Employee Spotlight
Dave Lyons
Senior Vice President of Technology and Management Solutions and Chief Technology Officer, Catapult Headquarters
Dave Lyons Leads Technology and Management Solutions Practice
“What makes Catapult different today from when I started here three years ago is the strong sense of collaboration,” says Dave Lyons, Senior Vice President of Technology and Management Solutions and Chief Technology Officer.
“Business development used to be a separate effort,” he says. “There was less synergy across departments.”
Today, when Catapult responds to a Request for Proposal (RFP), the effort is more proactive than reactive. “We move more deliberately, getting to know the potential customer so we can deliver a proposal that really meets what they need,” says Dave.
He adds that the company’s revenue demonstrates this more disciplined approach. “We were roughly a $47 million company when I came here. We’ve more than doubled since.”
The Technology Solutions team identifies opportunities through GWACs, partners, or other customers. “We work together to focus on the customer’s needs, engaging in capture activities and crafting proposals and pricing strategies,” says Dave. “Everyone’s focus is to grow the company.”
The Technology and Management Solutions practice is primarily focused on the civilian agencies of the federal government, from the Department of Agriculture to the Department of Transportation.
Catapult’s biggest customer is the General Services Administration (GSA), for which Catapult delivers infrastructure management services on the GSA Infrastructure Technology Global Operations (GITGO) contract. Catapult is the prime contractor.
GITGO comprises a team of about 340, including about 240 Catapult employees, or 70% of the GITGO workforce. “We experienced more than 10% growth on this project in 2009 alone,” Dave says proudly.
“Our employees are willing to do whatever the customer wants and needs, and bring to bear some amazing technical expertise,” says Dave.
Dave’s prior experience was in the commercial arena, but after joining Catapult he quickly discovered that the business issues and technology needs in the federal arena aren’t very different from each other.
The government is more regulated, he adds, and the procurement process is longer. In the federal market, he says, you just have to stick to it. “If you’re good, you’ll win it.”
Dave and his partner Rick Hardy live in Mount Pleasant, a neighborhood of Washington, D.C. in a 100-year old row house that they remodeled when they moved in seven years ago. They share the historic house with their two black labs, Bailey and Sadie.
