William Pagonis Lieutenant General William Gus Pagonis was the director of Logistics during the Gulf War of 1991 and is widely recognized for his logistical achievements particularly during Desert Storm . After successfully masterminding logistics for the Gulf War and winning high praise from General Norman Schwarzkopf , Pagonis left the Army in 1993 and was elected Executive Vice President of Logistics for Sears Roebuck & Co . In 2000 he joined Railamerica , Inc . Career . Pagonis served in the United States Army for 29 years , retiring with the three - star rank of Lieutenant General . He earned both a Bachelor ' s degree in Transportation and Traffic Management and a Master ' s degree in Business Administration from Pennsylvania State University . He is a brother of the Alpha Chi Rho Fraternity . Called " " the logistical wizard behind the Allied success in Operation Desert Storm " " , in the book " Delivering the Goods " by author Damon Schechter , who goes on to say that one of the greatest inspirations Pagonis credits is none other than his Greek ancestor , Alexander the Great , who inspired one of Pagonis ’ best - remembered logistical innovations during the Gulf War , the mobile firebase . Gulf War . In the Gulf War Norman Schwarzkopf ' s supply expert was then Major General Pagonis , a short energetic Greek - American . Pagonis was actually the first American to arrive in Saudi Arabia , hours after it was decided to send troops . Lacking a hotel room , he had slept two nights in the back of his rented Chevrolet near the port of Dammam . He would be promoted to Lieutenant General during the war , the only promotion given during the entire event . As he confirmed in interviews , his personal hall of fame also includes such generals as Ulysses Grant and George Patton . Pagonis has shown that when it comes to expertise in logistics and overall leadership in management of very complex projects and organizations , few people are better qualified than the retired three - star U . S . Army General . Lieutenant General Pagonis , as head of the Sears Logistics Group , functioned as the single point of contact for all Sears ’ logistics and was responsible for Vendor Relations , Distribution , Transportation , Home Deliveries , Outlet Stores , International Logistics and the integration of Information Systems to cement it all together . With Pagonis incorporating the logistics he learned in the military into the corporate world he has turned Sears - dismissed as a dinosaur only years ago - into a star of the retailing universe . Pagonis has been one of the key players in the turnaround of Sears . He explains , " " The secret of logistics is never to lose sight of who the customer is . " " Since then he has left Sears and now is Chairman of the Board / Director for Railamerica , Inc . Mr . Pagonis is also Chairman of the Defense Business Board , having been appointed by Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld . He is also Vice - Chairman of GENCO ATC and previously served as an advisor to CombineNet , Inc . He retired as President of Sears Logistics Services during 2004 , where he also served as Senior Vice - President for Supply Chain for Sears , Roebuck and Company . He has since retired from Sears , he is currently the chairmen of GENCO , a logistics firm based out of Pittsburgh . Pagonis is also an author , having written " Moving Mountains : Lessons in Leadership and Logistics from the Gulf War " , published by Harvard Business School Press .