As we enter a pivotal year for the federal landscape, we are thrilled to announce the 2025 Engage Federal Citizen Services 150 Honorees. These industry and government IT and consulting leaders – from across the Federal Citizen Services and Federal Financial sectors – are set to spearhead innovation. With a new Administration on the horizon, this esteemed group of technology and business consulting professionals is ready to propel the critical missions of Federal Citizen Services and Federal Financial agencies forward. The nomination process was incredibly competitive, with hundreds of entries evaluated. Each honoree was nominated and selected by their peers, celebrating their outstanding contributions to the field.
Across the Federal sector, there’s constant talk of breaking down silos, promoting transparency, and fostering collaboration. But these leaders aren’t just talking the talk; they are living it. They are setting a powerful example of what it means to lead with purpose, inspiring their teams and peers to do the same. Their selfless commitment to improving how government and industry collaborate is reshaping the way we work together—not for personal gain, but for the betterment of the entire industry.
As we continue our mission to highlight leaders #doingitright, we are thrilled to celebrate these innovators who embrace bold strategies and forward-thinking approaches. They are driving a culture shift that prioritizes open communication, transparency, and collaboration within and between the Federal government and its industry partners, particularly across the Federal CItizen and Federal FInancial sector, including OPM, ITA, USPTO, GAO, EPA, DOL, DOE, Census, DOI, HUD, GSA, DOC, SBA, NARA, NOAA, Treasury, IRS, SEC, CFPB, BFS, CFTC and FDIC and related agencies. The 2025 honorees stand out not only for their leadership but for their commitment to creating a more collaborative future, ultimately delivering real, measurable impact for U.S. citizens, our Veterans and Warriors, business leaders, educators, seniors, caregivers, families, and children.
- Taka Ariga, Chief Data Officer, Acting Chief AI Officer, Office of Personnel Management
- Brian Baker, Account Executive, ServiceNow and AFCEA Bethesda President
- Simchah Suveyke Bogin, Chief Customer Experience Officer, US Department of Agriculture
- Brian Bordelon, Deputy Chief Information Officer, Department of Education
- Sheena Burrell, Chief Information Officer, National Archives and Records Administration
- Chris Chilbert, Chief Information Officer, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
- Todd Conklin, Chief Artificial Intelligence Officer and Deputy Assistant Secretary Cyber, Department of the Treasury
- Liz (Elizabeth) DeBiase, Small Business Partner Advocate, ICF
- Becci DeFrank, Federal Sector AI Leader, NVIDIA
- Freddy Diaz, Deputy Chief Data Officer, United States Department of Agriculture
- Erika Dinnie, Associate Chief Information Officer, Digital Infrastructure Technologies, General Services Administration
- Nanette Downing, Executive Vice President (EVP) Client Relations & Delivery, eTelligent
- Josh Duvall, GovCon/Cyber Partner, Maynard
- Brian Epley, Chief Information Officer, Department of Commerce
- Nicole Evans, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Acquisition, Department of the Treasury
- Ariel Gold, Director of IRS Modernization, Department of the Treasury
- Alison Gonzalez, Small Business Liaison Officer (SBLO), AMERICAN SYSTEMS
- Malcolm Harden, Senior Vice President, Consulting Services, Bixal
- Blake Harvey, Vice President of Growth, Red Team Consulting
- Sonny Hashmi, Head of Global Public Sector, Unqork
- Katie Helwig, President & Chief Executive Officer, Mild Red
- Jerry Hingtgen, Innovation Hub Chief, US Department of Agriculture,
- Courtney Kay-Decker, Deputy Chief Taxpayer Experience Officer, Internal Revenue Service
- Hooman Kazerani, Digital Modernization Executive, US Public Sector, ICF
- Katie Keegan, Sr. Enterprise Account Manager, Public Sector, Citrix Systems
- Sarosh Khan, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Peregrine Advisors
- Robin Locy Kidwell, Vice President, Client Services, FedTec
- Krista Kinnard, Culture & Communications Lead, Digital Transformation, National Aeronautics and Space Administration
- Melanie Krause, Chief Operating Officer, Internal Revenue Service
- Mangala Kuppa, Chief Technology Officer and Chief AI Officer, Department of Labor
- Raza Latif, Chief Executive Officer, NuAxis Innovations
- Albert Lee, Founding Partner, Summit Consulting
- Andy Lewandowski, Chief Digital Experience Officer, Deptartment of the Interior
- Stephanie Mango, President, CGI Federal
- Justin Marsico, Chief Data Officer, Bureau of Fiscal Service
- Joshua Millsapps, CEO, Millsapps, Ballinger & Associates
- Monalisha Mishra, President/CEO, DullesSystems
- Kameke Mitchell, Director, Procurement Strategic Operations Division, Office of Procurement, National Aeronautics and Space Administration
- Helleni Moon, Chief Executive Officer, EIDOS Technologie
- Kelly Morrison, Senior Vice President, HumanTouch
- Patrick Newbold, Deputy Chief Information Officer for Strategy, National Aeronautics and Space Administration
- George Nicol, NASA SEWP Deputy Program Director, National Aeronautics and Space Administration
- Chi Okonkwo, Director, Agency Financial Systems, National Aeronautics and Space Administration
- Ashley Owens, Senior Digital Acquisition Strategist, General Services Administration
- Mike Pereira, Chief Strategy Officer (CSO), vTech Solution Inc
- Ali Pourghassemi, Senior Transformation Consultant (Detail), Internal Revenue Service
- Farrell Proffitt, Executive Vice President, Growth, PBG Consulting
- Faisal Quader, President, Technuf
- Donna Ragucci, Director, Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, Department of Treasury
- Dave Salvagnini, Chief Data Officer and Chief Artificial Intelligence Officer, National Aeronautics and Space Administration
- Scott Semple, Managing Partner, NewTHINK Solutions
- Gulam Shakir, Chief Technology Officer & Chief AI Officer, National Archives and Records Administration
- Alisa Sheard, Deputy Director/Government Contracting/WOSB Federal Contract Program Director, Small Business Administration
- Praveen Singalla, Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Diaconia
- Laura Stanton, Assistant Commissioner for IT Category, General Services Administration
- Andrew (Andy) Stettner – Director, Office of Unemployment Insurance Modernization, Office of the Secretary, Department of Labor
- Kyra Johnson Stewart, Program Manager, IT Vendor Management Service, Federal Acquisition Service, General Services Administration
- Mike Tock, Senior Director Business Development, Leidos and Vice Chair at Large, IAC Executive Committee
- Darnita Trower, Director, Emerging Programs & Initiatives, Internal Revenue Service
- Lena Trudeau, Owner & Chief Executive Officer, Inclined Analytics
- Traci Walker, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Awkward Walker Consulting, Executive Director, Digital Services Coalition
- Joel Willett, Chief Executive Officer, Cybermedia Technologies
- Zachary Whitman, Chief Data Scientist and Chief AI Officer, General Services Administration
- Kristen Wilson, Strategic Acquisition Data Management Lead, OMB, Executive Office of the President
- Joanne Woytek, NASA SEWP Program Manager and COR, National Aeronautics and Space Administration
- Sam Ziman, Chief Growth Officer, Global CI and President-Elect AFCEA Bethesda Emerging Leaders
- David Zvenyach, Principal, TandemGov
- Gundeep Ahluwalia, Executive Vice President and Chief Information Officer, NuAxis Innovations
- Susan An, Chief Executive Office, SoKat
- Poupak Afshar, Chief Executive Officer, Easy Dynamics
- Jonathan Alboum, Federal Chief Technology Officer and Principal Digital Strategist, ServiceNow
- Prasanna Amitabh, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Zenius Corporation
- Venu Ayala, President, Zen Strategics
- Jennifer Bonner, Chief Operating Officer, RIVA Solutions
- Carla Briceno, President, Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder, Bixal
- Margarita Brose, Deputy Chief Data Officer, Securities and Exchange Commission
- Lisa Brown, Chief Customer Officer, Customer Value Partners
- Melvin Brown II, Deputy Chief Information Officer, Office of Personnel Management
- May Cheng, Acting Chief Information Officer, International Trade Administration
- Mitchell Cho, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, FedWriters
- Jeffrey Cooper, Executive Vice President – FinTech, Chevo Consulting
- Kelly Michaud Cox, Deputy Director of Enterprise Infrastructure Delivery Office, US Patent and Trademark Office
- Monique Crewes, Deputy Director Office of Digital Services and Technical Infrastructure, Environmental Protection Agency
- Mike Deutsch, Chief Growth Officer, Alpha Omega
- Martha Dorris, Founder, Dorris Consulting International
- Brian Flood, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, DecisionPoint Corporation
- Jennifer Franks, Director, Center for Enhanced Cybersecurity, Government Accountability Office
- Lisa Fritsch, President and Chief Executive Officer, Agile5 Technologies
- Kiran Gullapalli, Co-Founder, Chief Operating Officer, Anika Systems
- Karl Hellmann, Deputy Chief Information Security Officer, Department of Labor
- Steven Hernandez, Chief Information Security Officer, Department of Education
- Sharon Hinde-Grimm, Chief Executive Officer, Snowbird Agility
- Jamie Holcombe, Chief Information Officer, US Patent and Trademark Office
- Raymond Holder, Vice President, Digital Growth, Maximus
- Tony Johnson, President and Chief Executive Officer, Oasys International
- A’ndrea Jones , Synergy Innovation Lab Founder, Performance Management, Department of Housing and Urban Development
- Ted Kaouk, PhD, Chief Data Officer & Director, Division of Data, Commodity Futures Trading Commission
- Luke Keller, Chief Innovation Officer, Census Bureau
- Beth Killoran, Chief Information Officer, Government Accountability Office
- Sanjay Koyani, Executive Director of IT Operations and Services, Department of Labor
- Brian Lacey, Chief Executive Officer, Mobomo
- Mariano Lopez, Chief Executive Office, Analytica
- Trisha Eknes Marcey, Vice President, Civil IT Division Manager, Leidos
- Tarrazzia Martin, Senior Advisor, Enterprise Technology Planning and Change Management, Department of Housing and Urban Development
- Tammy McChain, Chief Delivery Officer, Brillient
- Brett McLaren, Co-founder, Chief Strategy Officer, MetaPhase Consulting
- Laurie MacNamara, Chief Customer Officer and Director, Market Development and Partnerships Division, Technology Transformation Services, General Services Administration
- Calvin J Mitchell Jr, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Acquisitions, Grants, and Risk Management, Department of Education
- Toney Mitchell, Deputy Associate Chief Information Officer, IT Strategy & Policy, Office of Personnel Management
- Chandan Mukhopadhyay, Founder and Board Chair, Synergy Business Innovation and Solutions
- Lisa Shea Mundt, Co-Founder, The Pulse of GovCon
- Ashley Nichols, Vice President of Corporate Strategy and Development, Highlight Technologies
- Pinakin Patel, Chief Executive Officer, IT Concepts
- Rish Patel, Chief Executive Officer, RP Professional Services
- Brian Peretti, Chief Technology Officer and Deputy Chief Artificial Intelligence (AI) Officer, Department of the Treasury
- Jamala Peyton, Executive Director, OSDBU, Department of Commerce
- Mahe Rangareddy, Chief Operating Officer, Alesig Consulting
- Douglas Robertson, Chief Technology Officer, Small Business Administration
- Dr. Tiina K.O. Rodrigue, EdD, Chief Information Security Officer, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
- Phil Sahady, President, Chevo Consulting
- James Saunders, Chief Information Security Officer, Office of Personnel Management
- Jenifer Sessums, Chief Design Officer, Steampunk
- Anil Sharma, Chief Executive Officer, 22nd Century Technologies
- Rachel Sile, Senior Advisor to Chief Information Security Officer and Deputy Chief Information Security Officer, Department of the Interior
- Dave Singer, Chief Strategy Officer, ITC Federal
- Gurpreet Singh, Chief Executive Officer, Infotrend
- Vinay Vijay Singh, Chief Financial Officer and Chief AI Officer, Department of Housing and Urban Development
- Harrison Smith, Acquisition Innovation Advocate, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
- Susan Smoter, Vice President, Government Solutions, North America, Quantexa
- Karlene Stecchi, Executive Vice President, Tantus Technologies
- Keith Taylor, Chief Executive Officer, 2ndWave
- Pete Tseronis, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Dots and Bridges
- Rajiv Uppal, Chief Information Officer, Internal Revenue Service
- Venkat Veeramneni, Chief Executive Officer, Nuvitek
- Sudha Vijay Venkateswaran, Vice President, Alpha Omega
- Lisa Wetzel, President & Chief Executive Officer, Vikint
- Nicole Willis, Deputy Chief Information Officer, National Archives and Records Administration
- Andrea Wilson, Chief, Business Operations Division, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
- Mitchell Winans, Mitchell Winans, Head of Industry Partnerships, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
- Jeremy Wood, Chief, Enterprise Architecture Branch, Securities and Exchange Commission
- Mark Youman, Senior Vice President, ICF
- Drew Zachary, Deputy Chief Information Officer, Census Bureau
Congratulations to all of the honorees and thank you to all who participated in the process and watch for an additional list of awardees to be announced soon!
Identified below are Six Key Characteristics that Make up an Engage FedGov Leader
Exemplify Open Communication
Whether through speaking at events, sharing on open platforms such as LinkedIn, or writing executive insight pieces that offer advice and insight, the engaged leader shares their thought leadership and is open to making public what they know to serve the greater good.
Evidence of Mission Focus
An engaged leader understands their mission focus is not turned inward to their specific organization but instead looks outward, to their stakeholders. This means taking and receiving lessons learned from others serving the same or similar communities. It means finding ways to engage stakeholders, vendors, and potential partners, to drive collaborative solutions with the users’ needs in focus.
Execution as a Good Partner
Engaged leaders prefer not to do a power dance, across tables or in the public eye. Being open, transparent, and authentic in who they are and what they want to achieve, these leaders demonstrate they are good and reliable partners. Being a good partner, these leaders are clear in what they say, understand their role and the roles of those around them, and they execute according to that.
Engage with the Community
Whether through industry days, networking opportunities, written content or collaboration in working groups, the engaged leader is part of the discussion, attending events, and being accessible and available. The expression “a rising tide lifts many boats” reminds everyone of something engaged leaders know – that there are opportunities for everyone and we do better when we work together. Whether it is as a mentor, an advisor, a board member, or a panellist, these leaders are familiar names and faces.
Encourage Inclusivity
Leaders who see the bigger picture are often surrounded by people who represent that bigger picture. Engaged leaders surround themselves with people who support and challenge them, with people who come from diverse backgrounds and with varied experiences. Engaged leaders encourage discussion, not for its own sake, but because they want the ideas brought forth from their diverse and inclusive team.
Exemplify Innovation
Whether it is through technology, culture, mission or approach, leaders that succeed do not stand still. Innovation signifies life, implies thought and forward movement, and is critical as the world becomes increasingly complex and challenging. Engaged leaders understand this, ask for big ideas and seek solutions that are focused on driving their organizations forward.
#engagefedgov
Meet the 2025 Engage Fed Health 150: Driving Innovation Forward!
Meet the 2025 Engage National Security 100: Driving Innovation Forward!
Meet the 2024 Engage FedGov Honorees here.
Meet the 2023 Engage FedGov Honorees here.
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