Derrick Pledger
Chief Digital and Information Officer, Maximus
Derrick Pledger stepped into a new role at Maximus in 2024, and the results from his first year with the company have been remarkable.
In January, Maximus tapped Pledger to become the company’s first chief digital and information officer to drive growth through innovative modernization solutions and enterprise IT strategies that deliver seamless customer experience and service delivery.
Those goals came together in the spring when Maximus launched the Total Experience Management solution for federal agencies. Maximus TXM is designed with cloud-based modular, flexible and scalable technology to create a digital contact center for agencies that interact with the public and deliver services on a daily basis.
“TXM is helping the federal government reimagine and redefine how they offer services and improve the end-user experience,” Pledger said. “We’re already seeing the impact of TXM through new contract wins and expanded partnerships with agencies, and we’re anticipating that to accelerate in 2025.”
One example of TXM’s impact is with a new customer, the U.S. Postal Service. The Office of Personnel Management named Maximus as the Contact Center Services Provider for the new Postal Service Health Benefits Program which provides health insurance to eligible Postal Service employees, annuitants and their eligible family members starting in 2025. Maximus is creating an enhanced customer service platform dedicated to assisting eligible individuals in accessing multiple health insurance benefits.
Why Watch
Pledger’s impact on Maximus goes beyond technology, and into the development of the company’s workforce and leadership.
After joining Maximus, Pledger created a new chief technology officer role and recruited Mike Raker, a respected executive with deep experience across federal agencies, to continue pushing what’s possible with emerging technologies.
“There’s enormous potential for federal agencies through transformative technologies, like artificial intelligence and machine learning, and Maximus is a great position to implement these technologies to bolster the performance of federal agencies and improve the customer experience,” Pledger said. “Looking ahead to 2025 and beyond, we are excited because we know there’s much more we can do to help our customers meet their missions, improve communication, collaboration, security, decision-making, service delivery, efficiency and effectiveness.”
To that end, another company initiative Pledger started is the AI/ML Accelerator organization, which puts an emphasis on implementation and AI adoption across health, civilian and defense agencies. Maximus is currently working with a defense agency and several civilian agencies on setting up frameworks to deploy “Secure AI with a Purpose” as opposed to leveraging AI capabilities just for AI sake.