Lyons selected Defense Commissary Agency headquarters chief of staff
FORT GREGG-ADAMS, Va. – The Defense Commissary Agency (DeCA) has announced the selection of Christopher Lyons, former agency resale and government affairs advisor, as the headquarters chief of staff effective July 2.
Lyons follows Army Col. Aaron Stanek, who retired in March 2023. Upon Stanek’s retirement, Lyons served his second stint as interim chief of staff. His first had been from January 2021 to July 2021. Steven Wood, HQ staff liaison specialist, will serve as interim resale and government affairs advisor until a permanent selection is made.
“Mr. Lyons’ extensive experience as a liaison between the agency and the Pentagon and Congress will make him a tremendous asset to the agency in his new role as chief of staff,” said John Hall, DeCA director and CEO. “His professionalism and expertise will help us manage our headquarters as we deliver the commissary benefit to U.S. military service members and family members worldwide.”
As headquarters chief of staff, Lyons manages the daily operations and interrelations of the DeCA headquarters staff, serving as a principal business management advisor to the agency’s chief operating officer (COO) and the director/chief executive officer (CEO).
In his previous assignment as resale and government affairs advisor, Lyons had served from 2020 to 2023 as DeCA’s liaison to a wide variety of organizations, including the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the chiefs of the uniformed services, Congress, trade associations and other governmental activities.
He returned to DeCA after serving with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and later with the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA), for the last three years.
At DCMA headquarters at then Fort Lee, Virginia, Lyons served as a human capital business partner from 2019 to 2020, providing expertise to DCMA leadership on human resources (HR) laws, regulations, policies and procedures. He also researched and developed critical and sensitive position papers, information papers, talking points, Department views, policy and briefings.
While at DCMA, Lyons was credited with helping form the agency’s first DOD-required cybersecurity cell by expediting the recruitment and placement of 46 positions to DCMA’s Defense Industrial Base Cybersecurity Assessment Center.
At USDA, he served as the regional administrative program manager, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, Richmond, Virginia, from 2017 to 2019. There, he was the pivot person for regional administrative functions to include human resources, procurement, and budget and management control. He was also the senior advisor, spokesperson and focal point for regional workforce development system activities, policy and issues.
Lyons began his civil service career with DeCA in 2008, serving for the next eight years in a variety of areas in the human resources directorate – staffing and classification, workforce development and strategic planning. In his last position with the agency, he was the human resource (HR) director’s key staff specialist for all initiatives and issues related to strategic human capital planning. This required him to be a subject matter expert on all HR-related areas such as staffing, classifications, workforce development, information systems, and employee and labor relations.
While at DeCA, Lyons wrote and implemented the agency’s first succession management guidance used to determine the competency level for employees in mission critical occupations (MCO). Working with senior leadership, he created a succession management assessment tool tailored to each MCO, which allowed the agency to identify required training.
Lyons earned a bachelor’s degree (2004) in criminal justice administration from Columbia Southern University, Orange Beach, Alabama; and both a bachelor’s degree (2006) and master’s degree in business administration (2007) from Southern University. He also earned a master’s degree in criminal justice administration from California Coast University, Santa Ana, California (2017).
In 1988, Lyons joined the U.S. Air Force security forces and retired in 2008. During his military career, he was honored several times for his accomplishments as an Air Force recruiter: 332nd Recruiting Squadron Rookie of the Year for 2000; the 332nd Flight Recruiter of the Year for 2000, 2001, 2002 and 2003; and the United Services Automobile Association (USAA) East Central Tennessee Air Force Recruiter of the Year for 2003.
His awards and decorations include the DCMA Human Resources Employee of the Quarter (2019), the DeCA Superior Civilian Service Award (2017 and 2023), DeCA Meritorious Service Award (2021) and the Air Force Meritorious Service Medal (2008).
“We have a wonderful command team here at headquarters, and I’m proud to be a part of it as we support our stores in delivering this great benefit,” Lyons said. “We are all committed to making commissaries the grocer of choice for the military community.”
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About DeCA: The Defense Commissary Agency operates a worldwide chain of commissaries providing groceries to military personnel, retirees and their families in a safe and secure shopping environment. Commissaries provide a military benefit, saving authorized patrons thousands of dollars annually on their purchases compared to similar products at commercial retailers. The discounted prices include a 5-percent surcharge, which covers the costs of building new commissaries and modernizing existing ones. A core military family support element, and a valued part of military pay and benefits, commissaries contribute to family readiness, enhance the quality of life for America’s military and their families, and help recruit and retain the best and brightest men and women to serve their country.