The finalists for WashingtonExec’s 2024 Pinnacle Awards have been announced — and it’s an impressive group of mission-focused industry executives and government officials who work every day to put the technological needs of the nation first.
In its seventh year, the Pinnacle Awards will take place live, in-person Nov. 21 at The Hilton in McLean, Virginia. The program embodies the WashingtonExec spirit of highlighting successful executives and businesses saving money and fostering innovation for federal clients across the region.
Below is the full list of categories and finalists. The winners will be announced and recognized during the Nov. 21 awards luncheon.
Artificial Intelligence Executive of the Year, Public Company
- Denise Zheng, Accenture Federal Services
- Jay Meil, SAIC
- Kyle Tuberson, ICF
- Marshall Thames, ECS
- Ron Keesing, Leidos
- Sujey Edward, IBM Federal
Artificial Intelligence Executive of the Year, Private Company
- Alex Adamczyk, LMI
- Amy Jones, EY
- Matthew McKnight, Seerist
- Michael Pansky, IntelliBridge
- Reha Malik, Alpha Omega
- Sean Harrison, Acentra Health
Business Development Executive of the Year, Public Company
- Alex Lopez, ECS
- Brent Cunningham, Red Hat
- Brian Fogg, GDIT
- David Weber, CACI
- Jason Albanese, Leidos
- Joao Granja, Thomson Reuters Special Services
- Pam Carpenter, Adobe
Business Development Executive of the Year, Private Company
- Emily Roston, BryceTech
- Fiona Barshow, Koniag Government Services
- Jenna Young, Arlo Solutions
- John Hart, Agile Defense
- Ronald “Fog” Hahn, Astrion
- Tom Branstetter, DroneShield
Cloud Executive of the Year, Public Company
- Allison Levine, Accenture Federal Services
- Jess Borrevik, ICF
- Joe Sangiuliano, Palo Alto Networks
- Lakshmi Ashok, Leidos
- Ravi Raghava, SAIC
- Sandeep Shilawat, IBM Federal
Cloud Executive of the Year, Private Company
- Chuck Greene, World Wide Technology
- Nitin Vartak, Alpha Omega
- Wesley Daniels, Clarity Innovations
Cloud Executive of the Year, Government
- Ashley Mahan, GSA
- Dave Larrimore, Department of Homeland Security
- Justin Fanelli, Department of Navy
- Paula Wagner, Department of State
Contracts Executive of the Year, Public Company
- John Roman, ECS
- Kevin Wheelock, Serco Inc.
- Rich Fisne, HII Mission Technologies
Contracts Executive of the Year, Private Company
- Meredith Bussey, BlueHalo
- Ruta Haile, ABSG Consulting
- Ryan Litrakis, B&A
Contracts Executive of the Year, Government
- John M. Tenaglia, Department of Defense
- Niki Lane, CISA
- Paul Courtney, Department of Homeland Security
- Steven R. Brand, Department of Energy
Cybersecurity Executive of the Year, Public Company
- Eric Trexler, Palo Alto Networks
- Ron Moore, GDMS
- Steve Hoffman, Fortinet Federal
- Sumedh Thakar, Qualys
Cybersecurity Executive of the Year, Private Company
- Dave Trader, Presidio Federal
- Greg Rudy, Ultra Intelligence & Communications
- John DeSimone, Nightwing
- Razwan Raja, Agile Defense
- Steven O’Dell, Jr., ASRC Federal
- Vinit Duggal, Intelsat
Government Cybersecurity Executive of the Year
- Amber Pearson, Department of Veterans Affairs
- Donna Bennett, Department of State
- Parimala Rao, GSA
- Shila Cooch, Department of Energy
DHS Executive of the Year, Public Company
- Joanna Dempsey, ECS
- Mike Diggins, Leidos
- Thomas “T.J.” O’Neill, Thomson Reuters Special Services
DHS Executive of the Year, Private Company
- Alexandra Gurney, EY
- Jeffrey Kramer, Karsun Solutions
- Jessica Maloney, Sev1Tech
- Madhu Beriwal, IEM International
- Navi Samra, MetroStar
- Rik Ebbesen, Amivero
Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Executive of the Year, Private & Public Companies
- Jana Smyth, ICF
- Lynetta Cheatham, Acentra Health
- Stephanie Turner, MITRE
- Winter Washington, Gainwell Technologies
Executive Assistant of the Year, Private & Public Companies
- Alana Perkins, Two Six Technologies
- Jaimie Francois, BryceTech
- Jenifer Montiel, Booz Allen Hamilton
- Lisa DeRaymond, Koniag Government Services
- Tonie Powell, Magellan Federal
DoD Executive of the Year, Public Company
- Barbara Supplee, SAIC
- Charles Buechel III, Leidos
- Horace Blackman, CGI Federal
- James Kennedy, Boeing
- Todd Gentry, HII Mission Technologies
DoD Executive of the Year, Private Company
- Bryon Kroger, Rise8
- Dr. Karl Spinnenweber, Amentum
- Jimmy Jenkins, BlueHalo
- Jon Baba, LMI
- Ryan Abbott, MetroStar
DoD Executive of the Year, Government
- Bill Tinston, FEHRM
- Cody Ferguson, CDAO
- Leonel Garciga, Department of Army
- Nicholas Martin, DMEA
Healthcare Executive of the Year, Public Company
- Dina Elshazly, Booz Allen Hamilton
- Kevin Kaiser, Leidos
- Kimberly Nettles, Johnson & Johnson
- Steven Sousa, CGI Federal
Healthcare Executive of the Year, Private Company
- Chris Katkocin, Tria Federal
- Chrissy Cocrane, LMI
- Mark Poe, Core4ce
- Rachel Murphy, Iron Bow Technologies
- Stephen Deitz, ManTech
Healthcare Executive of the Year, Government
- Dr. Anne Bailey, VHA
- Dr. Gary L. Disbrow, BARDA
- Michael (Mike) Azar, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
- Robert Orifici, Department of Veterans Affairs
HR Executive of the Year, Public Companies
- Kristin Paul, Maximus
- Melanie Anderson, HII Mission Technologies
- Soo Lagasse, Parsons Corp.
HR Executive of the Year, Private Company
- Alison Paris, Peraton
- Amy Orzechowski, RealmOne
- Danielle Cole, Agile Defense
- Rebecca McMinn, B&A
- Tanja Guerra, Alpha Omega
- Tracy Currry, Fearless
Intelligence Executive of the Year, Private Company
- KC Wilberg, Acuity
- Michael Sellers, Spectro Cloud
- Nick Andersen, Invictus International Consulting
Marketing Executive of the Year, Public Company
- Caitlin Lambert, RingCentral
- Ethan Meurlin, IBM Federal
- Jaime Orlando, HII Mission Technologies
- Melanie Holmes, Adobe
- Oliver Nutt, GDIT
- Shab Nassirpour, ECS
Marketing Executive of the Year, Private Company
- Alex Bender, Core4ce
- Amanda Rudolph, Ultra Intelligence & Communications
- Brian Wagner, Tria Federal
- Christina Vanecek, Gainwell Technologies
- Julia Martin, EY
- Paul Frommelt, BlueHalo
Space Executive of the Year, Public Company
- Alex Gross, Parsons Corp.
- Chris Bogdan, Booz Allen Hamilton
- Travis Dawson, GDIT
Space Executive of the Year, Private Company
- Alberto Reynoso, Two Six Technologies
- Mary Clum, BlueHalo
- Shiloh Dockstader, Riverside Research
Space Executive of the Year, Government
- Jay Drye, SCO
- Maj. Gen. Gregory J. Gagnon, U.S. Space Force
- Robyn Gatens, NASA
- Timothy Grayson, Department of Air Force
Government Healthcare Project of the Year
- Data Workbench, Department of Health and Human Services
- ECFax Program, Department of Veterans Affairs
- Federal EHR, FEHRM, DOD, VA, and Lovell FHCC
- MACPRO, CMMS
- Smart Search, Department of Veterans Affairs
Government Information Technology of the Year
- Charge Card Management, GSA
- COSMOS, Naval Information Warfare Center Pacific
- DMAF, IRS
- ODOS III, USCIS
- TSA Secure Flight Zero Trust, TSA