DC Power Moves: Chris Monroe is leaving College Park’s IonQ

After eight years, IonQ cofounder Chris Monroe is leaving the College Park, Maryland quantum company.

Monroe cofounded the company in 2015 and served as its chief science officer. He’ll be returning to academic, research and policy work as a Gilhuly Family distinguished presidential professor of physics and electrical computer engineering at Duke University. There, he’ll continue to lead work in the quantum space.

IonQ declined an interview with Monroe, but offered the following statement to Technical.ly:

“Chris is a huge supporter of IonQ and believes we have brought forward first-in-class quantum technologies, culminating in a clear roadmap that is poised to drive commercial advantage. Dr. Monroe intends to return to his academic, research and policy pursuits where he will continue to lead research in quantum computing technology, educate the quantum workforce, and advise quantum institutes across the world.”

Viveca Pavon-Harr is Accenture Federal’s new chief data scientist

Effective immediately, Viveca Pavon-Harr has become the chief data scientist for Accenture Federal Services, the govtech arm of Accenture.

Pavon-Harr comes to the role after serving as the company’s applied intelligence discovery lab lead. She will continue in that role, overseeing a team of 75, while also advising federal sector clients on data trends, new research and tech solutions.

“Data Science is complex, but my superpower is making it easy to understand and relatable to everyday use cases,” said Pavon-Harr in a statement announcing the news. “As Accenture Federal Services’ chief data scientist, I’m excited to help federal agencies become truly AI-ready. I look forward to helping our clients better understand how data delivers powerful workflow process efficiencies and drives quantifiable business value.”

Who’s got moxie in DC?

The Moxie Awards announced the 18 winners of its annual event, selected from 145 finalists. According to organizers, the award celebrates companies with bold initiatives and market moves that are making a difference in DC.

“This year’s winners have demonstrated major moxie,” Moxie Chair Katie Jordan said in a statement. “After careful review and evaluation by a panel of third-party judges, this year’s 18 winners stood out among their competition for demonstrating exemplary innovation, growth and resilience, industry leadership, community service and local achievements.”

Here are the 18 winners:

• Association: CADCA
• Business Services: Planet Direct Mail
• Construction and Real Estate: Fort Myer Construction Corporation
• Consumer Services: Beanstalk
• Cybersecurity: DigiFlight
• Financial Services: Montgomery County Green Bank
• GovCon (Under 50 Employees): Bravium Consulting
• GovCon (50-99 Employees): QBE
• GovCon (100-199): Royce Geo
• GovCon (200-299): Dark Wolf Solutions
• GovCon (300+ Employees): NuAxis Innovations
• Healthcare: Capitol Breathe Free Sinus and Allergy Centers
• Nonprofit: The National Center for Children and Families
• Nonprofit (Under 20 Employees): 2Gether-International
• Professional Services: Gridiron IT Solutions
• Technology: Strider Technologies
• Technology (Under 50 Employees): SC Solutions
• Women-Owned: Integrity Management Services

Here’s who else is making power moves this month:

• John Avalos, who joined Arcfield as chief growth officer last March, will now be the company’s first COO.
• Suzette Kent, the former federal CIO for the US, will be an advisor for the stackArmor AI Risk Management Center of Excellence.
• Herndon, Virginia’s HawkEye 360, a defense tech company, appointed Craig Searle as VP of strategic finance. He comes to the role after four years on HawkEye’s board.
• ThreatQuotient launched the ThreatQ Community, a cybersecurity community that a press release described as “focused on intelligence sharing for the greater good.” So far, 100 individuals from 86 companies make up the community.
• Reston, Virginia’s SOSi named Derrick Lee, a former US Army colonel, as its director for intelligence programs. SOSi delivers digital infrastructure, software, intelligence, logistics and human services for public and private companies.
• Audrey Taylor is the new chief academy officer for The Executive Leadership Council. The DC-based council supports the development of Black executives.
• Indira Rice Donegan was named chief technology evangelist for New Hampshire’s Red River. From DC, Donegan will be working with Red River’s Department of Defense and federal customers.
• Following a stint as interim chairman, McLean, Virginia’s MITRE elected Rodney Slater, a former US Secretary of Transportation, as chairman. Susan Gordan, a former national intelligence principal deputy director, was named to the role of vice chair. In addition, the government tech giant named Charles Clancy as CTO on top of his duties as senior VP and general manager. Fellow senior VP and chief medical officer Jay Schnitzer is also the new corporate chief engineer.
• Bluestone Investment Partners, a McLean-based defense tech private equity firm, named Kevin Phillips as executive partner.
• Reston’s Revature appointed Vicente Pava as its chief revenue officer. Pava comes to the company from a role as EVP at Luxoft.
• Alexandria, Virginia-based National Association of Professional Employer Organizations announced that Casey Clark would be the new president and CEO, starting in December.
• McLean’s GTT Communications, a managed network and security services firm, appointed Ed Morche as its new CEO and board director.
• Ozzie Gromada Meza is the new president and CEO of the Latino Corporate Directors Association, which develops, supports and boosts the number of Hispanic and Latinx people on corporate boards.