A Virginia IT services firm scores its third acquisition of the year

Despite a major presidential election and contested congressional races may have been the biggest stories in and around the nation’s capital last month, but that didn’t stop the region’s private sector from making major leadership hires and acquisitions. 

This past month saw company rebrands, board appointments, mergers and new members of C-suites —  mainly across government contractors in the region. 

Keep reading to get the details on those and more Power Moves in the DC metro region. But first, check out our monthly look at which companies are hiring for tech jobs in the area.

Tyto Athene lands third acquisition of 2024

It’s been a busy year for the Herndon-based IT services company.

Tyto Athene announced in November that it acquired the bid and proposal consulting firm Key Solutions (KSI) out of Chantilly. This follows its acquisitions of aerospace tech company Microtel in April and cybersecurity firm MindPoint Group in June. 

Tyto mainly works in the defense intelligence sector, providing cybersecurity, advanced telecommunications work and secure networking services to customers including the Department of Defense and the FBI.

The goal of this absorption is to build out the company's contracting and proposal skills for the federal government, per a press release.  

"This acquisition represents a strategic step forward in our mission to be the premier provider of secure technical solutions, ensuring information dominance for our public sector customers," said Dennis Kelly, the CEO of Tyto. "By integrating KSI's industry-leading expertise into our bid and proposal center, we are poised to accelerate growth and strengthen our position as a leader in the market."

J.P. Morgan alum joins industrial and life science VC firm

Joey Clark joined Anzu Partners as a principal and senior vice president of capital solutions in October. He will be based out of the firm’s DC office.

Most recently, Clark was a market executive for the innovation economy team at J.P. Morgan, where he focused on scaling early-stage startups in the Mid-Atlantic, Midwest and Atlanta regions. 

The VC firm typically supports companies in clean tech, life sciences and industrial sectors, and hones in on commercializing technological innovations. Over the summer, it announced a partnership with a DC lobbying firm to create a $100 million fund for companies developing national defense and security technology.

“Anzu Partners is committed to making a positive impact across energy, sustainability, human health, and national security — all areas that are personal commitments for me and essential to our future,” Clark wrote in a press release. “I am thrilled to be a part of this stellar team and help our portfolio companies to expand their global networks and continue to establish Anzu as a pillar in the venture capital ecosystem.”

Former ByteDance and TikTok exec to advise Tysons startup 

Roland Cloutier will join the startup RegScale as a strategic advisor. The startup houses an AI-powered platform that aims to help businesses streamline regulatory compliance processes. 

Cloutier most recently served as the global chief security officer of ByteDance and TikTok. He left that position in 2022 but moved into an advisory role at that time. 

In this role at RegScale, one of Technical.ly’s 2023 DC RealLIST Startups, Cloutier will help the company with go-to-market planning and staying attuned to customer needs with compliance and security, per a press release.  

“RegScale’s ability to automatically gather data, collect evidence, and validate controls into a single operating platform and scale to Fortune 500 requirements sets it apart and is exactly  where organizations need to focus their innovation and automation capabilities,” Cloutier said in an announcement. “Plainly put, the company is delivering the most innovative controls assurance and compliance solutions to the industry to date.”

Accessible tech company taps new leadership 

Arlington’s Level Access hired Mark Zablan as CEO and Rachel Roberts as the new CRO. 

Zablan is replacing founder and former CEO Tim Springer, who will serve on the company’s board of directors. Prior to joining Level Access, Zablan was CEO of the social media management platform Emplifi, which grew to a valuation of more than $1 billion during his tenure. 

“The digital accessibility landscape is changing daily, and Level Access is uniquely poised to meet the evolving needs of organizations and the people they serve,” Zablan said in a press release. “As we move forward, my focus will be on harnessing the company’s existing strengths, accelerating our growth, and continuing to innovate so we can empower more organizations to make great digital experiences accessible to everyone.”

Roberts joins the company from the San Francisco application and IT firm AppDynamics, where she also served as CRO. She’s additionally the executive sponsor of Cisco’s ElevateHER program, where she mentors women in the tech industry from early career to leadership. 

“Having witnessed friends and family navigate digital accessibility challenges, I am committed to expanding awareness of the vital need for accessible digital experiences,” Roberts wrote in a press release. “By collaborating with organizations and offering the most innovative solutions, we can create a more inclusive digital world.”

More leadership moves 

• Two new tech and innovation facilities focused on defense technologies opened thanks to Booz Allen Hamilton. One of them is in Lorton, according to the Washington Business Journal. 
• An independent subsidiary of Hexagon, Hexagon US Federal, hired a new president and CEO. Chris Reichert will lead the contractor as it continues bringing digital reality tech to the federal government, with particular focus on the defense, intelligence and civilian agencies. He has 20 years of experience working with the Department of Defense and intelligence entities. 
• Integral Federal, a national security-focused IT company in McLean, acquired Pragmatics, another IT firm based in Reston. 
• Policy consulting firm C&M International is rebranding as Crowell Global Advisors. 
• The national security-focused company Core4ce acquired the government contractor Azimuth Corp. in October. It's the sixth acquisition in five years by Core4ce, as reported by the Washington Business Journal. 
• The IT consulting firm iTech AG landed a four-year task order from the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Office of the Chief Information Officer to help with IT modernization. The company, with offices in Arlington, has worked with the SBA since 2021. 
• Nina Rees joined Building Hope, a DC-headquartered charter school facilities nonprofit, as a member of the board of directors. She’s the founder and CEO of Nina Rees Consulting, where she connects entrepreneurs in education with the government and philanthropic entities. Rees served as the first deputy undersecretary for innovation and improvement at the federal Department of Education during the second Bush administration, as well as a senior education analyst at the conservative Heritage Foundation. 
• Exostar, an aerospace and defense-focused software company in Herndon, announced that it reached one million active users of its collaboration platform.  
• Cybersecurity firm Everfox acquired the case management software company Yakabod after purchasing hardware company Garrison Technology over the summer. 
• Arlington’s Tria Federal, a federal IT contractor, acquired the software company Softrams to build out its technical services. 
• Palo Alto Networks hired Julie Klein to serve as the senior director of public policy and government affairs at the cybersecurity firm’s offices in Reston.