In the past year, Leigh Palmer led a team that delivered major wins, expanded critical services to Defense Department customers and cared for its own by focusing on empathy, flexibility and accessibility.
In the fourth quarter of 2020, Palmer’s team secured the $4.4 billion Defense Enterprise Office Solution contract to facilitate the largest-ever deployment of Microsoft Office 365 and the first-ever deployment of O365 in a DOD classified environment.
It also won the $695 million Enterprise Mission Information Technology Services task order to continue critical mission support to the U.S. Army in Europe by delivering secure IT service. And her team recently won a $136 million indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity contract to transform the Navy IT service desk by leveraging artificial intelligence, machine learning and predictive analytics.
Palmer said this year has crystallized the importance of encouraging leadership at all levels. One of her primary motivations has been to have conversations and build roadmaps on career experiences and mindset requirements for future leaders.
“I’ve been laser focused on developing talent and taking care of our people,” she said. “We’re leading with empathy and compassion — ensuring we’re accessible and also prioritizing flexibility in this period of disruption. It’s been a unifying time, fueled by dedication to our customers’ missions. It is my belief that we have emerged as a stronger, more engaged team.”
Why Watch
GDIT customers are pivoting to strategies such as Joint All-Domain Command and Control, and the company’s capabilities in cloud, identity and zero trust are critical to making these visions a reality. GDIT leaders said the company will continue to innovate and pivot at increased speed as world events require.
“I’m excited by the investments we’ve made in cloud innovation and zero trust architectures in particular that are driving capability to mission in order to realize the department’s all-domain strategic vision in JADC2 and to meet the evolving threat environment,” Palmer said.