The Clifton Group is an independent advisory firm specializing in audit sustainment, financial integrity, logistics modernization, and enterprise process improvement for defense and federal organizations - and primarily within the United States Marine Corps. The firm is led by Dave Clifton, a retired U.S. Marine Corps Colonel and former Senior Executive with five decades of combined leadership.

Dave’s approach to solving institutional challenges was shaped during a career that unfolded through the height of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, when the urgent needs of Marines in combat demanded the full attention of senior leaders. He also served on the ground in Afghanistan, supporting the Ministry of Interior . In this high-pressure environment, he had the privilege of helping deliver business reforms that enhanced readiness, accelerated battlefield equipment requests, and strengthened the Marine Corps’ financial credibility with DoD and Congress. Modernizing the business processes that supported the warfighter — while the nation was at war—not after—became a hallmark of his leadership and remains central to his consulting philosophy today.

Marine Corps Leadership (28 Years Active Duty)

Dave served in senior logistics, programming, financial management, and policy roles across the Marine Corps, NATO and the Department of War. His work included developing enterprise cost-management reforms, coordinating DoD-wide program reviews, and advancing Lean Continuous Process Improvement across major commands. These experiences reinforced a central conviction: disciplined management is not bureaucracy—it is readiness.

Senior Executive Leader (18 Years Federal Civil Service)

After retiring from active duty, Dave continued his service as a long-standing Marine Corps Senior Executive, contributing to major enterprise transformation efforts, including:

• Deputy Commander, Marine Corps Installations Command — overseeing 25 installations and a $4B portfolio

• Executive Deputy, Marine Corps Logistics Command — leading three ERP implementations, improving inventory accuracy from ~40% to 98% across 30M+ items, and strengthening DLA partnerships

• Advancing audit readiness, Lean/CPI initiatives, supply chain modernization, prepositioning programs, and workforce performance

He has also published four peer-reviewed articles on financial stewardship and the economical sustainment of a clean audit opinion in the leading professional defense financial management journal.

 The Clifton Group Today

 Dave now helps organizations solve their most persistent business and readiness challenges, including:

• Sustaining a clean audit opinion, economically

• Improving financial accuracy and internal controls

• Modernizing logistics and supply-chain systems and associated processes

• Improving data quality and integrating AI and robotic process automation

• Reducing cost and cycle time through Lean and CPI

• Building accountable, high-performing teams

His guiding objective is simple: strengthen the business systems that strengthen the warfighter.

NorthStar Strategic Partnerships

 The Clifton Group partners with Lean Werx LLC and GayleForce Consulting—two woman-owned firms with deep expertise in Lean transformation, organizational development, and operational excellence. Together, as the NorthStar Solutions Group, they have delivered thousands of hours of training, hands-on Lean coaching, and enterprise improvement primarily to the United States Marine Corps.

 Guiding Philosophy

Dave’s work rests on three enduring principles:

1. Service — mission first, people always

2. Stewardship — responsible and transparent use of resources

3. Continuous Improvement — building systems, based on quality data, that grow stronger over time

Personal Note

Dave lives on 25 wooded acres in rural South Carolina with his spouse of 40 years, two Labradors, five chickens, and a quarter-million honeybees.