A dozen former DHS IT and business leaders who have taken the helm at small consulting firms

What NEW civilian agencies are you targeting in the year ahead? This is a standard question the OrangeSlices AI team asks every single small business we partner with. DHS is one of the three agencies/departments mentioned the most (HHS/CMS and IRS are the other two, followed closely by USDA). As such, it is not a surprise that a follow-up question we receive is can you help identify partners who can help us win at DHS? OS AI has launched several tools that allow government and industry execs to find partners, but, beyond that, one reliable answer we can offer up is to point them in the direction of a broad set of former Department of Homeland Security leaders and innovators that have left the agency over the past few years that have founded or taken the helm of small consulting firms. This group of senior executives brings a broad set of expertise that covers everything from Cybersecurity and Operations Support to application development, acquisition, and Digital Services.  

OS AI Note: This is not intended to be a comprehensive list of all former DHS leaders, nor can we speak to the interest of these leaders in supporting your company. This list simply serves as a representative example of the types of former agency leaders who have launched or are now at the helm of a small business consultancy within the last few years. There are plenty of others out there. Our hope is that this list will serve as a primer and reminder that potential partners with expertise and relationships are available if you go hunting for it. 

• Randall Weidberg, Former Product and Digital Service Executive DHS lead | Current Co-Founder of Gray Digital 
• Charles Wollenhaupt, Former Principal Director and Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Partnership & Engagement | Current Founder & Principal, Potomac Hill Strategies LLC 
• Erin Kenneally, Former DHS Portfolio Manager, Cyber Security Division, Science & Technology Directorate | Current CEO, Founder of Elchemy 
• Dennis Kraft, Former DHS Enterprise Cyber Security Officer | Chief Executive Officer at Cyberkraft 
• Ron Thornton, Former Branch Chief / Supervisory IT Specialist, DHS CBP | Chief Executive Officer, Engineering Works 
• Rob Thomas II, Former Chief Information Officer (SES) and Deputy Chief Information Officer at DHS FEMA | Founder & Lead Consultant, T2 Ridge 
• Bryan Ware, Former Assistant Director, Cybersecurity Division, DHS CISA | Current CEO of LookingGlass Cyber Solutions 
• Shang-Jeo (SJ) Gaublomme, Former Acting Assistant Administrator / Branch Chief & DHS RPA Working Group Chair | Current Co-Founder and CEO of Emmo Group 
• Steven Smith, Former Deputy CIO and CIO (A) DHS ICE and FirstNet West Area Director, Regions VI-X | Current Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer at Systalex Corporation 
• William Randolph, Former Assistant Director, Operations Support Division, Enforcement & Removal Operations (SES) DHS ICE | Current Founder/CEO of Think Acquisition 
• Jeffrey King, Former Deputy Assistant Director ICE and Senior Director for First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) | Co-Founder of Verium 
• Robert Perez, Former Deputy Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection | Founder & CEO at P4 Partners 
• Kimberly Walton, Former Executive Assistant Administrator for Enterprise Support Transportation Security Administration (TSA) | Current CEO of KIMBERLY WALTON & ASSOCIATES, LLC 

Partnering 

Looking for an 8(a), WOSB, HUBZone or SDVOSB to partner with at DHS? Click Here  

You can filter the list by several key indicators, to include socio-economic status, NAICS, Contract vehicle, etc.   

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