Vienna, Va.-based Attain LLC, a management, strategy and technology consulting firm, announced Oct. 24 that former U.S. Dept. of Commerce Chief Information Officer (CIO) Dr. Simon Szykman has been appointed as Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of the company’s Federal Services division.
In his new role, Szykman will oversee Attain’s federal solutions and will be responsible for leading the firm’s strategic corporate alliances and associated go-to market strategies.
“I am very excited to have joined Attain, having been highly impressed by not only their technical competencies, but more importantly, the commitment of its leadership to serving clients, mentoring and developing talent, and building a company that will endure for the long term,” Szykman said. “I’m looking forward to providing strategic technology leadership to the company and helping to bring Attain’s capabilities to bear on the government’s most pressing challenges.”
“As Federal Services CTO, Simon will play an integral role in Attain’s mission to deliver market leading results to our clients through the best transformational services and solutions that overcome the challenges of complex government missions,” Attain Federal Services President Manish Agarwal said. “We are proud to welcome him to the Attain team,” said Agarwal.
“Simon exemplifies the market mover leadership that Attain has, and will continue to tap as we grow,” Attain Chairman and CEO Greg Baroni said. “With an unparalleled team of domain and technical experts who understand our clients, we can help take their missions to the next level of success.”
Szykman was named CIO of Commerce in May 2010, where he spent four years providing leadership, establishing policy and maintaining oversight for information technology investments across the Department’s dozen bureaus. He came up the ranks at Commerce through the Department’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), where he had served as CIO prior to moving into his department-level role. He stepped down from his post as Commerce CIO in June.
Szykman previously served as the Director of the National Coordination Office for Networking and Information Technology Research and Development (NITRD); Senior Policy Analyst for the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP); and the first Director of Cyber Security R&D at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
Szykman earned his Ph.D. and master of science degrees from Carnegie Mellon University. He also holds a Master of Engineering from George Washington University and earned a Bachelor of Science from the University of Rochester.