Dave Zolet was named president of CSC Public Sector in June of this year. Zolet previously served as President of Business Development of CSC’s North American Public Sector (NPS).
WashingtonExec asked Zolet how he is liking his new position, what are CSC’s current target areas, and how he sees looming federal budget cuts affecting the federal marketplace.
Zolet also talks football teams, ESPN and the best piece of advice he has received in this interview.
WashingtonExec: Why did you take the job and what are your top three priorities?
Dave Zolet: I came to CSC for one reason: to help the organization get back to where it once was as a true leader in the marketplace.
Our priorities are about execution. It is executing, obviously, on our programs; it is executing effectively on our captures and proposals; and, it is executing on our people-development activities.
There is a big turnaround that is happening at CSC, both on the commercial and public-sector sides. It is an exciting story, and we are looking forward to continuing it.
WashingtonExec: Right now the federal IT budget is under a lot of constraints. What is your approach to navigating these challenging times over the next 12-18 months?
Dave Zolet: It is getting the organization into a structure and a cost model that allows us to compete in a declining or flat (at best) marketplace. Having said that, the fact of the matter is, the federal government is still a big market and a market where organizations that can help clients do more with less will be rewarded. As difficult as the market is, I think there is a significant amount of opportunity for a company like CSC.
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“Whether it is intelligence analysis, fraud detection or border security, big data is game changing.”
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WashingtonExec: Big data is in the news a lot and has made a lot of headlines. How do you think the increase in data mining and data analysis will change federal contracting?
Dave Zolet: Whether it is intelligence analysis, fraud detection or border security, big data is game changing. The challenge for the federal government and the contractor community is how to leverage the data analysis tools and capabilities with the mission understanding to develop actionable intelligence to make fact-based decisions. The ability to make better fact-based decisions is the real value in big data.
WashingtonExec: Growth markets. What are the growth markets, from a CSC perspective, over the next couple years?
Dave Zolet: I think they are next-generation infrastructure (i.e., cloud), big data, intelligence analysis and processing, and health. These are the areas where we are focusing our energy.
WashingtonExec: What is a good day of work like for you?
Dave Zolet: Engaging with our clients and our outstanding employees is a great day for me.
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“I think they are next-generation infrastructure (i.e., cloud), big data, intelligence analysis and processing, and health. These are the areas where we are focusing our energy.”
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WashingtonExec: What is the best piece of advice that you have ever received?
Dave Zolet: Treat every job like it is your last.
WashingtonExec: What is your favorite app?
Dave Zolet: During football season, it is the Direct TV app so that I can watch my games anywhere I want. ESPN and ESPN Scoreboard are my big apps.
WashingtonExec: You mentioned football. What is your favorite football team?
Dave Zolet: My favorite pro team is The Ravens; Hamilton College is my favorite college squad.
