Each year, FORUM brings together both Government and Industry leaders from across the Federal Technology and Consulting communities to recognize the top IT programs nominated and selected by their peers for pushing the technology envelope, showcasing breakthrough innovation, and rewarding the leadership and teamwork that improve and advance each agency’s mission.
Karla Smith Jackson is the Senior Procurement Executive, Deputy Chief Acquisition Officer, and Assistant Administrator for the Office of Procurement at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). In this role, she provides senior executive leadership and oversight of NASA’s procurement functions, policy, and initiatives to an acquisition workforce of over 4,000 personnel.
Ms. Smith Jackson serves on the National Contract Management Association (NCMA) Board of Directors, the Federal Acquisition Institute Board of Directors, and on the Federal Acquisition Regulation Council. She is one of only three signatory authorities that can execute procurement policies and procedures on behalf of the United States Federal Government. Ms. Smith Jackson has over 30 years of extensive federal service experience and is Level III–certified in the Contracting (Acquisition) Career Field.
Ms. Smith Jackson has been featured in numerous publications and podcasts such as:
• NCMA Contract Management Magazine article “A Passion for Innovation”
• Space Foundation’s Space Report, “Procurement Chief Open to New Ways to do Business with NASA”
• Partnership for Public Service: Collaborate to Innovate—Four Pillars of Federal Procurement Transformation
• GovCast Podcast: “New Acquisition Framework Makes NASA’s Procurement Process Thrive”
Ms. Smith Jackson is known as a global speaker, panelist, and is the recipient of numerous awards, such as the Presidential Rank Award, the Secretary of Defense Medal for Exceptional Civilian Service, the Secretary of Defense Medal for Meritorious Civilian Service, and the OSD Medal for Humanitarian Civilian Service. She was also recognized as one of WashingtonExec’s Top Contract Execs to Watch in 2023.
Please view this speaker’s profile on LinkedIn.
Shane Morris is a machine learning engineer and Heinz Buffaranch enthusiast. In the same way Heinz Buffaranch blends the creamy taste of ranch with the tangy spice of Buffalo sauce, Shane blends artificial intelligence solutions with modern defense and national security systems.
Currently, Shane is a Senior Executive Advisor with Devis in Arlington, VA, and a technology advisor with Mage.ai and DADA-X.
Kristin Ruiz is the Deputy Assistant Administrator, Deputy Chief Information Officer at the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). In this role, Ms. Ruiz is responsible for establishing strategic direction, and overseeing a full spectrum of information technology (IT) functions. Ms. Ruiz is responsible for the information technology security that supports 63,000+ federal employees, and $2.2B in IT Spend across 430 federalized airports that routinely screen more than 2 million passengers, 5 million carry-on bags and 1.4 million pieces of checked baggage daily for explosives and other prohibited items.
Ms. Ruiz is a driven, mission-focused IT leader with over 20 years of experience in technology, digital transformation, application development, and cybersecurity compliance. She has built, modernized, and overseen more than 300 secure, innovative, user-friendly applications throughout her career and has a proven track record of translating technology strategies into
effective actions.
Before joining TSA, Ms. Ruiz served as the first Associate Chief Information Officer (ACIO) for the Office of Applications and Digital Solutions at the U.S. Department of Transportation
(DOT). As ACIO of the Office of Applications and Digital Solutions, Ms. Ruiz led the implementation of the $3 Billion Aviation Manufacturing Jobs Protection (AMJP) Program grants solution and DOT’s $600 Billion Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) enterprise grants management system. She pioneered a brand-new office setting the vision, direction, and organizationa l culture for DOT’s digital transformation with a focus on DevSecOps, cybersecurity, operations and maintenance, and capital planning investment control.
Additionally, Ms. Ruiz managed the entirety of the DOT’s mandatory use Software Engineering Support (SWES) Blanket Purchase Agreement (BPA), overseeing the successful award of over
$375 Million.
Before joining DOT, Ms. Ruiz served as the IT Portfolio Management Director at the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Nutrition and Consumer Services (FNCS) Agency, where she managed and executed the FNCS portfolio of applications supporting the Supplemental Nutrition Program (SNAP) handling $85+ Billion in program funding with 50+ Million program recipients, and the Women Infants and Children (WIC) applications providing nutritional assistance to millions of families, school lunch support in 95,000 schools, and systems providing food to Americans during disasters.
Ms. Ruiz is a United States Marine Corps veteran and a George Mason University Alumni. She holds a Project Management Professional (PMP) certification and is a Level III Program
Manager and Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) certified by the Federal Acquisition Institute.
Blake Harvey is the Vice President of Growth for Red Team Consulting, a U.S. based government contracting growth consultancy, where he oversees all revenue attainment, strategic growth priorities, and sales activity for the organization.
Mr. Harvey brings extensive federal contracting expertise and industry knowledge to help Red Team’s clients realize their growth objectives. He works with over 200+ government contracting firms each year and recommends strategies for growth based on their unique needs and circumstances. Mr. Harvey remains committed to providing value to his clients by advising them on different growth-related services and strategies to achieve success throughout each stage of their growth lifecycle. Earlier in his career, he led teams and delivered on enterprise U.S. Government programs for Deloitte using analytical methods to drive greater value for federal agencies.
Mr. Harvey serves on the board of AFCEA NOVA as the Vice President of Membership where he oversees growth for the membership base of the chapter. His role involves engaging the 8000+ members in the government contracting community and educating them on the changes in the industry. Mr. Harvey also collaborates regularly with senior procurement executives and industry leaders on updated federal procurement policies and enterprise-wide programs.
Ms. Glover-Jones was named Director for Mission Services in June 2021. As the director over the agency’s support offices, Ms. Glover-Jones will lead and provide guidance over critical offices, with emphasis in the areas of training and professional development, facilities and services, logistics and deployments, human resources, medical services, and security.
Ms. Glover-Jones’ former position was as the first Chief Diversity, Equality and Inclusion Officer, responsible for providing vision, leadership, planning and oversight for programs, policies and procedures related to the Agency’s commitment to developing an inclusive diverse culture to leverage the power of cognitive and demographic differences of our 16,000 plus workforce to enhance the intelligence advantage DIA provides to warfighters and policy makers.
Previously, Ms. Glover-Jones was an Executive in Residence to the Dell commercial sector on a 12-month assignment. This was a unique opportunity to share public and private perspectives for mutually beneficial outcomes. She provided expertise on projects related to diversity and inclusion, and projects intended to engage directly with Minority Serving Institutions to influence and develop curriculum to position Dell as an employer of choice in Hispanic and African-American communities. She worked with a small cohort of technology partners and subject matter experts, building solutions to address bias through the identification and upward mobility of diverse talent.
Before joining Dell, Ms. Glover-Jones served as Chief Information Officer (CIO) for DIA from December 2014 to July 2018. In this capacity, Ms. Glover-Jones managed a global Information Technology (IT) organization with over 3,000 employees and a budget in excess of $600 million that provides IT services to approximately 230,000 National Defense customers worldwide. In this position, she served as the principal advisor on Agency Intelligence Community IT matters. A key champion for the implementation of the Intelligence Community Information Technology Enterprise (IC ITE) at DIA, she oversaw the IC Enterprise Management (IC EMT) and IC Desktop Environment (IC DTE) programs–efforts which centralize IT infrastructure across the IC allowing for increased efficiencies and information sharing.
Ms. Glover-Jones was selected for the CIO position after serving as Deputy CIO for over two years. Prior to that, she served on a Joint Duty Assignment as the Enterprise Common Operating Environment Executive for the Office of the CIO, National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA). Ms. Glover-Jones was responsible for integrating capabilities across the Big Four (DIA, NGA, NRO, NSA) intelligence agencies to create the first-ever Common Operating Environment (COE), which has evolved into the present-day IC ITE.
As the former Satellite Chief and Chief Financial Officer for CIO, Ms. Glover-Jones developed and managed a strategically sound, financially wise, and legally compliant IT budget. She transformed the CIO organization by centralizing budget, contract management, cost analysis, and business analytics—creating synergy and developing a customer centric culture. Additionally, she implemented the IT Value Scorecard, which provides DoD Intelligence Information Systems (DoDIIS) customers a multi-perspective view of strategic performance drivers and aligns with the customers values.
Ms. Glover-Jones began her federal career as a GS-1 administrative assistant at the Department of Commerce in 1984 and has been at DIA for the past 36 years, where she has served in a series of important positions, including budget analyst, intelligence officer, and senior program manager. As a result of her work and accomplishments, Ms. Glover-Jones has been recognized numerous times by Agency leadership and peers with Special Act/Service Awards, IC Awards for exceptional performance, and the National Women of Color Professional Achievement Award.
Ms. Glover-Jones was born in Camden, SC. She graduated from the University of Maryland University College with a B,S. in Information Systems Management, and the IC Executive Leader Program at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. She has certifications in: Advanced Public Policy (George Washington University)–and Stephen M.R. Covey Speed of Trust and Emotional Intelligence EQ-i2.0 Diversity and Inclusion. She is also a DIA certified coach.
Marty has spent the last 17 years in innovation and technology adoption. Currently, Marty is activated as an Air Force Reservist serving as the Chief of Staff for Cyber Command’s Legislative Liaison. Her prior policy positions have included the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, and to the office of Senator Tammy Duckworth of Illinois as a Defense Fellow. In her civilian capacity, Marty is a technology executive at Amazon Web Services for cloud-based Machine Learning and advanced data analytics in support of multiple government customers. Prior to her positions in industry, Marty served in leadership positions across various agencies and military commands to include a tour as a Special Assistant to the Principal Deputy Director for Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation, Office of the Secretary of Defense.
Calvin J. Mitchell Jr. serves as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Acquisition, Grants and Risk Management (OAGRM), Senior Procurement Executive (SPE) and Suspension and Debarment Official. He is the senior executive responsible for leading the administration of $50 billion annual grant and contract portfolio.
As the SPE he is responsible for planning, directing, coordinating, and overseeing the procurement programs of the Department of Education. Previously, he served as the Director, Department of Education, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU). Mr. Mitchell is responsible for implementing the Department’s small business procurement programs across the $2.8 billion procurement operation. As Director, he is responsible for implementing policies and initiatives throughout the Department to ensure that all socioeconomic categories of small business are afforded opportunities to compete for contracts. Prior to the OSDBU, Mr. Mitchell was the Deputy Director of Contracts and Acquisitions Management (CAM). As CAM Deputy Director, in the Office of the Chief Financial Officer, he was responsible for overseeing the work of four contracting divisions that provide operational procurement services to the Department of Education. Prior to joining the Department, Mitchell served as the Branch Chief of the Accounts Management Division at the General Services Administration. Mitchell led the organization toward meeting the Government-wide strategic goals to support all 24 CFO Act agency vision, mission, and strategic goals.
Separately, Mr. Mitchell served as a Congressional Fellow for the U.S. House of Representatives Homeland Security Committee reporting to Chairman Bennie Thompson. In this position he served as the Principal Procurement Advisor to Committee leadership and provided guidance and oversight to Members and Committee staff on procurement, small business programs, and related acquisition issues within the Department of Homeland Security. Mr. Mitchell has also held leadership positions at the U.S Army Corps of Engineers. Mr. Mitchell began his acquisition career with the U.S. Army Picatinny Arsenal New Jersey successfully completing the Department of Defense contract specialist intern program. He is a Certified Federal Contract Manager (CFCM) with the National Contract Management Association (NCMA). He has an undergraduate degree in Business and a Master’s in Business Administration from Centenary University of New Jersey.
Ms. Hite-Syed serves as the National Government Services, a subsidiary of Elevance Health, Chief Operating Officer. As a strategic business executive who has served in the health care industry for over 30 years, Jane possesses a deep knowledge of federal health agencies with a keen focus on digital health and information technology. Prior to her current position, Jane held the position of Chief Information Officer and led the organization through a digital transformation to align with the government’s path towards modernization. Jane enjoys a diverse expertise in strategic business planning, account leadership, enterprise IT and change execution. Jane has a proven record of success in managing change in large organizations and prides herself in starting everything at the most human level. Her leadership style and interpersonal skills are reflected in the culture and results of the organization.
Jane is a multi-year awardee of the FedHealthIT100 that recognizes individuals who are making an impact by going above and beyond, driving innovation and positive outcomes, and challenging conventional wisdom. In 2019, Jane was honored to receive the Leading for Impact: Women in Leadership Award recognizing her leadership and mission-focused strategic programs across the Federal Technology and Consulting community. Under her leadership, her team has received multiple FedHealthIT Innovation and Disruptive Tech Awards that recognize innovation, technology and consulting programs. Jane and her team were also recognized as one of the 2020 NVTC Tech 100, a list of groundbreaking companies, leaders and innovators within the Greater Washington region’s technology community. Jane is a federal healthcare industry speaker and published author of industry publications promoting enterprise points of view.
Jane lives in Hingham, Massachusetts with her husband, Aziz. Their son, Shan, is a senior at Northeastern University. Her happy place is hiking the red rocks in sunny Arizona.
Rabiah Sutton is the award-winning CEO of FWDthink, a 13-year-old technology company, specializing in solutions for the US Federal Government. Descended from activists and dreamers who changed the world for the better, Rabiah brings that same sense of determination, honesty, and unflinching dedication to her business. She takes joy from enabling the personal and professional growth of her team and empowering other business owners. She created a collaborative workplace philosophy that is the DNA of her company culture. Over the years, she has helped hundreds of people provide for their families and experience positive personal and career growth.
A consummate professional, yet down-to-earth realist, Rabiah is well connected in Federal technology circles through her tireless involvement in key Industry associations and is respected as a person of deep knowledge and understanding. It is because of those qualities that Rabiah has, and continues to build, her solid Rolodex of friends, partners, confidants, mentors, and mentees at the C-Level down to the program staff. She is simply someone you want to know and be around.
She holds an Executive MBA in International Leadership & Consultancy from Johns Hopkins University; B.A., International Studies from American University; a Graduate Certificate, Procurement & Contracts Management from the University of Virginia; and is a Certified Scrum Master.
Ms. Tan Wilson, the President of Entellect and Founder of Tan’s Two Cents (T2C) podcast, brings a wealth of experience and a reputation for straight-shooting insights to the forefront of the GovCon industry. Her leadership at Entellect has been characterized by a relentless pursuit of strategic growth, culminating in over $150 billion in client contract wins. Tan’s approach transcends conventional consulting, focusing on impactful results and transformative strategies that elevate businesses in the fiercely competitive federal marketplace. Tan is not just a visionary in the GovCon space; she’s a multifaceted leader who resonates beyond business metrics.
Andrea Fletcher is the Chief Digital Strategy Officer (CDSO) at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). She is the first person to hold this role, and also serves as the Director of the Digital Service at CMS, an agency team of the United States Digital Service. At CMS she is responsible for digital transformation and modernization efforts, promoting interoperability and public access to health data, and recruiting the next generation of technical talent into federal service. Prior to taking on this new role, she served in the United States Digital Service as a product manager.
Before joining the federal government, Andrea spent most of her career traveling around the world. She has worked on digital health systems across more than 20 countries, primarily in sub-Saharan Africa. She has built mobile apps for healthcare workers, integrated biometric IDs into electronic health record systems, designed national-level interoperability layers, and deployed new disease surveillance systems making contributions to pandemic responses in Ebola, HIV, and COVID-19.
Remy DeCausemaker is the Open Source Lead for the Digital Service at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS.) Remy helps developers, designers, and other contributors work with dedicated civil servants to create open accessible healthcare technology projects, programs, and policy. Through his work with the US DigitalCorps and the Digital Service at CMS, Remy improves access to health Information, and grows communities of practice around Open Data, Open Standards, and Open Source code.
Remy comes to CMS with over 15 years at the frontier of Open Source Software. His career has included many firsts, including helping to launch the first academic minor in Humanitarian Free/Open Source Software in the United States at Rochester Institute of Technology. He was the first Open Source Community Manager of an American presidential campaign, the first Open Source Program Office Lead at Spotify, the second Open Source Program Office Lead at Twitter, the first Fedora Community Lead at Red Hat, and now serves as the nation’s first Open Source Program Office Lead at a Federal Agency.
Ms. Bonnie Evangelista is the Acting Deputy, Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office (CDAO) for Acquisition Directorate, and one of the original founders of the Tradewinds initiative for the CDAO, leading efforts to design and build a rapid acquisition environment aimed to accelerate the pace of digital, analytics, and artificial intelligence delivery to the Department of Defense (DoD). In her previous role, she served as the Deputy Product Lead for Applied Cyber Technologies within Army Program Manager Defensive Cyber Operations (PM DCO), leading efforts to provide the infrastructure and environments necessary for defensive cyber innovation and integration in the Army.
Evangelista is an experienced acquisition and procurement professional with expertise gained while supporting Federal civilian and DoD agencies for 15 years. She is fluent in Federal Government program management, acquisition life cycle, and cradle-to-grave contracting, and she is also known as master strategist for rapid acquisition, prototyping, and other transaction authority projects. Evangelista has dedicated most of her career to simplifying complex acquisition and contracting processes and transforming conventional procurement models and mind sets.
Eduardo F. Ortiz is CEO and a founding co-owner at Coforma, a digital services firm that crafts creative technology solutions that help people live better lives. He is a combat Veteran who served in the United States Marine Corps and several civilian agencies. Eduardo is passionate about leveraging product and technology practices to remove points of friction that prevent people from accessing critical services. This passion has driven his professional journey from a software engineer and product strategist to entrepreneurship. He holds an MBA from the University of Maryland. Eduardo lives in Maryland with his wife, son, and two dogs.
Dr. Dolores Kuchina-Musina holds a Ph.D. in Public Administration and Policy and a Master of Business Administration from Old Dominion University. She received her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Christopher Newport University. She has been published in the Journal of Public Procurement, Politics, and Policy and is working on additional research. Dr. Kuchina-Musina has a graduate certificate in Public Procurement and Contract Management (PPCM), is a Certified Federal Contract Manager (CFCM), and is a National Contract Management Association (NCMA) Fellow. Her research focus includes innovation policy, other transaction authorities, federal procurement reform, and decision-making models. Dolores is the CEO/Founder at REXOTA Solutions, LLC, a consulting company in the DC-Metro area focusing on strategy, planning, pursuit, capture, management, and administration of Federal Contract/Agreement Awards. Dr. Kuchina-Musina has over a decade of experience in federal, state, and international public procurement, specifically directing and managing strategic pursuits in collaboration with business development, proposal development, and change management initiatives for Federal procurement acquisitions and served as a strategic partner in providing risk management support for Federal compliance contracts.
Please view this speaker’s profile on LinkedIn.
Gerald Caron is the Chief Information Officer for the International Trade Administration. In this role, he implements information technology services, solutions, and strategy for an agency of 2,200 employees across 100 U.S. cities and 80 international markets.
Caron has two decades of experience leading global teams in IT operations and cybersecurity. Prior to joining ITA, he was the Chief Information Officer and Assistant Inspector General of Information Technology at the Department of Health and Human Services during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. He also served at the State Department in various technical roles, including as Director of Enterprise Network Management oversaw the Department’s infrastructure and operations (network, perimeter security, active directory and much more) and was extensively involved in mitigating cybersecurity attacks. He began public service in the U.S. Army for seven years.
Caron is a tri-chair on the interagency U.S. Chief Information Officers Council’s E-Ops Committee for Zero Trust, whose aim is to drive efficiency and effectiveness of government cybersecurity effectiveness. He also chairs the Zero Trust Working Group for the Advanced Technology Academic Research Center (ATARC), a non-profit that bridges the gap between government, industry, and academia on emergent technologies. Previously, he chaired ATARC’s Trusted Internet Connection 3.0 Working Group.
Caron is a recipient of the FedHealthIT 100 2022 and 2023 award. He was named GovCIO’s 2022 and 2023 GovCIO Zero Trust Advocate Flywheel Award, ATARC’s 2022 Government Member of the Year, FedScoop’s Best Bosses in Federal IT 2022, FedTech’s 30 Federal IT Influencers Worth a Follow in 2023 and Public Sector Networks Global Top 50 Government Innovators of 2023. He is a graduate of Northern Virginia Community College and holds certification from Forrester as a Zero Trust Strategist.
Lauren is an award-winning designer and analyst who currently works as a senior service designer at Steampunk, a human-centered design firm serving the federal government. She is also a founding editor of Springer’s AI and Ethics journal and a former area editor for Data and Policy, an open access journal with Cambridge University Press. Lauren has written for Harvard Data Science Review, Financial Times, and The Guardian, among other publications. Lauren is a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, a former member of the Association for Computing Machinery’s Distinguished Speakers Program, and a member of the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, where she helps judge the Webby Awards. Her first book, Designing Data Governance from the Ground Up, is published by The Pragmatic Programmers and has been adapted into a LinkedIn Learning course.
Chanaka Perera, a Senior Technology Strategist, at LCG he leads with a focus on transformative initiatives for federal agencies. His expertise in digital ecosystems enables him to integrate cutting-edge technology for customer-centric missions. Central to Chanaka’s method is the effective use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in business operations, prioritizing both employees and customers. His approach embeds AI not just as a tool, but as a core element of the company’s ethos. Under his direction, LCG’s Generative AI use extends beyond applications, enhancing daily tasks and pioneering industry-leading solutions. Chanaka’s vision includes making AI accessible to all, promoting equal productivity opportunities. His leadership ensures his teams offer services that are not only exceptional but also surpass industry standards.
Jennifer Ives is a seasoned emerging technology business growth strategy executive whose unique full life-cycle expertise and forward-thinking strategies drive transformative growth for product, services, and public sector organizations. With more than 20 years of experience, she’s a well respected leader and has been highlighted as one of the “Top 5 Women Leaders Revamping the Future” by CIO Times, and was recently named ‘Connector Extraordinaire’ by Forbes. She’s a sought-after executive team member, independent board member, and thought leader, known for her leadership skills and strong emotional intelligence. In her personal time, you’ll often find her outdoors, hiking or downhill skiing with her husband and children.
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