Bobbie Kilberg, Northern Virginia Technology Council
WashingtonExec 2015 Market Outlook Series
We look forward to a new year and new opportunities for innovation and growth in the government contracting community. This past year, we experienced an increased emphasis on cybersecurity, the government’s procurement process and a perpetual focus on doing more with less.
WashingtonExec reached out to those most knowledgeable and experienced in the federal contracting space. We asked executives in and around the beltway for insight regarding where they see the government contracting community headed in 2015. Topics discussed include M&A activity, cloud computing, privacy issues, data collection, healthcare IT, defense and more.
Bobbie Kilberg, President and CEO of Northern Virginia Technology Council (NVTC), sees federal contract spending decreasing, but growths in the technology sectors increasing.
WashingtonExec: What will next year hold for government contracting?
Bobbie Kilberg: I think we will continue to see a decrease in federal contract spending, equal to what we saw this year. I also expect we will see increased consolidation in the contracting sector, particularly with larger government contractors buying up smaller companies as they seek to expand their presence in growth markets.
WashingtonExec: What markets in the GovCon space do you see growing/contracting?
Bobbie Kilberg: Our members are capitalizing on growth potential in markets such as health IT, cybersecurity, data analytics, cloud, intelligence, energy and mobility. In addition, many contractors are translating their knowledge and experience with government customers to the commercial sector, which has the potential for continued growth in many of these sectors.
WashingtonExec: What concerns you the most when looking ahead at the future of GovCon?
Bobbie Kilberg: I’m concerned that reductions in research and development spending, due to budget cuts and overall uncertainty, will hurt our competitiveness in the long run. In addition, Congress’ inability to function makes it very difficult for businesses to plan.
WashingtonExec: What makes you most excited about the future of the GovCon space?
Bobbie Kilberg: I’m truly excited by all the innovation I see in the marketplace. Companies are doing amazing things with technology and pushing boundaries to serve their customers. NVTC recently presented our first NVTC Tech Awards for Innovative Use of Technology, with more than 30 nominations in this category. The nominated technologies were so impressive that our judges ended up selecting eight finalists and two winners. Regardless of whether they are serving government customers or commercial clients, our member companies are truly innovative.
Related: Washington Business Hall of Fame Inducts NVTC President and CEO Bobbie Kilberg as Laureate
