About Us
The Oryza Group is committed to provide cleared, qualified and experienced personnel to our customers, ensuring the highest quality of onsite administrative, professional and technical support services. Our goal is to ensure project success and total continuity of services in satisfying all applicable requirements. We achieve this through continual improvement of everything we do.
As the original managing member and president, Leland Rice named the company The Oryza Group. The word ‘Oryza’ comes from the ‘Latin’ translation for ‘Rice.’ The word ‘Group’ is defined as a clutch, set, assembly, collection or team. The intent behind the name is to identify a group of professionals who personify our profession with the highest level of skills, abilities, and passion in serving our country.
Simple, but meaningful.
Although the wording is nothing out of the ordinary, our ‘bird’ reference means a great deal to us. The bird ‘silhouette’ actually represents a geese formation. We chose the goose as a symbol for its fortitude and forever supporting nature. A goose has qualities that we hold near and dear to our beliefs in everyday life.
Did You Know You Will Rarely, If Ever, See a Goose Flying by Itself?
Geese are continually supportive of the flock, lifting each other up to continue on in their pursuits. Geese fly in formation to extend their capabilities over what they would have as individuals. As a group in formation, geese can extend their range upwards of 70% over an individual bird.
You may hear geese as they fly continuously ‘honking’ and wonder why. The continuous conversation they have is to recognize within the group who is strong, who is weak, who is fading, who can lead, who must follow, and adjust to those individual’s needs – as a group.
Did you know geese will never leave an individual alone? Studies have shown when a goose is wounded, injured, shot, or disabled, another goose will always remain with that goose for support and protection until it is able to fly again; in which they will rejoin their original or another group, or die; in which the remaining goose will join another group.
These and many other traits of geese are traits we at The Oryza Group believe in and feel can be applied to our approach in business and everyday life.
If you ever visit our office space, you will see instances throughout the office of geese as a reminder that we work as a team, supporting each other, never leaving another behind, and communicating to better the group as a whole.
Meet the Leadership Team
Michael ‘Mike’ Peterman
Mr. Michael Peterman serves as President, The Oryza Group (TOG), LLC. Mike leads an SBA - Certified Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB). The Oryza Group provides world class expert Consulting Services, full spectrum Contract Logistics Services (CLS), IT, Training, Environmental Safety, and Admin staffing for clients around the world. As President, responsible for all day-to-day operations of the business, strategy, partnering and contract execution the Oryza enterprise. Colonel (Ret.) Peterman joined URS/AECOM/Amentum following 26 years of distinguished service in the United States Army. His career was highlighted by troop assignments in Airborne, Special Forces units and he was privileged to command the 82nd Airborne’s Main Support Battalion and 101st Airborne Division’s - Sustainment Brigade (Air Assault). After three combat deployments to Afghanistan, he was assigned to the United States Army Materiel Command (AMC) as the Director of the Commanding General's Initiatives Group (CIG) and the Chief of Operations and Plans (CHOPs). Throughout his military career, Mike received numerous superior performance awards including the General Breton B. Somerville Medal of Excellence, the Distinguished Order of Saint Martin, the Distinguished Member of the Quartermaster Regiment designation for exceptional service from the US Army Quartermaster Corps, and received the runner-up award in the U.S. Army’s 2008 Invention of the Year for the Low-Cost Low Altitude Parachute System. He has been designated a Kentucky Colonel by the Governor of Kentucky in recognition of noteworthy accomplishments and outstanding service to the community and to the nation. Mike holds a Master’s degree in Strategic Studies from United States Army War College and Health Services Administration from Chapman University as well as a Bachelor of Arts in History from Weber State University. He possesses the professional designation of Demonstrated Master Logistician from the International Society of Logistics.
Joseph ‘Joe’ Lorfano
Upon finishing school at Averett College (University) in Danville, VA pursuing his Aviation Administration degree, Mr Lorfano stayed with his local employer in Northern Virginia as a commercial roofing contractor. Mr Lorfano launched a branch of the contractor into local government contracting where he grew that customer base over 10 years into it’s own business line of services supporting 2 of the nations richest counties of Fairfax and Loudoun Counties. Seizing an opportunity, Mr Lorfano moved into the Defense contracting arena going to work with Stanley Associates of Alexandria VA supporting US TRANSCOM and other DOD agencies with logistics analysis of automation systems. Mr Lorfano quickly rose to the position of Program Manager on several projects supporting logistics system development, deployment and training. Stanley Associates moved Mr Lorfano to Atlanta GA to manage various FORSCOM and USARC programs over his final years with Stanley. From Stanley, Mr Lorfano joined the SDVOSB XOTech LLC as a Vice President and Contract Manager, helping to grow the company from a $5M to a $32M a year company in just under 4 years time through new growth and organic growth of a proprietary software sold to various Army agencies.
Mr Lorfano was then asked to lead the XOTech sister Company Ganuch Inc. as Senior Vice President with a focus on corporate development and contract expansion where he continued his success with the proprietary software growth into other agencies. Taking advantage of another growth opportunity, Mr Lorfano then joined J Leland Rice in the formation of The Oryza Group LLC in 2011. As the Executive Vice President and minority owner of Oryza, Mr Lorfano continues to grow the company through his Business Development and corporate guidance with new majority business partner Mike Peterman.
Richard ‘Rich’ Carmichael
VP of Accounts
Rich Carmichael joined the team at Oryza in 2015. He is responsible for contract management and operations and his role includes maintaining a positive working relationship with both business to business (B2B) and business to government (B2G) customers.
Rich retired from the US Army in 2007 and has been serving in various program and corporate management positions supporting government contracts within DHS, USCIS, DLA, DISA, DLI and DOD. Managerial support within the DOD spans over more than 30 different programs and customers. Contracts have included the Logistics Management Services, for Georgia Army National Guard. The team of twelve coached, mentored, and taught Command Supply Discipline while applying DOD/DA regulations, pamphlets and GA‐ARNG/USPFO policies and directives. Providing subject matter expertise to Major Subordinate Commands and assist in the equipment reset program.