LTG (Ret.) Mark Hertling, DBA, spent 38 years in the United States Army, serving as a tanker and cavalry officer in a variety of assignments both overseas and in the U.S., and rising to command U.S. Army Europe and Seventh Army. In that role, he led more than 40,000 soldiers and worked closely with allied forces across Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.

He served over three years in combat, including during Desert Storm and the Iraq War, where he commanded the 1st Armored Division in northern Iraq during the 2007–2008 surge. Like many who’ve spent a lifetime in uniform, his views on leadership were shaped by experience, reinforced by theory — by the consequences of decisions made under pressure, and by the soldiers who carried them out.

After retiring from the Army in 2012, Hertling was recruited into healthcare leadership as a senior executive with the nation’s largest faith-based non-profit hospital, where he focused on global partnering with other healthcare organizations and building leaders in complex, high-stakes organizations. That work led to his first book, Growing Physician Leaders, and continues today in the classroom as a Professor of Practice in Strategic Leadership at Rollins College.

Hertling is widely known as a national security analyst, having appeared for a decade on CNN and CNN International as their military analyst; he now contributes to The Bulwark, co-hosts the “Command Post” podcast as part of Bulwark Takes, and provides analysis on MSNow. His commentary reflects a career spent working with allies, understanding adversaries, and seeing firsthand how wars are fought — not how they’re talked about.

Mark has been appointed to national service by two presidents, including the President’s Council on Fitness, Sport and Nutrition, and later serving as Chairman of the American Battle Monuments Commission, helping preserve the legacy of Americans who died overseas in defense of the nation.

A graduate of West Point, Hertling holds multiple advanced degrees, including a Doctor of Business Administration focused on leadership. His military awards include three Distinguished Service Medals, five Bronze Stars, the Purple Heart, and multiple awards from various allied nations.

He lives in Florida with his wife, Sue. They have two sons and a growing family of grandchildren.

His latest book, If I Don’t Return: A Father’s Wartime Journal, is drawn from daily writings he began during Desert Storm — written for his sons in case he didn’t make it home — and expanded over decades into a set of reflections on character, leadership, service, and the choices that define a life.