G. "Rino" Fazio

Rino's Story

Gaspare "Rino" Fazio brings decades of leadership experience in government financial management, enterprise systems, and military operations. Prior to this role, he was the Acting Director for the Planning & Budgeting Line of Business within the Global Financial Management Systems Directorate (GFMS) at the U.S. Department of State, where he managed contracts valued at up to $1 billion. He has extensive expertise in large-scale procurements, financial systems oversight, and program management. Rino played a key role in modernizing the Department’s core accounting and budgeting systems and was instrumental in establishing the Financial Bureau Support Services and Solutions (F3S) program, one of the first dedicated low-code development initiatives in the government sector.

Rino is a Colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve and currently serves as the Director of the Modernization & Transformation Task Force in the Military Intelligence Readiness Command (MIRC). His military career spans tactical, operational, and strategic assignments, including deployments to Kosovo, Iraq, and Kuwait, as well as direct involvement in the response to Hurricane Katrina and the evacuation of Afghans during the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Rino started out as a line soldier in an infantry squad, gradually climbing the ranks and eventually serving at the highest levels, including positions within the Pentagon. He began his military service at age 19 in the Pennsylvania Army National Guard as an infantryman before commissioning as a Second Lieutenant in the Military Intelligence Corps in 2002. He served as the S2 Intelligence Officer for the 1-111th Infantry Battalion, Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania, and later as the Assistant Brigade S2 for the 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 28th Infantry Division, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Transitioning to the Army Reserve, he held multiple leadership roles, including Platoon Leader, Company Executive Officer, Battalion S4 Logistics Officer, and Battalion S3 Operations Officer for the 323rd Military Intelligence Battalion, Fort Meade, Maryland. He was also a Staff Officer in the Operations and Mobilization Directorate, Deputy Chief of Staff, G-3/5/7, Headquarters Department of the Army, Washington D.C.; Battalion Executive Officer for the 10th Battalion, 80th Regiment, Officer Education System, Owings Mills, Maryland; and a Global Analyst for the Foreign Intelligence Watch, Deputy Chief of Staff, G-2, Headquarters Department of the Army, Washington, D.C.

Rino commanded the 752d Military Intelligence Battalion at Fort Meade, Maryland, served as the S3 of the U.S. Army Reserve Interrogation Group at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey, and was the Director of Cyber Operations for the U.S. Army Reserve Cyber Protection Brigade in Adelphi, Maryland. His cyber expertise has been pivotal in shaping the Army Reserve’s cyber intelligence capabilities, including the development of the first cyber intelligence capability in the Army Reserve.

His operational tours include:

• Operation Enduring Freedom (Kosovo Force 5A, 2003–2004): Served as the Infantry Battalion Tactical Intelligence Officer.

• Operation Iraqi Freedom / Operation New Dawn (2009–2010): Served in the Corps Analytical Control Element as the Threat Finance Intelligence Support Team and PMESII Intelligence Team Officer in Charge.

• Operation Spartan Shield: Served as the Deputy Commanding Officer of the 513th Military Intelligence Brigade Forward at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait.

• Hurricane Katrina Response (2005): Deployed to New Orleans as part of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard’s disaster relief efforts.

Rino holds an M.B.A. from the University of Virginia's Darden School of Business and a B.B.A. in Finance from Temple University's Fox School of Business. His military education includes the Military Intelligence Officer Basic and Career Courses, the Counterintelligence Special Agent Course, and the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College. He is currently pursuing a Master of Strategic Studies at the U.S. Army War College.