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AECOM Moves Global Headquarters to Los Angeles; Troy Rudd Quoted
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AECOM Moves Global Headquarters to Los Angeles; Troy Rudd Quoted

AECOM will relocate its global headquarters from the Century City business district in Los Angeles to downtown Los Angeles, effective January 1, 2021. The company will close its offices at 1999 Avenue of the Stars and consolidate its headquarters and Corporate employees into existing AECOM offices at 300 South Grand Avenue.

“As we continue our transformation to a higher-margin, lower-risk Professional Services firm, we are focused on ensuring our teams have the best opportunity to collaborate and deliver for our clients,” said Troy Rudd, AECOM’s chief executive officer. 

As part of AECOM’s transformation, the company also sold its Power construction business to affiliates of CriticalPoint Capital. AECOM has worked to align the company around a global structure to advance collaboration and foster new growth opportunities. 

In addition, AECOM has integrated its Design and Consulting Services (DCS) businesses into one global organization as part of the company’s phased strategy. The new unit will be led by Lara Poloni, AECOM’s president, the company reported in Oct. 2020. The merger will simplify the operating structure of the company and will enable greater connectivity and collaboration across the enterprise.

The recent announcement follows AECOM’s sale of it’s management services business for $2.4 billion, which the Affiliates of private equity firms Lindsay Goldberg and American Securities have completed in Feb. 2020. 

The completed sale has accelerated AECOM’s value creation strategy and advances its ongoing transformation and focus on its higher-returning and lower-risk Professional Services business.

“We are continuing to prioritize our time and capital towards delivering on our commitment to our stakeholders, and optimizing our real estate portfolio is a key driver of achieving these objectives,” Rudd added. 

About AECOM

AECOM (NYSE:ACM) is the world’s premier infrastructure consulting firm, delivering professional services throughout the project lifecycle – from planning, design and engineering to program and construction management. 

We partner with our clients in the public and private sectors to solve their most complex challenges and build legacies for generations to come. On projects spanning transportation, buildings, water, governments, energy and the environment, our teams are driven by a common purpose to deliver a better world. AECOM is a Fortune 500 firm and its Professional Services business had revenue of approximately $13.6 billion in fiscal year 2019.

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Accenture Partners with Blue Yonder to Transform Supply Chain Operations; Kris Timmermans, Mark Morgan Quoted
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Accenture Partners with Blue Yonder to Transform Supply Chain Operations; Kris Timmermans, Mark Morgan Quoted

Accenture has partnered with Blue Yonder to deliver intelligent, customer-centric supply chain transformations that leverage a cloud-first approach, Accenture reported on Tuesday. The partnership will accelerate digital transformation by using the cloud. 

“Expanding our alliance with Blue Yonder will provide our joint clients the necessary tools and visibility to actively respond to disruptions in their supply chains, while also reinforcing the cloud-first approach as a key tenet of digital supply chain transformation,” said Kris Timmermans, senior managing director and Accenture’s global Supply Chain & Operations lead. 

Under the partnership with Blue Yonder, Accenture will expand and scale its Supply Chain  and Operations practice with new capabilities and skills to meet that demand. 

Accenture and Blue Yonder will continue to offer advanced supply chain expertise and solutions across the value chain from planning to logistics; providing end-to-end visibility, while also fast-tracking existing client journeys to a more cost-effective and agile cloud architecture. 

The companies will also jointly develop innovative fit-for-purpose supply chain offerings that leverage Blue Yonder’s cloud-based Luminate platform, which runs on Microsoft Azure Cloud. 

Offering advanced artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) technologies, the partnership will develop new solutions that help joint clients achieve network-wide visibility and collaboration, automated execution, improved demand and supply planning, optimized inventory management and enhanced fulfillment.

Previously, the team has helped a variety of global clients address the supply chain challenges with cloud-based solutions. 

Accenture and Blue Yonder collaborated to help Essity set-up a central transport control tower during the COVID-19 pandemic to gain transparency and increase efficiency. With the support, Essity mitigated the impact on its business with better decision-making processes. Accenture and Blue Yonder transformed the supply chain to increase resilience and provide critical data and analytics.

“Together with Accenture, we will drive greater client value with proven methodologies that help companies achieve their visions for resilient supply chains by putting cloud at the center,” said said Mark Morgan, executive vice president of Worldwide Commercial Business, Blue Yonder.

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Iridium Reports Third Quarter 2020 Results; Matt Desch Quoted
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Iridium Reports Third Quarter 2020 Results; Matt Desch Quoted

Iridium has announced financial results for the third quarter of 2020, reporting that  net loss was $4.0 million, as compared to net loss of $18.0 million for the third quarter of 2019, which is attributable to the lower net interest expenses related to the refinancing of Iridium's credit facility and high-yield notes from the year ago period.  

"Iridium's business model has proven quite resilient given the importance of our services in the face of a global pandemic," said Matt Desch, CEO of Iridium and 2020 Wash100 Award recipient. "Iridium delivered a record 67,000 net subscriber additions during the quarter, which drove sequential growth in commercial services. Subscriber equipment sales also increased by 18% year-over-year, driven by increased demand in the third quarter."

Iridium noted the company’s growth was attributable to service revenue and lower selling, general and administrative expenses. Operational EBITDA for the third quarter was $93.4 million, as compared to $88.5 million for the prior-year period, increasing 6 percent. The OEBITDA margin was 62 percent. OEBITDA benefited from increased commercial revenue and reduced operating expenses.

Iridium reported third-quarter total revenue of $151.5 million, including $116.9 million of service revenue and $34.6 million of revenue related to equipment sales and engineering and support projects.  

The company’s total revenue increased by five percent versus the comparable period of 2019, while service revenue grew by one percent. Service revenue was 77 percent of total revenue for the third quarter of 2020.

Iridium ended the quarter with 1.429 million total billable subscribers, compared to 1.3 million for the year-ago period. Subscriber growth was driven by rising activations of personal communications devices. Total billable subscribers grew 13 percent year-over-year, driven by growth in commercial IoT customers.

"In light of continued momentum, Iridium is raising its full-year guidance for 2020. We now expect to generate approximately $355 million in operational EBITDA and finish the year with net leverage of approximately 4.0 times operational EBITDA. With nearly a full turn of deleveraging in 2020, we are well on our way to achieving our targeted leverage range and undertaking material returns of capital to shareholders," Desch added. 

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MCA Names Michael Smith as CIO; Lisa Firestone Quoted
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MCA Names Michael Smith as CIO; Lisa Firestone Quoted

Managed Care Advisors (MCA) has appointed Michael Smith as chief information officer (CIO) to support the organization’s growth strategy and business opportunities, following the recent award of  SaaS, Case Management and COVID-19 Management contracts. 

“After careful consideration, we chose Michael Smith because of his solutions-oriented and innovative approach to solving complex challenges. His unique ability to simplify complex issues into actionable solutions is exactly what we need to support our continued growth,” said Lisa Firestone, MCA president and CEO.

In his new role, Smith will supervise MCA’s Technical Solutions and will serve on the Senior Leadership Team and Executive Quality Steering Committee (EQSC). Smith’s skill set includes Cloud, IT Transformation, Information Assurance, Vulnerability Management, Security Operations Management, Agile and Enterprise Architecture.

Smith has joined MCA with more than two decades of experience in supporting information security requirements for both the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of Commerce. Smith has a demonstrated history focused on providing premier services to the federal, Department of Defense (DoD), civilian, health and commercial sectors in cyber disciplines. 

He is recognized as a Subject Matter Expert on government regulations and standards such as FISMA, HIPAA, and NIST. He directly oversees corporate governance, risk, and compliance functions, promoting effective Cyber and Information Security policies to address resilience, Insider Threat & Third-Party Risk Management.

Smith has previously worked for Accenture, where he served as a senior vice president of Risk & Compliance. He began his career with the U.S. Marine Corps, and since has held notable roles in security operations, business development, including chief security officer (CSO), chief information security officer (CISO) and other leadership positions with excellent communication skills. 

He is also a Certified Information Security Officer (CISO), Project Management Professional (PMP), Certified Professional in Healthcare Information and Management Systems, PECB: ISO/IEC 27001 Lead Implementer, Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) v3 & v4, Certified Enterprise Architect (CEA), and Certified Scrum Master.

“We specifically earmarked Michael Smith because he comes with not only two decades of experience, but he is very experienced in security, from infrastructure, software security, and personnel… We needed to have someone to lead that charge with the experience and depth that Michael brings. It’s so important to the people we serve as well as our business,” Firestone said during her Executive Spotlight Interview with ExecutiveBiz. 

During Lisa Firestone’s Executive Spotlight, she addressed new acquisitions, hires, and technologies that have expanded MCA’s presence in the federal sector.

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ECS Names Aaron Burciaga as Senior Director of AI, Analytics; George Wilson Quoted
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ECS Names Aaron Burciaga as Senior Director of AI, Analytics; George Wilson Quoted

ECS has appointed Aaron Burciaga as senior director of artificial intelligence (AI) and analytics, the company reported on Tuesday. 

“Aaron brings two decades worth of experience leading AI, ML, and analytics teams,” said ECS president and 2020 Wash100 Award recipient George Wilson. “His insights and expertise will be integral to ECS as we continue to define, develop, and maintain world-class analytics and AI capabilities.”

With ECS, Burciaga will collaborate with ECS’s national security and intelligence division to advance AI and machine learning (ML) solutions. He will also develop an Analytics Center of Excellence, similar to the company’s Cloud and Cyber Centers of Excellence.

Burciaga brings deep experience in startup and enterprise settings, with extensive knowledge in automation, data science, AI, and ML. Prior to joining ECS, Burciaga served with HCL Technologies as global operations director for analytics and artificial intelligence. 

Before his tenure with HCL Technologies, Burciaga served as vice president Data Science and AI with Booz Allen Hamilton. In the role, he led data science, AI and analytics functional community activities to support federal agencies and commercial Fortune 500 enterprises. 

With Accenture, Burciaga was the senior manager of Global Analytics and Applied Intelligence, where he directed analytics engagements with Fortune 100 companies and formed client partnerships, initiatives and opportunities promoting various global and North American revenue projects.

He is also a veteran of the Iraq War, where Burciaga served as an officer in the U.S. Marine Corps (USMC). He also served as the lead data technologist at USMC headquarters through 2019, where he assisted the service branch’s chief information officer (CIO).

“I’m excited to join a company committed to leveraging the latest AI and ML technology towards national security and prosperity,” said Burciaga. “In doing so, ECS continues to define the industry’s best practices. Our solutions transform how commercial and federal clients collect, analyze, and ultimately make better decisions using data.”

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Mark Esper: DoD Needs 5% Budget Increase to Stay Ahead of Adversaries
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Mark Esper: DoD Needs 5% Budget Increase to Stay Ahead of Adversaries

Mark Esper, the defense secretary and a 2020 Wash100 Award recipient, has said the Pentagon needs a 3 to 5 percent increase in budget to keep up with near-peer adversaries and boost military readiness.

Esper told attendees at a Heritage Foundation event that the Department of Defense (DoD) needs to be “better stewards of the taxpayer dollar” while the Congress must ensure a steady increase of annual defense funding, the Washington Business Journal reported Friday.

He noted that the DoD is looking to realign program funds and reform 2018 National Defense Strategy goals to ensure spending efficiency. “I talk about freeing up time, money and manpower to put into other priorities,” said Esper.

“What that does is, that allows the services to use dollars spent to maintain an unnecessarily high level of readiness and invest it into people, into modernization, into any other thing they want without jeopardizing their ability to meet the war plans.”

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Gen. James McConville: Army Building Software Factory to Advance AI, Machine Learning Capabilities
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Gen. James McConville: Army Building Software Factory to Advance AI, Machine Learning Capabilities

Army Chief of Staff Gen. James McConville told National Defense in an interview published Monday that the service has two initiatives going on to advance the development of artificial intelligence and machine learning and one of those is the establishment of its own software factory. 

“One of the things we've learned during Project Convergences is we need soldiers on the battlefield that can quickly code and update our systems because the speed of combat is so fast,” McConville told the magazine. “And when you start using artificial intelligence, machine learning and autonomous systems, you need that capability on the battlefield.”

To facilitate the procurement of software platforms, he said the Army has an “IT box, which allows us to do certain things in the information technology area to rapidly invest in information technology in a different way than we have to do with some of the other [acquisition] processes.”

McConville said the service expects research and development work on AI and ML capabilities to transition to programs of record by fiscal year 2023 and is looking at using those capabilities in predictive maintenance, targeting and autonomous systems, among other areas.

McConville also shared his thoughts on the Army’s use of other transaction authority agreements and provided updates on the Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle and hypersonic programs and on the joint all-domain command-and-control concept.

Gen. James McConville: Army Building Software Factory to Advance AI, Machine Learning Capabilities

During ArchIntel’s AI in Competitive Intelligence Virtual Event, you will hear from federal and industry experts who will address how to remain competitive in business and warfare. Featuring August Jackson, senior director of Market and Competitive Intelligence with Deltek, AchIntel’s first event will analyze the competitive landscape as technology continues to evolve.

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Space Force Eyes Commercial Satcom Partnerships, Official Personnel Name
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Space Force Eyes Commercial Satcom Partnerships, Official Personnel Name

The U.S. Space Force is planning to launch more low-Earth orbit satellite programs and unveil an official name for its personnel ahead of the service branch’s first anniversary in December 2020.

Lt. Gen. B. Chance Saltzman, the deputy chief of space operations, said at an Air Force Association event that the Space Force is looking to  “leverage more of the commercial sector” in satellite communications programs including securing the data transmitted through satcom networks, SpaceNews reported Friday. 

He added that Gen. John Raymond, the chief of space operations and a 2020 Wash100 Award winner, intends to announce his long-term plans for the Space Force soon.
 
“General Raymond is laying out a plan now for his remaining time as the chief of space operations,” said Saltzman. “The first birthday is going to be a big deal.”

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Rajive Mathur to Step Down as SSA CIO; SSA Administrator Andrew Saul Quoted
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Rajive Mathur to Step Down as SSA CIO; SSA Administrator Andrew Saul Quoted

Rajive Mathur, deputy commissioner and chief information officer at the Social Security Administration (SSA), will step down as CIO on Oct. 26th but will continue to work at SSA through the end of 2020 as a senior adviser within the commissioner’s office.

Mathur joined SSA in June 2017 from the IRS, where he served as director of online services. He led efforts to update SSA’s IT modernization plan early this year.

“His effective leadership to transition the agency to remote work in response to the pandemic is notable. More broadly, Rajive’s work on digital identity/services, cybersecurity, and modernization has set the foundation for a modern IT organization which is delivering better SSA services to the public,” SSA Commissioner Andrew Saul said in an email to staff obtained by the publication.

Saul said Sean Brune, assistant deputy commissioner and deputy CIO at SSA, will succeed Mathur as the agency’s deputy commissioner and CIO.

Since his move to SSA in 2004, Brune has been responsible for the agency's IT modernization initiatives with a focus on improving services to beneficiaries, including the deployment of the Disability Case Processing System using an Agile approach.

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CSET Report: DoD Must Have Clarity in Autonomy, AI Research Funding; Margarita Konaev Quoted
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CSET Report: DoD Must Have Clarity in Autonomy, AI Research Funding; Margarita Konaev Quoted

A new report from Georgetown University’s Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET) has found the Department of Defense (DoD) still faces gaps in AI research despite having “an ambitious vision for artificial intelligence”.
 
The two-part CSET analysis covers budgetary and strategic assessments of U.S. military investments in autonomy and AI based on data from the DoD’s fiscal year 2020 research, development, testing and evaluation budget. 

According to the report, the U.S. military's autonomy and AI research primarily focuses on unmanned vehicles and systems, decision support, information processing and targeting functions. 
 
The report also suggests that basic AI research investments are smaller than initial estimates and that the DoD should “provide greater clarity about overall funding levels for autonomy and AI”.

CSET recommends that the Pentagon leverage relationships with national laboratories and university-affiliated research centers, increase funding for human-machine teaming research and renew focus on building trust in AI systems. 

Margarita Konaev, the report's lead author, told FedScoop in a prior interview that proper calibration is a key element to AI research and development and should receive additional funding, the publication reported Friday.

“There really is a consensus within military circles that trust is important to the relationship,” she noted.

CSET Report: DoD Must Have Clarity in Autonomy, AI Research Funding; Margarita Konaev Quoted

On October 22nd, ArchIntel Events will host the ArchIntel – AI in Competitive Intelligence Forum as its first virtual event featuring August Jackson, senior director of Marketing and Competitive Intelligence for Deltek, as the keynote speaker.

Register here to attend ArchIntel’s first virtual event: AI in Competitive Intelligence Forum.

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