On Oct. 26, “Get Off the Bench” author, longtime industry CEO and board director Sid Fuchs joined over two dozen mid-to-senior career government contracting executives for a candid, closed-door discussion on professional and personal growth at the International Country Club in Fairfax, Virginia.
This WashingtonExec-hosted dinner aimed to provide the current and next-generation of GovCon execs with networking opportunities and a discussion on lessons learned and the tools required for success from a veteran industry member. This is the third event in the “Navigating the Journey” series in which Fuchs has spoken.
Fuchs’ perspective stems from his more than 30 years of experience transforming engineering and technology organizations in government as well as public, private and private equity backed companies. Today, he is board chair at Eutelsat America Corp., sits on the board of directors for NT Concepts and Buchanan & Edwards, Inc. and is on the board of advisors for INADEV.
At the dinner, Fuchs shared his thoughts and personal experiences on leadership, networking, talent retention, professional growth, personal development and more.
“The attendees, like most professionals at their level, are in search of real, genuine insights and lessons learned in order to develop skills, manage change, and advance careers,” he told WashingtonExec. “They asked insightful and thoughtful questions and the level of interaction was very high.”
Jennifer Welham, senior vice president of public health and social programs at ICF, attended the dinner. She called it a “fun and informative event.”
“Sid Fuchs is iconic in the GovCon world, and it was an honor and a pleasure to spend the evening with him,” Welham said. “I appreciate the advice he shared with the group of aspiring GovCon execs on ways we can grow professionally and improve our leadership.”
Fuchs referred to the evening as a “great networking event,” noting many attendees even stayed afterward to speak with him and fellow peers.
As part of his “Navigating the Journey” series, Fuchs imparted life lessons and tips on managing people and business, learning from mistakes, turning weaknesses into strengths, creating a positive environment for employees, the importance of values and integrity as a leader and more. Each attendee also received a signed copy of Fuchs’ book.
“Sid’s communication style was one of warmth, humility and inclusion which made the small-group conversation flow easily,” said Laurell Aiton, chief administrative officer at SMX, who attended the dinner. “I established several new connections and look forward to mutually building upon those relationships. An evening well spent!”
Paul Lynch, chief operating officer at Cadmus Group, said the session with Fuchs was “extremely valuable,” noting similar sentiments to Aiton and Welham.
“It was an engaging, intimate and practical discussion with Sid,” Lynch said. “I appreciated his insights on networking and leadership as well as his lessons learned ⏤ particularly with regard to the importance of identifying and retaining talent.”
WashingtonExec hosted Fuchs in July when he spoke with members of the GovCon community about career development. WashingtonExec plans to hold more of these events in 2023, with Fuchs and other prominent industry CEOs as guest speakers.