Sumeet Shrivastava

President & CEO, Unissant

2024 marked a new chapter for long-time GovCon leader Sumeet Shrivastava as he took the helm as president and CEO of Unissant.

“I was honored and humbled when Unissant founder and long-time friend Manish Malhotra asked me to move from my previous role as an advisory board member and join him full-time as we take the next steps in Unissant’s evolution,” Shrivastava said.

Under Shrivastava’s leadership, Unissant is forging ahead with a bold strategy for growth focusing on what he calls Unissant NextGen. He has assembled an experienced leadership team, including Chief Financial Officer Bob Deegan and Chief Growth Officer Hitesh Vashistha to prepare the firm for its next phase of growth.

“The culture of Unissant — delivering mission results and operating with honesty, integrity and dependability — remains strong,” he said. “Our leadership team is quickly positioning Unissant for growth, collaborating with clients and partners to keep our nation healthy and safe.”

Shrivastava balances his role with a strong commitment to community, focusing on education, workforce development and the GovCon sector. He chairs the George Mason University Foundation board of trustees and helped launch the Baroni Center for Government Contracting and the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at George Mason. He also leads long-term STEM workforce initiatives as chair of the Northern Virginia Science Center Foundation and vice chair of GO Virginia’s Northern Virginia Council.

Why Watch

Looking ahead to 2025, Shrivastava and his leadership team will continue to drive measurable value for federal missions.

“Sumeet is here to help Unissant evolve — not just from a small business to mid-tier but also in terms of how we approach the federal market,” Malhotra said. “In 2024, we made the decision to focus on two mission areas: national security and health. Sumeet shares our belief that by deeply understanding our clients’ goals, we can better align our efforts, anticipate their needs and deliver solutions that make a difference.”

Shrivastava foresees continued investments in innovation and technology partnerships. Federal clients are seeking stability and continuity, but at the same time, recognize the need to innovate and take risks to meet evolving mission challenges. Leveraging the Unissant Innovation Center to incubate ideas and create accelerators that improve time to value will be a major focus in 2025.

“A key word in 2025 for me is ‘growth,'” Shrivastava said. “Of course, we continue to grow organically as we deliver measurable results for our clients. The small and mid-tier GovTech world has seen significant shifts through M&A activity over the past few years. Unissant intends to extend our capabilities through strategic mergers that make sense for our business and the missions we serve. 2025 will be an exciting year for sure.”

Fun fact: Shrivastava enjoys international travel and recently took his son to Korea for a study abroad program. His wife Joya and two of their four children are George Mason alumni.