The finalists for WashingtonExec’s 2023 Pinnacle Awards were announced Sept. 25, and we’ll be highlighting some of them until the event takes place live, in-person Nov. 16.
Next is Chris Holden, vice president of business development at J&J Worldwide Services and finalist in the Business Development Executive of the Year, Private Company (annual revenue greater than $250 million) category. Here, he shares key achievements and what has made him successful in his current role.
What key achievements did you have in 2023?
J&J is an industry leader in providing O&M services for the Defense Health Agency. For over 35 years, our company has provided a solution to DHA’s sustainment, restoration, and modernization needs at some of its largest military MTFs worldwide. My CEO, Steve Kelley, challenged me when I joined J&J in 2021 to take over the Business Development and Capture of dozens of O&M pursuits to win the re-competes and grow the business.
Under my leadership and business development capture lead, our operations and BD teams have continued to maintain critical systems and equipment at highly complex medical facilities in support of 24/7 operations. In 2023 alone we have won the following DHA awards:
- 01/31/2023 – Defense Health Agency Europe – Landstuhl, Germany
- 03/31/2023 – Armed Forces Research Institute of Medical Sciences –Thailand
- 06/30/2023 – Royal Air Force (RAF) – Lakenheath, England
- 07/17/2023 – Tripler Army Medical Center – Honolulu, HI
- 07/17/2023 – Desmond T. Doss Health Clinic – Schofield Barracks, HI
- 09/01/2023 – Ireland Army Health Clinic MEDDAC – Fort Knox, KY
- 09/15/2023 – Fox Army Health Center – Redstone Arsenal, AL
- 09/30/2023 – Blanchfield Army Community Hospital (BACH) – Fort Campbell, KY
My CEO also challenged me with pursuing and winning new business in nontraditional three and four lettered government agencies considering we were so closely aligned with the DHA and the DOD. Under my direction and great internal work from our proposal team, we secured a spot on the Department of Health and Human Services multiple-award contract to support the Administration for Children and Families Office of Refugee Resettlement on March 3.
In many of these areas, we did not have proven past performance, such as in direct care or medical staffing.
But to mitigate, we recruited specialized subcontractors/teammates with proven past performance in taking care of refugees at are border states. This indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contract has a ceiling value of $75 billion for 10 years with a base period of five years and one 5-year option.
Only seven of the overall 17 awardees were awarded all three Task Areas: Facilities maintenance, Wrap Around Services and Direct Care; and we were one of these awardees.
What has made you successful in your current role?
I served in the U.S. Army in the Infantry for over 25 years before joining the Business Development realm. There are many similarities between succeeding in the Army and serving with J&J and the world of Business Development & Capture. These include:
A Competitive Nature Combined With Teamwork: I enjoy competition, in sports, in the Army, and in business development. I also know that you can’t win without a great team. Setting goals and objectives and ensuring the entire BD team buys into them is paramount to success. In 2023, we are on path of attaining both our New Business and our Re-compete goals.
Effective & Inspirational Leadership: I am surrounded by positive role models within J&J’s senior leadership who are not only driven by success, but have the highest values, integrity, and loyalty. Our Motto is “We Serve Heroes,” and our senior leadership, our BD team and all the J&J employees embody this creed in all our missions.
Blended Strategies for Winning: Through the years of executing Army and business development missions, I have learned that there is both an “art” and “science” that one must capture to win the work. The “science” within BD is ensuring a compliant proposal and only bidding the government’s proposal requirements, whether it is the workload, answering all the technical demands, and illustrating the management approach. This must be balanced with the “art.” The art is the intangibles: The passion within the team, the ability and desire to work long hours, to head off on business trips, to motivate technical writers at midnight to meet suspenses, and offering encouragement through accolades, positive salaries and bonuses.