Government leaders need data to make mission-critical decisions. The data is there, but often agencies find it difficult if not impossible to put it to use.
“Their data is disconnected. Systems are disconnected,” said Jose Hidalgo. “There is a lack of interfaces between the systems, and few incentives for sharing.”
As president of FTI, Hidalgo is looking to help bridge that gap. Within the defense and intelligence sectors, he’s leading an effort to build the links needed to bring data to life in support of more effective operations.
While others are tackling the same issue, FTI looks to differentiate itself with solutions that don’t require a massive lift-and-shift, a vast overhaul of existing data storage and data management tools.
“We don’t sell our customers a new system to solve their problem,” Hildalgo said. “We go in and keep their environment as it is. We are a data integrator. Our technology allows us to plug-and-play, for the most part: To connect all those disparate systems and start extracting that value from the data with advanced data analytics; and we take the same approach to our other focus areas such as modeling and simulation, software test automation, and cyber.”
Because FTI is using existing data structures, it can make those advanced analytics happen fast.
“We don’t take years to do this,” Hidalgo said. “We can sometimes build solutions in as little as weeks or a month. As opposed to having somebody sell you a new system that costs $100-million-plus, we do this at a fraction of the cost and the customer can extract actionable insights and capture previously untapped value from their data right away.”
While others struggle to link disparate data sources in government, FTI has developed its own technology to solve this core problem.
“We have access to an extensive list of algorithms, Department of Defense interfaces, analytics and automation tools,” he said. “So we don’t have to start from scratch. You combine that with our expertise, and that effectively bridges the gap in our customers’ data ecosystems.”
In one case, FTI got a DOD agency real-time visibility into the performance and availability of key weapons systems.
“This enabled them to maximize readiness, reduce risk and accelerate their ability to fill new capabilities,” Hidalgo said. “We moved them from being reactive to being more proactive.”
When it comes to growing the firm, “we’re going to provide value to our customers through accelerated technology innovation, through our deep mission expertise, and focusing on our people,” Hidalgo said.
He’s looking first toward organic expansion, growing FTI’s presence in those defense agencies where it’s already established.
“We’re sole sourced, so we drive our organic growth through our phase-three contract vehicles,” he said, while at the same time, “we’re going to start competing a little bit more now.”
With an eye toward future growth, the company has been making key investments. In October, FTI announced the development of the ORBIT center, an Operational Research Bridge for Innovation and Technology.
Co-located with Space Force operations in Colorado Springs, Colorado, the almost-50,000-square-foot center secure digital ecosystem “will serve as a center of excellence for our customers to collaborate with their mission partners, with academics, with us,” Hidalgo said. “They will be leveraging our technology for everything from capability testing to strategic planning to risk mitigation to training and education.”
Even as he drives these external changes, Hidalgo is focused on building up his most valuable internal asset: his employees.
“We’re in the people business, so we make sure that we support our people through training, through career development,” he said. “We have a very caring culture of helping others, and it’s one of the main reasons why people want to stay with us.”
Hildalgo’s biggest challenge these days is ensuring the organization can keep pace with its own steady growth.
“How do you efficiently and effectively scale a technical organization, where there are clearance needs, in a very tight and competitive labor market?” he said.
One way is through FTI’s specialized technical-intern program.
“We start a relationship with very bright individuals, and we also start the clearing process,” at the same time, he said. “By the time they finish their studies, we already have a relationship, and they already have a clearance.”
The program started with 15 participants, and last year there were 40 interns. They don’t all come to work for FTI, but it’s a way of keeping the pipeline of cleared talent flowing, and it’s helping power the company’s expansion.
A 12-year veteran of the GovCon space, Hidalgo said he takes personal pride in FTI’s work.
“I was born in the Dominican Republic, but I grew up in the U.S. and I understand the challenges that our country and warfighters are facing,” he said. “I am very grateful to the people that protect us, and proud that we’re helping support that. You combine that with the people that I work with, all these super-smart individuals, as well as a company that encourages all its people to pitch in and make people’s lives better in the communities we serve, and that makes it very easy to get out of bed and come to work. That’s really what drives me.”