The finalists for WashingtonExec’s Chief Officer Awards were announced March 17, and we’ll be highlighting some of them until the event takes place live, in-person May 10.
Next is CEO finalist in the Private Company: Annual Revenue >$100M & <$500M category Larry Katzman of Applied Information Sciences. Here, he talks tripling the company in size while maintaining its values, taking professional risks, his passion for “solutioneering” and more.
What are you most proud of having been a part of in your current organization?
I take great pride in having played a role in our growth plan while maintaining our commitment to provide a fantastic employee, client and partner experience with AIS. We set out with an ambitious vision to grow for the benefit of our employees, clients and partners. We’ve now tripled in size without sacrificing how we care for and treat our people.
As an employee-owned company, we’ve built a great workplace, building wealth for all our employees and delivering value for our clients and business partners.
What was a turning point or inflection point in your career?
As a billable software developer on AIS teams, getting lost in the technology was easy. I got to work with great software engineers that taught me more than I thought I’d ever learn about designing and building apps. But my true passion was “solutioneering,” not engineering.
I learned to use my software development skills to bring my ideas for our clients to life. I learned that solutioning ideas with our customers led to growth for our company and meaningful results for our clients. Before I realized I was selling, I learned to be a consultative seller.
What’s the biggest professional risk you’ve ever taken?
In 2016, AIS started a search for our first vice president of business development that would create a growth culture. We always prided ourselves on our technical excellence, and it was time to inject a disciplined approach to growing our company.
The executive team, which I was not a member of, searched for an external candidate they thought could bring the required knowledge to AIS. Equally important, they wanted to find someone who could slipstream into our technical talent community to inspire and lead a skeptical team of engineers.
They proposed that they promote me to the role, despite not coming from a traditional BD background. Knowing this role would require an all-in commitment where my success or failure was visible to all, I accepted the risk that this could be my last role at AIS if I failed. Together, as a team and a company, we had great success.
Looking back at your career, what are you most proud of?
Watching people grow their capabilities, confidence and careers at AIS has been incredible. Knowing that we created and sustained a company providing people the same opportunity I was offered keeps me going on the most challenging days. I see the growth in so many of our people, even when they don’t always recognize it happening.
Watching the ideas our teams have brought to our clients that have translated into successful and mission-impacting programs fills me with great pride.
Someone along my journey told me that watching others you’ve impacted succeed is the most thrilling aspect of being a leader in an organization. I’ve found those to be true words of wisdom that can only come from the experience of living it.