief in the Office of Command and Control Architecture (G-OCC) at Headquarters.
Rear Admiral Ryan is a 1988 graduate of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree with Honors in Mathematical and Computer Sciences. He also completed a Master of Science degree in Computer Science at Purdue University in 1993. He completed Harvard’s Kennedy School General and Flag Officer Homeland Security Executive Seminar in 2018 and the Harvard National Preparedness Leadership Initiative in 2019.
He is a recipient of the AFCEA / U.S. Naval Institute Copernicus Award and the Federal 100 Award for outstanding Information Systems contributions. His personal awards include four Legions of Merit and five Meritorious Service Medals with "O" device among others.