GovCon Executive Slice

In a federal market obsessed with what's next, there's something especially valuable about leaders who have already navigated multiple waves of change. Building a successful company is hard enough. Keeping it relevant, competitive, and growing through decades of evolving technology, customer expectations, and market pressures takes an entirely different kind of leadership. That's what made it such...

Everyone is talking about bringing AI into government. But building AI that can actually operate in secure, highly regulated federal environments, where accuracy, accountability, and mission outcomes matter, is an entirely different challenge. OrangeSlices founder and CEO David Blackburn recently connected with Cal Zemelman, Chief AI Officer, and Faqir Ahmed, Chief Technology Officer at CVP, a fed...

What if artificial intelligence could do more than help government contractors win business? What if it could actually help protect the integrity of the competition itself? We spend a lot of time talking about how AI is changing capture, proposals, and business development. But there's another side to this conversation worth exploring. With billions of dollars flowing through government contracts...

As government agencies accelerate their adoption of artificial intelligence, some of the biggest questions are no longer just about what AI can do, but where it should live, how it should be managed, and whether the strategies that got organizations here are the right ones to carry them forward. David Blackburn recently connected with Lee Koepping , Vice President of Global Sales Engineering at Sc...

There's no shortage of companies talking about artificial intelligence and what it might someday do for the federal government. But there's a much smaller group working to turn that promise into real capabilities supporting defense missions today. And not all of them are the big defense contractors you might expect. OrangeSlices CEO David Blackburn recently connected with John Hopkin , Chief Opera...

Growth gets attention and transformation gets headlines, but the leaders really worth watching are the ones who can build through all of it. They grow strong organizations, embrace new technology, develop great people, and continue delivering while the market changes around them. That's what made it such a pleasure to bring together Michelle Rubie-Smith , President of Global Resource Solutions (GR...

Government isn't short on AI ideas, pilots, or investment. The bigger challenge now is turning all of that momentum into measurable mission impact, without creating a whole new set of risks along the way. OrangeSlices CEO David Blackburn recently sat down with Jonathan Alboum , Federal CTO at ServiceNow, for a wide-ranging conversation about where federal AI really stands today, where agencies are...

Change isn't coming to the federal market. It's already here. And for CEOs, the bigger question isn't how to get through the latest round of disruption. It's how to build a company capable of adapting, performing, and growing when constant change becomes the new normal. OrangeSlices recently had the opportunity to explore that challenge with two accomplished founders who have spent years building...

Technology moves fast. Building a great company is harder. In today’s federal market, the leaders separating themselves aren’t simply adopting AI, cloud, and data. They’re building the teams, culture, and discipline to turn those capabilities into mission results. OrangeSlices recently brought together three accomplished CEOs for a CEO Perspectives conversation:  David Chafin , CEO of Imagine Beli...

There is no shortage of new technology entering the federal market. The harder challenge is building the companies, teams, and solutions capable of turning that technology into something agencies can actually use to solve difficult mission problems. In this latest CEO Perspectives conversation, OrangeSlices connected with  Sean Brijbasi , Founder and CEO of MAJUS Consulting, and  Melissa Sharp Bri...

Trust has become one of government's most valuable assets. Increasingly, it's earned, or lost, through a digital experience. For nearly three decades, Forum One has helped government agencies and mission-driven organizations navigate that reality, combining strategy, design, data, and technology to create digital experiences that strengthen public trust, improve engagement, and help organizations...

The next generation of federal leaders won't be defined by the technology they adopt. They'll be defined by how effectively they help government solve increasingly complex mission and national security challenges. OrangeSlices recently had the opportunity to sit down with  Brian Flood , Founder and CEO of DecisionPoint Corporation, and  Alex Granados , CEO of Prescient Edge, for a wide-ranging con...

What if the biggest cybersecurity challenge facing government and industry isn't stopping the next attack, but proving who, or what, can actually be trusted? As AI, connected devices, software supply chains, and machine identities continue to expand, trust has become one of the most strategic issues organizations face. The organizations that can establish and govern trust across these increasingly...

For decades, we've tried to make government work better by adding more people, more processes, and more technology. But what if the next breakthrough isn't another software platform. What if it's a fundamentally different way of thinking about work itself? David Blackburn recently connected with Alex Cohen , Co-Founder and CEO of Statecraft. Alex is an exited founder who has spent years building t...

Most SBIR companies know how to win research funding. Far fewer know how to turn that success into a funded Phase III contract. In a recent conversation with OrangeSlices Founder David Blackburn, Nicole Tripputi , Founder of Bidwell Solutions and former Air Force Contracting Officer with an unlimited warrant, pulled back the curtain on one of the most misunderstood challenges in the federal market...

Federal acquisition is changing fast, and few people have had a front-row seat to that transformation quite like Britteny Chappell. David Blackburn recently sat down with ⁠Britteny Chappell⁠ , Vice President of Capture at Alpha Omega, to discuss the evolving landscape of federal acquisition, technology modernization, and mission delivery. Many across government and industry know Britteny from her...

Every federal contractor is investing in AI, modernization, and operational efficiency. The real differentiator isn't who adopts new technology first. It's who can successfully turn those investments into measurable mission outcomes. In this episode of CEO Perspectives, David Blackburn sits down with  Beverly Beavers , CEO of ProclivIT,  Brandon Muniz , CEO of HeiTech Services, and  Dr. Zhensen Hu...

Artificial intelligence is moving into a new phase, and for federal agencies and government contractors alike, the implications are significant. The conversation has shifted beyond asking AI to generate content. Today, organizations are increasingly exploring how AI can execute tasks, automate workflows, and support mission-critical operations through intelligent agents. David Blackburn recently s...

Winning federal work has never been harder. Yet many contractors are still approaching recompetes, modernization efforts, and operational challenges with playbooks designed for a very different market. David Blackburn recently connected with Christopher Cadle , President of Resolute Solutions, and Hillary Anne Sheehan , Federal Strategic Engagement Executive at UiPath, for a conversation focused o...

As federal agencies push for greater efficiency, modernization, and measurable outcomes, contractors are being challenged to do more than deliver technology. They're being asked to lead change, navigate complexity, and drive mission results in an increasingly demanding environment. In this episode of CEO Perspectives, we sit down with  Greg Smallwood , CEO of Prometheus Federal Services,  Suman Bi...

Twenty-five years ago, the technology landscape looked completely different. The mission didn't. Dave Blackburn recently sat down with Sheila Duffy , Founder and CEO of Greystones Group, for a conversation centered on leadership, technology, innovation, and the realities of navigating constant change in the government contracting market. As the leader of a company that has supported critical defen...

There are very few leaders in federal technology who have helped build, scale, and modernize organizations at the level Sujey Edward has over the last decade. From helping drive Octo’s extraordinary rise and eventual acquisition by IBM in a deal reportedly valued at approximately $1.2 billion, to serving as a Senior Partner at IBM, Sujey has operated at the center of some of the most important con...

Government contracting runs on data. But for years, that data has been fragmented, difficult to access, and even harder to use effectively. In this episode, OrangeSlices’ CEO David Blackburn sits down with Dave Zvenyach , CEO and co-founder of MakeGov, to discuss how his team is working to simplify access to federal procurement data through Tango, a unified API connecting sources like SAM.gov, FPD...

The conversation around AI, cybersecurity, and digital transformation has moved beyond what's possible and shifted squarely to what's practical. The leaders winning today are the ones figuring out how to turn innovation into measurable mission outcomes. In this episode of CEO Perspectives, we sit down with  Poupak Afshar , CEO of Easy Dynamics, and  Henry Poole , CEO and Co-Founder of CivicActions...

GovCon has a proposal problem. Not because teams are not working hard, but because too many firms still believe the proposal is where the win happens. It is not. By the time you are writing, most of the outcome has already been decided. In this episode, David Blackburn sits down with Krystn Macomber , Founder and CEO of Summit Strategy, a win studio built for growth-obsessed teams who want results...