• E-Newsletter

Fairfax County Lands Headquarters of Leading Government Contractor Amentum Services, Inc.

Governor Glenn Youngkin announced on February 27 that Amentum Services, Inc., a leading provider of engineering and advanced solutions and services to the U.S. government, allies, and commercial companies, will invest $495,000 to relocate its headquarters from Germantown, Maryland to Fairfax County.

“The relocation of our company headquarters to Chantilly, Virginia, grants more convenient access not only for our local employees, customers and partners, but also for everyone in our extended team who are doing business in the Washington, D.C. area,” said John Heller, Amentum CEO. “We look forward to strengthening our connections with and expanding our business in the Northern Virginia area and establishing our new headquarters as the ideal centralized location for our global organization.”

In 2022, the company acquired PAE Incorporated, another leading government services contractor, and will consolidate its integrated operation at Amentum’s office at 4800 Westfields Boulevard in Chantilly, creating 157 new jobs.

“We are honored to welcome Amentum to Fairfax County and want to thank them for choosing Chantilly for their new headquarters,” said Victor Hoskins, president and CEO of Fairfax County Economic Development Authority (FCEDA). “Our world-class network of mission-driven companies just grew even stronger, and together our business community will continue to innovate here and affect change globally.”

Amentum is a leader in global engineering, project management, and solutions integration, trusted to modernize the most critical missions anywhere in the world. Driven to create a safer, smarter, cleaner world, Amentum innovates as a team of inventive doers passionate about making a difference. Underpinned by a strong culture of ethics, safety, and inclusivity, Amentum is fiercely committed to operational excellence and successful execution. The company has more than 44,000 employees in 85 countries on all seven continents, including locations across Virginia.

“I want to thank and congratulate Amentum for choosing Fairfax County as its home base,” said Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeffrey C. McKay. “Our long-term investment into making Fairfax County the top choice to locate a global business is bearing fruit, and I am thrilled that Amentum has chosen to take advantage of what we offer.”

Fairfax County Economic Development Authority worked with the Virginia Economic Development Partnership to secure the project for Fairfax County and Virginia.

“Fairfax County offers the location, access to decision-makers, and talent pipeline that global providers like Amentum are seeking, and we are proud to welcome the company’s leadership and operations team to Virginia,” said Governor Glenn Youngkin. “Amentum joins the ranks of the Commonwealth’s diversified ecosystem of more than 800 corporate headquarters across a broad cross-section of industries.”

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White House, Media Recognize FCEDA President and CEO Victor Hoskins

Hoskins Receives Presidential Nod for Lifetime Achievement

Victor Hoskins, president and CEO of the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority, was honored to receive a President’s Lifetime Achievement Award from The White House because of his lifelong commitment to building a strong nation through volunteering. Signed by the President of the United States Joseph R. Biden, Jr., the Lifetime Achievement Award reads: “With grateful recognition of the AmeriCorps and the Office of the President of the United States honors Mr. Victor Hoskins, President and CEO of FCEDA, with the President’s Lifetime Achievement award for their lifelong commitment to building a stronger nation through volunteer service.”

Mr. Hoskins was nominated for the award by the U.S. India SME Council, an authorized official certifying organization for the President’s Volunteer Service Awards and President’s Lifetime Achievement Awards. He was presented with the recognition by Elisha Pulivarti, CEO, U.S. India SME Council, on Feb 28, 2023, at University of North America in Fairfax.

“Thank you to the U.S. India SME Council for nominating me for this great honor. It was gracious of you all to nominate me and I greatly appreciate that you deemed me worthy of receiving the honor,” said Hoskins. “I am speechless. I am tremendously humbled to receive such an incredible honor. I feel privileged to have had the opportunity to have provided service to the communities in Northern Virginia; Baltimore, Maryland; the District of Columbia; Cambridge, Massachusetts; and in Los Angeles, California.”

To read more about Hoskins career and volunteer activities, click here.

Hoskins Named ‘Heavy Hitter’ by Virginia Business, Again

Victor Hoskins, president and CEO of FCEDA, was named on Virginia Business magazine’s 2023 “Heavy Hitters list of Virginia’s 50 most powerful and influential execs” for the fourth time. Virginia Business’ annual list of the Commonwealth’s 50 most powerful and influential leaders provides the magazine’s editors’ take on the heaviest hitting of heavyweights in business, government, nonprofits and higher education. “Think of it as an executive committee for the leaders populating our annual Virginia 500 issue — the top 10 percent of the state’s power elite,” according to Virginia Business. In the article, Virginia Business noted:

Power and influence: Hoskins often mentions that he’s saving households when a job is saved, and that drives his passion for his work. He came to Fairfax in 2019 from Arlington County, where he landed Amazon’s multibillion-dollar HQ2 East Coast headquarters. Hoskins also co-founded the Northern Virginia Economic Development Alliance. In 2022, Fairfax worked with 146 business that announced 12,647 jobs. Hoskins also serves on the President’s Innovation Advisory Council at George Mason University and the Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce board.

Recent developments: Fairfax County scored a big win in 2022 when Hilton Worldwide Holdings announced it was renewing its headquarters lease for another 15 years in Tysons, with plans to invest $50.3 million and add 350 employees. Also last year, Alarm.com announced its plans to expand its research and development division, creating 180 jobs.

The additional Fairfax County-based Heavy Hitter honorees are:

• Richard Fairbank, co-founder, CEO and chair, Capital One (Tysons)
• Amy Gilliland, president, General Dynamics Information Technology (Falls Church area)
• Dr. J. Stephen Jones, president and CEO, Inova Health System (Falls Church area)
• Nazzic S. Keene, CEO, Science Applications International Corp. (Reston)
• Roger A. Krone, chairman and CEO, Leidos (Reston)
• Mary McDuffie, president and CEO, Navy Federal Credit Union (Vienna)
• Christopher J. Nassetta, president and CEO, Hilton (Tysons)
• Phebe Novakovic, chairman and CEO, General Dynamics (Reston)
• Horacio D. Rozanski, president and CEO, Booz Allen Hamilton (Tysons)
• Stu Shea, chairman, president and CEO, Peraton (Reston)
• Warren Thompson, founder, president and chairman, Thompson Hospitality Corp., (Reston)
• Poul Weihrauch, president and CEO, Mars (McLean)
• Kathy J. Warden, chairman, president and CEO, Northrop Grumman (Falls Church area)

Here are the Heavy Hitter honorees in additional localities in the Northern Virginia Economic Development Alliance:

• David Calhoun, president and CEO, Boeing (Arlington County)
• Brian Huseman, vice president of public policy, Amazon (Arlington County)
• Sheila Johnson, CEO, Salamander Hotels & Resorts (Loudoun County)
• Charles “Chuck” Kuhn, founder and CEO, JK Moving Services (Loudoun County)
• Buddy Rizer, executive director, department of economic development (Loudoun County;)
• Mike Salvino, president, chairman and CEO, DXC Technology (Loudoun County)
• Julie Sweet, CEO and chair, Accenture (Arlington County)
• Jim VandeHei, co-founder and CEO, Axios Media; chair, Axios HQ (Arlington County)

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Celebrating Women’s History Month

To kick off Women’s History Month, we invite aspiring entrepreneurs to attend FCEDA’s next Entrepreneurship 101 workshop, featuring Omi Bell, Founder & CEO, Black Girl Ventures as this session’s guest speaker for March 7, 2023, in Tysons. During this interactive workshop, you will hear from Ms. Bell about her entrepreneurial journey of founding and growing Black Girl Ventures, an organization that is dedicated to creating access to capital for Black and Brown women entrepreneurs.

Click here to register for the free workshop. This in-person event will be held at Intelligent Office, 1934 Old Gallows Rd STE 350, Tysons. Free parking is available in the adjacent garage.

You will also hear from a panel of experts on registering your business, permitting requirements, business feasibility and business plan basics, business certifications, financing options and government resources. Attendees will have the opportunity to network with the presenters and FCEDA staff.

The E-101 workshops are presented by FCEDA, in partnership with the Virginia Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity (SBSD), the Community Business Partnership (CBP), the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), and the Fairfax County Department of Economic Initiatives (DEI). For more information and details on the March 7 workshop, click here.

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Weekly Business News Digest

Expanding footprints: Reston-based Comstock Holding Companies secured two 10-year lease agreements with CACI International and The Applied Research Laboratory at Penn State in the Commerce District of Reston Station, according to Commercial Observer. CACI International will move into a new 41,000 square foot location. The Applied Research Laboratory at Penn State (“ARL”), a specialized research unit dedicated to interdisciplinary scientific research, is relocating from their current location in the Commerce District to a new 34,560 square foot space. The addition of these two leases supports Comstock’s strategic plan to bring 1.3 million square feet of new office space to Reston. “We are thrilled to build out the newly designed, modernized office spaces for CACI and ARL, who are joining us in our re-development of the Commerce District at Reston Station,” said Tim Steffan, COO of Comstock. “We’re delighted they’ve expanded their footprint in our Reston Station neighborhood, and we look forward to having them move into their new spaces.”

World defense epicenter: Virginia has cemented its status as the world defense industry epicenter; according to Virginia Business, since four of the world’s top five defense contractors are now based in Northern Virginia: General Dynamics (Reston); and Northrop Grumman (Falls Church area); and Boeing and Raytheon Technologies, which both recently moved their headquarters to Arlington County. Lockheed Martin is headquartered in nearby Bethesda, Maryland. Jerry McGinn, executive director of the Center for Government Contracting at George Mason University’s School of Business, said the concentration of government contractors not only in the suburbs of Washington, D.C., but specifically on the Virginia side of the Potomac, speaks well of the commonwealth’s reputation. “It reflects well on the business environment here that they would come here as opposed to the District or Maryland,” he said. “Virginia has been a very attractive state for business, and I think this is another reason the companies ended up here.”

Riding a wave: Veteran-owed Reston IT integrator Intelligent Waves expects to hit a major revenue milestone this year — $100 million — and plans to increase its headcount by 50 percent after landing the largest government contract in its 17-year history, DCINNO reported in subscriber content. Intelligent Waves has just under 300 employees and is looking to add another 150 by the end of the year, according to Intelligent Waves CEO Tony Crescenzo, with about 50 of those new hires in Greater Washington. Intelligent Waves is hoping to recruit some highly skilled tech workers from large tech firms, such as Amazon and Microsoft that have laid off workers in recent weeks, Crescenzo said.

New leadership: Reston-based Fortune 500 contractor Leidos Chairman and CEO Roger Krone plans to step down from both positions this year, with Thomas Bell, the president of Defense Rolls-Royce and chairman and CEO of the company’s North American branch, succeeding Krone as CEO on May 4, Leidos announced, according to Virginia Business. Krone has led the science and technology contractor since 2014 and will continue as an adviser through July. Bell, who will also join Leidos’ board in May, has led Rolls-Royce North America since 2018, as well as its global defense contracting division, which has more than 9,500 employees worldwide. “Working with the extraordinary people of Leidos has been the honor of my career,” Krone said in a statement. “Their dedication, innovation, and unwavering commitment to our mission have been the driving force behind our success. I want to thank them for the privilege of serving as their leader for nearly nine years, and for inspiring me with their passion, their brilliance, and their unwavering commitment to excellence. It has been a privilege to be a part of this remarkable team, and I am confident that the future of Leidos is in the best possible hands with all of them.”

Global and domestic travel chairperson: The U.S. Travel Association elected Christopher J. Nassetta, president and CEO of Tysons-based Hilton, as its national chair, Virginia Business reported. The Washington, D.C.-based association, which represents the interests of more than 1,000 industry organizations, announced Nassetta’s election on Feb. 23. As national chair, he will lead the association’s executive board and board of delegates, and he will work with association President and CEO Geoff Freeman to boost domestic and international travel and associated industries. Hilton, which dropped off the Fortune 500 list due to the pandemic’s drop in travel, has about 7,000 hotels worldwide. In August 2022, Hilton announced a $50.3 million expansion of its Fairfax County headquarters, with plans to add 350 jobs during the next five years. The announcement was among Northern Virginia’s largest economic development deals in 2022.

More inclusive workplaces: Fairfax-based ProvenBase, an intelligent sourcing solution spotlighting diverse, disabled, and underrepresented talent, partnered with Texas-based Convo, a company offering ASL-interpretation services for workplace interactions like interviews and meetings. “We’re proud to offer this service not only as a benefit for our customers but also for job seekers in the Deaf and hard-of-hearing community. We see this as a small change for companies but a huge opportunity for creating a more inclusive workforce,” said Ravi Tandra, CEO of ProvenBase. “As our friends at Convo say, accessibility is not the same as inclusion. We know that one size does not fit all and this is one step in achieving that.” Khon2 picked up the release.

Patch track: Reston-based trackd, a cybersecurity startup coming out of stealth mode, announced that it has raised $3.3 million in seed funding. The round was led by Flybridge, with participation from Lerer Hippeau, SaaS Ventures and Expa. The company is developing a “patch management platform” that helps companies carry out cybersecurity remediation. “The dirty little secret in the vulnerability remediation community is that fear of disruption due to patching is largely a psychological remnant of the early days when patching broke things frequently, and, at times, catastrophically,” said Mike Starr, CEO and founder of trackd. “Times have changed, and only a very small percentage of patches cause disruption, but that perception and fear is difficult to overcome, so trackd’s one-of-a-kind patching experience data at the heart of our platform is built to overcome what is, fundamentally, a human nature challenge.” Potomac Tech Wire picked up the release.

Get your passport ready: Norwegian low-cost airline startup Norse Atlantic Airways will launch nonstop flights from Washington Dulles International Airport to London this summer, with introductory fares as low as $195 each way, WTOP reported. Norse will operate flights six days a week from Dulles to London’s Gatwick Airport starting June 1, and will reduce service to four weekly flights in September. It will be the only nonstop flight from Dulles to Gatwick.

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Contract Wins

Serco Group’s North American subsidiary (Herndon) received a $690 million contract to continue to help the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services determine the eligibility of consumers to buy health insurance plans through the Federal Health Insurance Exchanges. GovConWire

Science Applications International Corp. (Reston) secured $102.5 million in contract options from the U.S. Navy to perform support work on heavyweight torpedo components for the service branch and the governments of Taiwan and Australia. GovConWire

Raft (Reston) booked a $100 million contract to provide software development support to the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center’s Detachment 12, also known as Kessel Run. GovConWire

Parsons (Centreville) landed a $21 million contract to continue providing command, control, communications, computers and capabilities development to the U.S. Cyber Command. ExecutiveBiz

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March 7 – Entrepreneurship 101: Starting A Business in Fairfax County. Join our panel of small business experts for an interactive webinar on how to start your business. We will provide you with informative step-by-step information sessions that will cover registering your business, permitting requirements, business feasibility and business plan basics, business certifications, financing options and government resources. In addition, the Entrepreneur Spotlight will feature Omi Bell, Founder of Black Girl Ventures. Click here for more information and to register.

March 31 – Fairfax County Green Business Partners Forum. Smart City Works, in partnership with Fairfax County Green Business Partners, the Office of Environmental and Energy Coordination, and the Fairfax County Department of Economic Initiatives on the Green Business Partners Forum. The goal of this Forum is to inform and inspire local business leaders interested in sustainability and to share to learn from businesses already on their sustainable journey. Click here for more information and to register.