Homeland security leaders play crucial roles in strategic developments to defend territories, keep threats at bay, and to de-escalate conflicts within the United States. Amid the ever-changing defense landscape, industry experts continue to create unique methodologies to complement current and future homeland security and public and civilian efforts.
Looking ahead into 2023 are esteemed professionals focused on serving the public sector. Outlined below are the homeland security titans playing seminal roles in shaping the homeland security and civilian sectors.
Note: The following list features esteemed industry leaders selected based on a comprehensive evaluation of their accomplishments, including their strategic vision, demonstrated impact on the industry, innovative contributions, and leadership prowess. However, this is not an exhaustive list. The industry is filled with talented professionals making significant contributions, warranting close attention for their achievements and potential impact.
Aaron Butler, Vice President of Sales at ID Technologies
Aaron Butler is a distinguished industry veteran with a wealth of experience in the civilian and federal sectors. His professional background encompasses over a decade of experience in sales, procurement, data center, account management, and professional services centered around intelligence, law enforcement, and homeland security.
Butler joined ID Technologies as a Federal Account Executive in January 2017. He focused on contracts and sales activities of clients from the US Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). After five years, he was appointed as Vice President of Sales to implement mission-driven solutions for customer value-added resellers (VAR) strategies. He is also in charge of managing the sales programs of the Intelligence Community and addressing federal challenges regarding cybersecurity.
In a May 2022 interview by ExecutiveBiz, Butler shed light on ID Technologies’ plans for bolstering the cybersecurity quality of federal clients. He took note of the company’s focus in streamlining its data center approach with national security standards and the National Security Agency’s (NSA) requirements. The goal is to strengthen the cyber barriers and mitigate homeland security threats.
John Cattaneo, Principal at Capgemini Government Solutions
John Cattaneo has served as the Principal at Capgemini Government Solutions since 2014. His responsibilities encompass strategic and management consulting to technology businesses and federal civilian government agencies.
Among the government entities he has provided expert insights include the General Services Administration (GSA), the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the Department of Labor (DOL), and the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Before joining Capgemini, Mr. Cattaneo honed over 20 years of professional experience in team leadership, business development, account management, and client relationship management at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP, Gibbons & Company Inc., and Booz Allen Hamilton.
James Clevenger, Director of Government Sales at Hughes Network Systems
James Clevenger has held the position of Director of Government Sales at Hughes Network Systems LLC since February 2020. He manages the development of strategies related to public sector sales and business technologies execution for federal government entities.
Prior to joining Hughes Network Systems, he served as the Sales Director at CenturyLink for 20 years. He took charge of the company’s Strategic Government division and oversaw sales initiatives under the Defense Industrial Base Practice.
In relation to homeland security, Mr. Clevenger shed light on his key takeaways at the National Association of State Technology Directors (NASTD) West-East Seminar held in April 2023. He cited that many federal government agencies are positioning themselves to become more agile in adopting advanced technologies. By streamlining innovative solutions, government agencies are spared from being locked in long-term and non-scalable technologies.
Additionally, Clevenger highlighted that space defense agencies are leveraging the potential of low-Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites and cybersecurity suites to enhance aerospace defense strategies, in turn protecting the homeland and the Earth from aerospace risks.
CeCe Decamp, Senior Partner and Federal Civilian Sales Leader at IBM Consulting
Ms. Cece Decamp is a seasoned IBM executive with nearly 20 years of experience as the Vice President and Client Group Leader. In March 2022, she took on the role of a Senior Partner as well as the Federal Civilian Sales Leader of IBM’s Federal arm.
Ms. Decamp’s current responsibilities cover cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity implementation, supply chain risk management, and multi-cloud technology capabilities. As homeland security efforts continue to harness the power of cybersecurity, she shared in an ExecutiveBiz interview the key factors that made IBM Consulting’s contribution critical to helping the federal domain navigate the future.
She highlighted the company’s role in supplying the need of government entities for flexible paths in cloud data and migration. This will give the federal sector an edge in dealing with complicated cyber threats that may grow into larger conflicts.
David Everard, Senior Director of Federal Civilian Sales at Dataminr
David Everard is a leading industry professional with a comprehensive portfolio in public and private sectors. He brings to the table more than 30 years of experience in sales operations, business development, high-performance computing, federal channel sales, and more.
Mr. Everard was appointed Senior Director of Dataminr’s Federal Civilian Sales division in February 2022. Heputs forth his “technologist visionary” point of view to advance the company’s artificial intelligence and machine learning innovations for threat mitigation, rescue operations, and homeland security, and defense of different government entities.
Before joining Dataminr, Everard assumed management and directorship positions for companies focused on federal digital solutions. Among his notable previous workplaces are Elsevier, Intel Corporation, Voyager Labs, Zenith Data Systems, and GTE Government Systems.
Alexandra Gurney, Principal at Ernst & Young
Alexandra “Alex” Gurney is a distinguished leader with more than 20 years of experience in public and private management consulting. Her expertise covers pharmaceutical, security, civilian, and government utility industries. She joined Ernst & Young (EY) in 2011 as a Principal and has since actively contributed to expanding the company’s presence within the federal civilian sector.
Under Ms. Gurney’s purview are accounts and teams focused on security and civilian portfolios, including the Transportation Department, the General Services Administration, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. She leverages her deep knowledge and expertise in the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to support several strategic initiatives that helped EY’s mission and transformation agenda.
Before EY, Alex Gurney gained valuable experience at Grant Thornton and The North Highland Company. It is where she built competencies in leading transformation efforts and successfully delivered customer-centered solutions.
Amit Kohli, Vice President at Booz Allen Hamilton
Amit Kohli has been a vital part of Booz Allen Hamilton since February 1997. He has over two decades in strategic consulting, enterprise planning, and IT strategy development during his time as Senior Associate. In 2016, he assumed the role of Principal and then took on his current role as the Vice President in 2020.
In his current position, Mr. Kohli leads Booz Allen Hamilton’s trade and border protection practice and supports the justice and homeland security markets. He applies his proficiency in open systems, information technology consulting, and systems development services. The aim is to help federal government and law enforcement clients realize their visions, investments, industry relationships, and market strategies.
Prior to joining Booz Allen Hamilton, Kohli served as the division director at the Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) Inc. and senior director of the civil and homeland security markets at Serco North America.
Tara LeBlanc, Executive Vice President of DHS Mission Solutions at SEV1TECH
Ms. Tara LeBlanc has been a vital member of SEV1TECH since September 2010. She began her career as the IT Task Lead of Facilities Management Services where she supported the US Patent and Trademark Office. Over the years, LeBlanc assumed roles in both technical delivery management and law enforcement for the Department of Homeland Security.
LeBlanc held the position of Executive Vice President of DHS Mission Solutions in 2018. She is in charge of delivering enterprise-scale IT infrastructure programs and developing solutions catering to various DHS missions.
Outside of her career at SEV1TECH, LeBlanc is an executive committee member at the Border Security Technology Consortium. In November 2020, LeBlanc founded her own company, Commonwealth Data Solutions, Inc., where she applied her expertise in database management for direct mail enterprise.
Allison Patrick, Vice President & Account Executive – Department of Homeland Security at SAIC
Allison Patrick began her career in the civilian and homeland security sectors as the Vice President of Business Development – Civilian Agencies at SRA. In 2013, she joined Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) Inc. as the Vice President of Business Development. She oversaw the business development capture, operations, and proposal teams associated with federal civilian agencies.
In September 2016, Ms. Patrick ventured outside of SAIC and took on leadership roles in sales, critical IT solutions, human and health services, and local and federal government initiatives. Patrick rejoined SAIC as Vice President and Account Executive of the DHS division in July 2021. One of her pivotal contributions to the company is the integration of the biometrics and data science specialties into the new components of DHS. These paved the way to advance various homeland security missions.
Richard Smith, Vice President and Division Manager at Mantech
Richard Smith is a distinguished executive with over two decades of experience in sales, cybersecurity, thought leadership, and service delivery for the public and private sectors. Smith, a retired US Navy Reserve, gained valuable experience in cyber operations leadership from his active time supporting the National Security Agency, U.S. Cyber Command, and the Navy Tenth Fleet.
Mr. Smith joined ManTech as the Vice President and Division Manager in January 2021. He oversees operations and drives strategies to propel the company’s DHS missions portfolios for cyber, analytics, and performance management.
Besides his position at ManTech, Smith is currently an executive adviser for three technology startup companies: TruthSetter LLC, Blackvest Capital, and 2ndSun.