Jim Mischke
Jim Mischke is a seasoned technology leader with a lifelong passion for programming, systems modernization, and process improvement. He began coding at age 12 and has since led major technology transformations, including the migration of Archives.gov to Drupal and pioneering large-scale OCR data extraction for the 1950 U.S. Census. Guided by integrity, accountability, and agile principles, Jim specializes in building scalable, efficient systems that deliver real-world impact.
Jim Mischke is a seasoned technology leader with a lifelong passion for computers, process improvement, and solving complex operational challenges. His journey in technology began at the age of 12, when he started programming on an Atari 400—a spark that developed into a career dedicated to building efficient, scalable, and mission-critical systems across both public and private sectors.
Over the years, Jim has led some of the most impactful large-scale technology transformations in government and enterprise environments. One of his most notable achievements was serving as Web and Social Media Branch Chief for the National Archives, where he successfully planned and managed the migration of Archives.gov from static HTML files to Drupal in 2016. This effort modernized the platform and dramatically improved content management, accessibility, and scalability.
Jim also played a pioneering role in transforming public access to historical records. He initiated and led the use of AWS Textract to process 7.6 million digital images from the 1950 Census of Population and Housing, extracting first and last names at scale. This breakthrough enabled the public to, for the first time, search census records by name on the very first day of release—unlocking access to family history for millions of people nationwide.
Beyond government service, Jim has demonstrated strong operational and architectural leadership in the private sector. He architected, planned, and led the closure of a secondary distribution center for a $550 million company, generating more than $1.2 million in annual savings. He also built and led an IT department capable of supporting a large specialty market distributor, enabling reliable, near-continuous system operations across nationwide retail chains with seven-days-a-week, twenty-four hours a day availability.
One of the most formative experiences of Jim’s career was leading the Year 2000 (Y2K) remediation effort for a large organization. He successfully planned, coordinated, and executed the upgrade across corporate headquarters, five remote warehouses, and more than 67 company-owned stores—completing the entire project months ahead of the global deadline, by September 1999. This experience sharpened his leadership under pressure and reinforced the importance of meticulous planning, risk management, and cross-functional collaboration.
Jim’s work is guided by strong principles of integrity, accountability, continuous learning, and the disciplined use of agile practices to solve complex challenges. He believes that the best technology solutions are not just technically sound, but operationally practical and aligned with real-world needs.
Today, Jim brings a rare combination of technical depth, strategic thinking, and operational leadership to every initiative he supports—focused on building systems that are resilient, scalable, and designed to serve people effectively.
