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FOSE 2005
April 5-7, 2005
Washington Convention Center
Washington, DC
Register for FOSE 2005

Speaker Bios

Currently, Frank P. Pugliese, Jr. is the Managing Director, Government Business Development for the DuPont Corporation. He is responsible for driving all Government Marketing and Infrastructure functions, agency marketing programs, channel and contract management, promotion and protection of DuPont reputation. Prior to joining the DuPont Corporation, Frank was President and Chief Executive Officer of Star Mountain, Inc., a $45 million company providing performance improvement services. In addition, he spent nearly three decades with the General Services Administration, leaving as the Commissioner of the Federal Supply Service (FSS). FSS employed 3,400 people in the business of supplying more than $26 billion annually in goods and services to Federal departments and agencies worldwide. Mr. Pugliese and has received numerous awards and acknowledgements, including the Presidential Rank Award for Distinguished Executives, given by President Clinton.

DuPont puts science to work by creating sustainable solutions essential to a better, safer, healthier life for people everywhere. Operating in more than 70 countries with 79,000 employees and $24 billion in sales, DuPont offers a wide range of innovative products and services for markets including agriculture, nutrition, electronics, communications, safety and protection, home and construction, transportation and apparel.

Theresa Beech is currently the Vice-President of Business Development of GMV Space Systems Inc. where she is responsible for overseeing all aspects of GMV’s business development and industrial-institutional cooperation in the U.S. She worked as an engineer at the Boeing Company in the Civil Space Division before coming to GMV. Theresa has a B.S. in Physics from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor and a M.S. in Atmospheric Physics from the University of Washington, Seattle.

GMV Space Systems Inc. and GMV S.A. are affiliate companies of Group GMV, a European industrial group that has been providing SW and expert engineering services to the Space and Defense sectors for 20 years. GMV provides products and services in a variety of areas including mission analysis, flight dynamics, satellite command & control and mission planning & scheduling. GMV has worked extensively with both European and American companies including Eumetsat, NASA Goddard, Intelsat and PanAmSat.

Liam McGeown, founder of the Acquis Group, has more than 25 years of experience in the design, implementation and deployment of enterprise spatial database systems. Recognized as a worldwide expert, he has managed major IT projects including the U.S. Census MAF/TIGER and WV SAMB (E911) initiatives; National GeoMapping Systems in Finland, Ireland and Greece; and Utility Network Management Systems in the United Kingdom, Saudi Arabia and Ireland.

Acquis is the world leader in the development and delivery of web-based data editing and management software solutions for Oracle 10g topology and other Oracle complex data types. Acquis also offers a complete range of professional services including consulting, design, implementation and technical support for Acquis and Oracle technology. The company's flagship product Acquis Data Editor (ADE) is a unique, low-cost, web-based solution for the editing of Oracle Database 10g topology and Oracle 8i/9i/10g Locator, Spatial geometry and attribute data.

Karl Pringle is the General Manager of Strategic Thought Inc. based in Washington DC. His responsibilities include the expansion of the U.S. office, day to day operations and business development. Karl joined the UK based parent in 2000 as Business Development Manager with a focus on opening up business in North America. Two years later he accepted the position of Director of Business Development again with responsibility for the formulation and execution of a North American export plan for Federal and commercial markets. Karl was educated in Canada at the University of British Columbia and holds an Executive Diploma in Business to Business Marketing from The Kellogg School of Management in Chicago.

Strategic Thought, founded in 1987, has more than 60 staff. The company recently opened an office in Washington, DC and has representation in France, Germany and Australia. The company has two focused business lines:  it develops, owns and markets an industry-leading enterprise risk management software called Active Risk Manager; and it provides operational risk management in the Fortune 5000 and top 500 European companies. The company's offers expert products to customers in the retail, financial services and telecommunications sectors. Customers include NASA, Lockheed Martin, Bank of America, Lloyds Bank and Boeing.

Peter Behr is a free-lance writer specializing in energy and economic development issues. He retired from The Washington Post in 2004 after 23 years as a reporter, columnist and editor, including five years as Assistant Managing Editor for Business. He received a research fellowship at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars last year for work on a book on the electric power industry. Behr was a Nieman Fellow at Harvard University, a judge of the Loeb Journalism Awards and a former board member of the Society of American Business Editors and Writers.

Mark A. Frantz is a Principal focused on U.S. venture opportunities in the technology and business services and communications services sectors. Frantz works with Carlyle Venture portfolio companies Blackboard, Secure Elements and ISR Solutions among others. Prior to joining Carlyle, Mr. Frantz worked for Redleaf Ventures where he was the Senior Director for the Northern Virginia office. Mark also served as the Associate Director of the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs under President George H. W. Bush and as the technology policy advisor to Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge. Frantz holds J.D. and M.B.A. degrees from the University of Pittsburgh and a B.A. degree from Allegheny College.

The Carlyle Group is one of the world’s largest private equity firms, with more than $24.8 billion under management. With 28 funds across four investment disciplines (management-led buyouts, real estate, leveraged finance, and venture capital), Carlyle combines global vision with local insight, relying on a top-flight team of nearly 300 investment professionals operating out of offices in 14 countries to uncover superior opportunities in North America, Europe, and Asia.

Sudhakar V. Shenoy is Founder, Chairman and CEO of IMC, Inc. and was named one of the Top 25 Most Influential People in the Washington, DC high-tech industry. Under Shenoy's leadership, IMC has become an award-winning technology solutions company. In 1996, he was inducted into the University of Connecticut’s School of Business Alumni Hall of Fame and was recognized as a Distinguished Alumnus of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Bombay, India in 1997.

Information Management Consultants, Inc. (IMC), is a leading information technology, management consulting and solutions integration firm that was founded in 1981. IMC is a privately held company that develops innovative custom and packaged IT solutions for industry, government, higher education and scientific organizations. IMC provides solutions focused on technologies such as data warehousing, document management, and workflow with existing enterprise systems to solve complex business problems.

In his position as Vice President of Business Development for the Greater Washington Initiative, Tim Priest develops strategies for attracting national and international firms to the Greater Washington region. Priest and his team help companies understand the business potential of selling to the federal government, one of the largest consumers of goods and services in the world. In addition to implementing marketing campaigns abroad, he leads delegations of business leaders and economic development professionals to other metro areas to discuss federal contracting. Tim has co-authored numerous reports on the Washington area’s economy, which were highlighted in the Washington Post, the Washington Times and high technology publications.

The Greater Washington Initiative (GWI) is the non-profit, regional economic development marketing organization created to promote the Greater Washington region as a premier business location. GWI is funded by area public jurisdictions that encompass the District of Columbia, Northern Virginia and Suburban Maryland, and numerous leading area companies, and it is an affiliate of the Greater Washington Board of Trade, a regional chamber of commerce. GWI’s confidential and complimentary services help companies and associations to: identify strategic partners and venture capital contacts; meet public and private sector leaders; arrange site tours; and obtain demographic and real estate information about the region.

Patricia O’Hagan, Managing Director, Core Systems (NI) Ltd, has 15 years of diverse industry experience. She has worked in software development, service management, consultancy, IT management, strategy, project management and team building. O’Hagan also held the post of IT Manager at Stockport College, one of the largest colleges of higher education in the UK. Patricia has succeeded in developing Core Systems from a partnership into a cohesive multi-disciplinary team. She was awarded a BEng Hons degree in Engineering from the University of Ulster.

Established in 1994, Core Systems (NI) Limited provides complete IT solutions to both private and public sector organizations. The company has gained valuable experience integrating biometric technologies into access control and other security applications within law enforcement and custodial services. Core Systems has worked with the Prison Services in Northern Ireland, Scotland and the Republic of Ireland providing innovative solutions to make prisons safer places for prisoners and staff.

Peter Askew, Managing Director/President of Beyond Business Connections has a passion for growing and developing businesses both nationally and internationally. Askew has been actively supporting the development and growth of technology and services businesses for more than two decades. During the past eight years, Peter has developed and been personally responsible for the implementation of sales and business expansion strategies targeting the Australian Federal Government market. His direct sales results achieved for his clients over this time exceed AUD100 million dollars.

Beyond Business Connections (BBC) was formed to meet a need in the market to provide outsourced business development, sales and major project capability to our customers. BBC has developed a business model that minimizes both the financial and commercial risks for companies interested in expanding into the Australian government market. The company’s specialists include some of the most experienced and successful consultants in the Federal Government market. BBC secures new business and expands our customer’s presence in new markets.

As Senior Investment Commissioner for Invest Australia, Robert Hunt directs the investment attraction program in North America, managing teams in San Francisco and New York, which cover a wide range of industries including ICT, biotechnology, manufacturing and financial services. Formerly, Hunt worked for PricewaterhouseCoopers and with the Australian Trade Commission in the U.S., Australia and Germany. Before moving to Australia, Robert had many years experience in the software industry in Southern California. He has an MBA and PhD, both from UCLA.

Invest Australia is Australia’s official investment promotion agency. Its nine overseas offices seek out opportunities for productive foreign direct investment into Australia, and work closely with companies to facilitate the investment process. Invest Australia’s objective is to create new jobs and exports, and to maintain Australia’s status as a source of technology and innovation.

Michael Darch is the Executive Director of OCRI's Ottawa Global Marketing. Michael has more than 30 years experience in the private sector and is a strong advocate of focused, cluster-based economic development. He has been the driving force behind the economic partnerships formed between Ottawa and five U.S. cities and is now building European partnerships. He has designed the marketing of Ottawa around its successful technology clusters, skilled workforce, research strength, ability to attract capital and business support infrastructure.

OCRI (Ottawa Centre for Research and Innovation) is one of Canada's most successful partnership organizations. The marketing group is responsible for the attraction of investment, companies and people to the Ottawa region; the branding and marketing of the City of Ottawa; the management of Ottawa's global partnerships; and the support of Ottawa's technology clusters.

Andrew Burt, First Secretary and Manager, Defense Procurement at the Canadian Embassy in Washington DC is originally from Canada. He currently manages more than $2 billion in Canadian FMS requirements as well as an increasingly complex export-licensing portfolio in support of Canadian cross border defense shipments. Burt previously worked as a Trade Commissioner for Canada in Cleveland, Ohio. In addition, Andrew has managed major defense acquisition projects for military pattern logistic support vehicles to the Canadian forces. Andrew completed training with the U.S. Defense Systems Management College, Virginia, for the management of major defense projects.

Scott Little is of counsel in the international trade and customs practice group of Thompson Hine LLP in Washington DC. Scott previously practiced international trade and customs law with a national Canadian law firm and has advised and represented clients on various matters before the Canadian International Trade Tribunal, export controls, customs compliance, the NAFTA and WTO Agreements.

Established in 1911, Thompson Hine today is among the largest business law firms in the United States. For the last several years, the firm has been named one of the Best Corporate Law Firms in America by Corporate Board Member magazine. With more than 350 attorneys, Thompson Hine serves premier businesses worldwide, including: Ford, Toyota, Goodrich, Goodyear, Sherwin-Williams and Verizon. The firm has offices in Atlanta, Brussels, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton, New York, and Washington, DC.

As Senior Vice President and Chief Knowledge Officer, Ray Bjorklund is responsible for ensuring FSI maximizes the value it delivers through its most important asset - knowledge. Bjorklund specializes in identifying market factors, technology trends, and strategic solutions to help clients posture for success in the government marketplace. As a former government procurement official focusing on defense, C4ISR and IT initiatives, he has more than three decades hands-on experience in federal IT program management and procurement processes.

FSI delivers fact-based, government-IT market intelligence to the largest existing government contractors and new market entrants via online subscription services, tailored consulting, GSA Schedule services and industry-leading events. These programs, underscored by a hands-on approach to client support, enable IT vendors and government organizations to make informed business decisions and experience rapid return on investment. Founded in 1984, FSI is headquartered in McLean, Virginia.

N. Derek Wilkinson is a Managing Consultant and North American Director for Futurestep’s Interim Solutions Group. In these dual roles, he oversees business development, service delivery operations and customer relations for the Washington DC Practice and Interim Solutions. After a number of years in search strategy at the executive and mid-level, he brings an in-depth understanding of talent recruitment, client consultation and project management to this practice.

Futurestep is a Korn/Ferry International company, drawing from more than 30 years of industry experience to create recruitment solutions based on clients' individual workforce needs. Serving both large multinational and high-growth middle-market companies, our consultants combine client-driven service with today's leading technologies to deliver the strongest candidates and fastest cycle times. With a global database, multi-channel sourcing strategy and expert consultants in nearly 15 countries worldwide, Futurestep offers speed, efficiency and quality of service no matter what – or where – your human capital requirements may be.

For more information, contact Gwen Varndell at (202) 857-5982.