Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
Lt. Gen. (ret) Walter E. Piatt serves as chief executive officer of Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP). He brings 42 years of military experience and leadership to the organization. Piatt oversees day-to-day operations and works with the leadership team to set and implement the organization’s strategic vision. He is responsible for ensuring WWP’s free programs and services continue to have the greatest possible impact on the warriors, caregivers, and families we serve.
Prior to joining WWP, Piatt served for four years as the Director of the Army Staff. His Army career began with a four-year enlistment in the infantry with the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions before attending Lock Haven University. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in biology and joined the Army ROTC program. The Army commissioned him as an officer in 1987.
With more than four decades of dedicated service to our country, Piatt’s assignments were comprised of responsibilities from private to three-star general, which included Command of the Joint Multinational Training Command in Germany; Deputy Commanding General, United States Army Europe; and Commanding General 10th Mountain Division (Light) at Fort Drum and in Iraq. His awards and accolades reflect a lifelong career in uniform, including four Army Distinguished Service Medals and five Bronze Stars.
Piatt published two books of poetry from his experience in Afghanistan. He was a pioneer in bringing mindfulness to the military with a goal of helping warriors regulate stress, increase attention, and calmly embrace the demands of military life.
Piatt's military education includes the School of Advanced Military Studies and a fellowship with the Institute for the Study of Diplomacy at Georgetown University’s Edmund Walsh School of Foreign Service. He holds master’s degrees in military history and military science and an honorary doctorate for public service from Lock Haven University.
He is married with two adult children and resides in Jacksonville, Florida.
