The Geek Within

Today's guest is Melvin Mooring II. He is the Founder of Polished Technologies LLC, a nearly 10 year old website and software development firm. I met Melvin through our mutual friend, Tiffany Bailey. Melvin and I spoke a bit about expecting early career staff to be super specialized in a world where a plethora of skills helps make you competitive instead of taking chances on someone. You can e...

Today's guest is Kaamil Khan. He is the President of Makpar Corporation as he prepares to take over as the second generation of leadership at Makpar. I met Kaamil through networking in the DC area and also from his participation in ACT-IAC Voyagers 2025. We talk a bit about how important it is to have meaningful interactions between industry and government. You can engage Kaamil here: LinkedIn...

Today's guest is Ella O'Brien. She is the Small Business Liaison Officer as well as the GWAC CM at SOSi. Ella works to bridge the gap between emerging small enterprises and larger industry players. We talk a bit about how companies, especially large firms, should consider education around small business advocacy and supplier diversity. You can engage Ella here: LinkedIn - https://www.linke...

Today's guest is Janet Clement. She is the CEO of Jefferson Consulting Group. Janet has been focused on organizational change and efficiency within the GovCon industry as a federal employee and industry person for over 30 years. Janet and I talk about challenges that interfere with the government buying services. You can engage Janet here: LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/janet-clement-5...

Today's guest is Ted Fells. He the President and CEO of NucoreVision Inc., an Enterprise IT, Cyber, and Management Consulting Firm. Ted is also the cohost of The 30 Minute Hour podcast, which is how we came to meet as I was a recent guest. Ted and I speak about helping others to consider what it means to start a business. You can engage Ted here: LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/ted-fells-6a...

Today's guest is Carrie Kramer. She is a Fellow from the ACT-IAC Partner's Program in 2017 and was a vice chair for Partner's in 2023. I have had the pleasure of getting to know Carrie via our joint participation in the ACT-IAC fellows community. We talk a bit about how more companies need to be open to hiring staff with non-traditional degree programs and how they can bring fresh idea...

Today's guest is Bethany Hsiao. She is an Application Developer at Dev Technology Group. Bethany is an ACT-IAC Associates 2024 graduate and was part of a team writing a whitepaper on Leveraging AI to Modernize Legacy Code in Federal Civilian Agencies, which is how we met. We talk a bit about the importance of speaking up and being an active participant within your company. You can engage Betha...

Today's guest is Anil Chaudhry. He is the Senior Advisor for Artificial Intelligence at U.S. Department of Transportation. Anil goes by Neal and has been a Presidential Management Fellow, a graduate of ACT-IAC Partners 2022, and a White House Leadership Development Program Fellow. Neal and I met many years ago around our shared passion for emerging technologies and how the government can lever...

Today's guest is Cheryl Waldrup. She is a Principal Consultant at AIMC Consulting, which is a woman-owned business here in the DC area. Cheryl is also a graduate of the 2012 ACT-IAC Partners program and we both met through our interactions with that organization. Cheryl and I have a shared passion for mentoring and its valuable impact on careers. You can engage Cheryl here: LinkedIn - https://...

Today's guest is Shelley McGuire. She is the owner and Events Curator for Shelley's Events, the Chief Strategy Officer for OrangeSlices, a realtor in Florida, and Co-owner of MSS Management, an accounting and wealth management company. On top of all that, Shelley is a former professor of Entrepreneurship, a former special education teacher, and a former Business High School teacher. We tal...

Today's guest is Eric Twiggs. He is a Founding Partner and President of The What Now Movement, author of The Discipline of Now: 12 Practical Principles to Overcome Procrastination, host of The 30 Minute Hour podcast, and a Certified Business and Life Coach. We talk a bit about Eric's passion for providing tools and ideas to entrepreneurs. You can engage Eric here: LinkedIn - https://www.li...

Today's guest is Matt Payne. He is the Founder of Outer Circle Foundation, which is focused on supporting Veterans and first responders during their most critical moments. They champion PTSD awareness, suicide prevention, and their transition to new opportunities. Matt has a diverse background and has worked for several well known companies. Listen or watch episode 201 here: YouTube - https://...

Today's episode is a little different. I asked my good friend Rima Reyes to interview me for my podcast so that I could share my own career journey. It is a little weird to describe myself, but here goes - I am the Chief of Enterprise Architecture at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, I speak on government innovation and use of technologies, volunteer with the ACT-IAC Emerging Technologi...

Today's guest is Brionna Mayo. She is a Data Architect at Smart Synergies. Brionna has a lot of experience in the DoD contracting community. We met through our shared love of networking in the DC area. Brionna and I talk a bit about your pipeline of growth and how hard it is to communicate what you know in the early years, and we need mentors to help us learn how to do that. On top of that, we nee...

Today's guest is Samuel Navarro. He is a Strategic Account Executive for Health IT at Microsoft. Samuel previously worked for both GSA and the Army, and is an ACT-IAC fellow as a graduate of Voyagers 2016. Samuel and I have gotten to know each other through our participation in ACT-IAC and networking groups in the DC area. We talk about how there is a need to ramp up emerging technologies with...

Today's guest is Dominic Sale. He is the Managing Director at Code and Theory, which builds transformative digital experiences for federal agencies. Dominic is a previous federal employee where he worked at the General Services Administration, the Office of Management and Budget, and the Department of Transportation. We talk a bit about the all too formal way government interacts with industry and...

Today's guest is Kate Livis. She is the President of Livis Consulting, which is a small woman owned business specializing in IT consulting, agile management, and IT staffing. Kate and I go back over 20 years when I hired her as a developer at a small DOD consulting firm. We take some time to talk about the state of training staff and how many organizations overlook it and lose out. You can engage...

Today's guest is Arfa Syed. She is on the Growth and Strategy team at Leidos. Arfa graduated from the ACT-IAC Voyagers 2022; she sat on the Cybersecurity board at NOVA and was also a 2022 NOVA commencement speaker! On top of all of that, Arfa is also a freelance writer and speaker focused on IT, Cybersecurity, and digital media. And finally, Arfa was recently certified to teach yoga. I have known...

Today's guest is Jonathan Hamlet. He is a Senior Procurement Executive at the Millennium Challenge Corporation. Jonathan has worked at six different federal agencies in his government career and did a stint at Booz Allen Hamilton. I met Jonathan when I worked at MCC and found him to be extremely knowledgeable in the acquisition space. Jonathan speaks to how important it is to get your customer's p...

Today's guest is Beth A. Martin. She is a UX Design and CX Subject Matter Expert in Digital Services at the U.S. Office of Personnel Management. Beth is also a board member of Federal Innovators Salon. We talk about our shared passion of mentoring for those early in their career and encouraging others to consider a career in government. Beth and I run into each other at networking events here in t...

Today's guest is Jordan Ottaway. He is a Marketing Project Manager at Dallas-based Mortgage company. Jordan is a journalist turned marketer, which I am looking forward to hearing about. Jordan and I discuss how there is a general mindset of fear that keeps organizations and people from taking risks and trying new ideas and solutions. You can engage Jordan here: LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/...

Today's guest is Aaron Pujanandez. He is the CEO of Delta Lima, a firm focused on data science and data analytics across the government. Aaron and I met through our shared love of networking within the GovCon space in Washington DC. We had a great conversation on organizations providing an allowance for experimentation and investing after showing successes. Aaron shares a bit about establishing an...

Today's guest is Alexa Tsui. She is the Chief Operating Officer for G2Xchange, growth tool suite for government and contractors. Alexa and I met through networking events in the Washington DC area. We had a great conversation on how we need to encourage math skills at a younger age. Alexa also shared how we need to better equip those early in their career by teaching them effective communicati...

Today's guest is Tarrazzia Martin. She is the Senior Advisor for Enterprise Technology Planning and Change Management at the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Executive Director of USNIA Global Law Enforcement and Investigation Services. Tarrazzia and I discussed how organizations should consider programs to help amazing contributors become good managers and how to better col...

Today's guest is Doug Yates. He is a Consultant and Advisor for Intelligent Information Management at Konica Minolta Business Solutions focused on DocPoint Solutions. DocPoint is a well-known brand name within the Microsoft space, which is how Doug and I recently ran into each other at a Microsoft conference. We also talked about the lack of knowledge shared with students about all the interes...