January 28, 2025 • 24 mins
Brian Flood is the Founder & Chief Executive Officer of DecisionPoint Corporation. An accomplished andrecognized leader, Brian offers a unique blend of business development, building organizational capability, global team building and delivering go-to-market IT solutions with consistent strong ROI and profit delivery. He has consistently driven double- and triple-digit growth by aligning technology initiatives with business goals.
A proven change catalyst, Brian turns operations around and implements systems for sustained profitability, growth and expansion. He has expert knowledge of government, technology and business trends including national/corporate security, enterprise architecture, outsourcing, application development and implementation and eBusiness. His accomplishments include managing merger and acquisition activities; leading business development and marketing divisions; long-range project planning, implementation and execution—including policy development, finance and administration.
Brian began his career with the US Army holding a variety of positions from combat arms to a nuclear launch officer and lastly public affairs. His experience post military began in political journalism, being amongst the youngest Congressional Chiefs of Staff working for two House Members. While at FedSources Brian served as Senior Vice President of Market Intelligence where his contributions centered on spearheading business development and delivery, helping hundreds of government IT and professional services firms grow their business while significantly expanding the company.
As a fiscally conscious, goal driven executive, Brian approaches every new business challenge with innovative, creative problem solving and measured risk taking to drive consistent bottom line improvements and returns. He positions organizations for growth, profit generation and to deliver innovative solutions. Brian blends his military and business experience to successfully sell and implement technology solutions in the public sector.
A proven change catalyst, Brian turns operations around and implements systems for sustained profitability, growth and expansion. He has expert knowledge of government, technology and business trends including national/corporate security, enterprise architecture, outsourcing, application development and implementation and eBusiness. His accomplishments include managing merger and acquisition activities; leading business development and marketing divisions; long-range project planning, implementation and execution—including policy development, finance and administration.
Brian began his career with the US Army holding a variety of positions from combat arms to a nuclear launch officer and lastly public affairs. His experience post military began in political journalism, being amongst the youngest Congressional Chiefs of Staff working for two House Members. While at FedSources Brian served as Senior Vice President of Market Intelligence where his contributions centered on spearheading business development and delivery, helping hundreds of government IT and professional services firms grow their business while significantly expanding the company.
As a fiscally conscious, goal driven executive, Brian approaches every new business challenge with innovative, creative problem solving and measured risk taking to drive consistent bottom line improvements and returns. He positions organizations for growth, profit generation and to deliver innovative solutions. Brian blends his military and business experience to successfully sell and implement technology solutions in the public sector.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
M and T Bank presents CEOs. You should know how
advite iHeart media.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
Let's be Brian Flood.
Speaker 3 (00:07):
He is the founder and CEO for Decision Point, based
out of Gaithersburg, Maryland, serving many military government agencies for
information tech modernization and digital transformation operations, cybersecurity, health, inform tech,
and intelligent automation. Before we talk more about Brand's company,
I first asked him to talk a little bit about
himself where he's from. In his origin story.
Speaker 4 (00:27):
I grew up in Inwood. That's northern Manhattan, Washington Heights.
It was an Irish and Jewish neighborhood at the very
top end of Manhattan, last up on the A train.
Speaker 1 (00:39):
I'm product of Catholic schools.
Speaker 4 (00:41):
I went to Loyal the High School of Jesuit High
School in the city, and then kind of initially went
to school in Canada to play football and came back
and spent a little time at Fordham University and then
Pace University and both New York schools, and finished up
there outstanding.
Speaker 2 (00:56):
What'd you do after school? Would you want to do?
Speaker 1 (01:00):
Well?
Speaker 4 (01:00):
To be candid with you, I was a little bit lost,
so I went in the army right and what I
found there was a different just a completely different life,
a life of it was all about the unit, It
was all about the mission. It was about each other.
There was a camaraderie and then a spree de corps
that I that I had experienced in some environments, but
(01:21):
nothing like that. And everything I learned about leadership, everything
I learned about cohesiveness, everything I learned about focusing on
the mission, I learned there. And I think I've tried
to practice that inconsistently, but practiced that through the course
of my life, no matter what.
Speaker 1 (01:35):
I was doing.
Speaker 2 (01:36):
How many years did you serve?
Speaker 1 (01:39):
Almost six six years understanding.
Speaker 2 (01:40):
Well, thank you for your service.
Speaker 3 (01:41):
I know you did specials up too, so you must
have saw some wild things after you were getting out
of the army. What was motivating you that you wanted
to do.
Speaker 4 (01:50):
I've initially became a journalist, and as I said, I
worked in Montgomery, Alabama, and both on the television side
and the print side, and then I moved here to
take a job on Capitol Hill, which was just you know,
it was it was a uh, you know, I just
a right time, right place. I met somebody who had
(02:10):
won an election and was coming up here and I
and I and I joined him and it was it
was it was one of the It had a profound
change on me to be that involved in both the
policy side and the politics side.
Speaker 2 (02:21):
You know.
Speaker 4 (02:21):
I also I think I learned about kind of the
core of what drives this town right really, you know,
which is really knowledge and power. And I think that
that Understanding the mechanisms of government, Understanding the mechanisms of budgeting,
how government invests, how government operates, has served me well
at decision point and then some other roles I had.
(02:43):
And I think that, but I also enjoyed the political
side as well. You know, I was on the House side,
so every two years I'd take a leave of absence
for two or three months and go run the campaign
fund be the primary fundraiser, and you know, make decisions
about about messaging and you know, differentiators in the campaign
and things like that. That was interesting and it was exciting.
(03:04):
It was a different time, certainly not as ugly as
it is now. But again it taught me a lot
about about being rigorous and being disciplined and honing a
communication methodology and a message that was going to resonate
with people.
Speaker 3 (03:22):
So before we talk about Decision Point, the company that
you mentioned, of course, founded back in twenty eleven, it's
been around for fourteen plus years now. I get the
good fortune in the series to talk a lot of
people that have military service, and I'm a sports guy
and I'm all about structure because of sports and sports teams,
and there seems to be a correlation that people with
military training have a lot of structure in their life,
(03:43):
and as they take that over to the private sector,
there's a certain way they run a company. And there's
a lot of people in this area that don't have
military service that still have structure. But I know that
a lot of people in this series, future entrepreneurs and
current CEOs would love to hear your feedback when it
comes to your army training, the structure you had, and
how you took it to the private sector and starting
your own company.
Speaker 4 (04:02):
You know, I think there were two things that were
primary and should be primary for everyone who has military service,
regardless of branch, regardless of what their role was, and
that's uncohesiveness and mission readiness. And that comes from a
discipline structure that starts with putting mission and unit ahead
(04:24):
of ourselves.
Speaker 1 (04:25):
So being part of something bigger than.
Speaker 4 (04:26):
Ourselves UH and then understanding the chain of command and
understanding the mission at hand. And I think that can
apply itself in the private sector in many different ways,
but I think one attracting people to our company or
any corporate entity and finding people who have a desire
(04:48):
to serve a greater good, Having people who have a
desire to be part of something greater than themselves, which
is what I learned in the military, I think is
the core foundation or the core element of our core
for DNA. That I that I believe defines decision point.
The mechanisms and the processes and the disciplines can be
(05:09):
somewhat malleable, can be adjustable. But attracting people who truly
care about their colleagues, who care about the missions in
and UH and things that we serve in government and
put those ahead of themselves, I think, I think is essential.
(05:29):
I also found one one of the other things I
found in the military is that when you put mission first,
and when you put your your your your unit first,
you don't focus on yourself so much. And and I
think that that that that that allows one to understand
that not being the smartest person in the room or
(05:51):
believing you're the smartest person in the room ultimately makes
you a lot smarter than you ever would have been.
You thought you had all the good ideas and all
the knowledge you needed.
Speaker 3 (06:01):
Yeah, well said, and a common thread to a lot
of our CEOs and founders that we talked with in
the series. So before we talk about mission and exactly
what you do at decision point, can you tell me
about the origin story about finding the company and starting
it as a one man band.
Speaker 4 (06:15):
Yet, honestly, back back in twenty eleven, I was working
as the SVP for market intelligence and fed sources, and
I was working seventy hours a week and traveling a lot,
and you know, basically working myself and to be completely candid,
drinking myself to death.
Speaker 1 (06:35):
And I knew that I needed to.
Speaker 4 (06:37):
Make not not you know, just a fundamental change in
my life that had really nothing to do with work,
And it was really about putting putting my family first
and living in a way that you know, put them
first and did not involve me spending most of my
time sitting at a bar.
Speaker 1 (06:56):
Thinking I was getting something done, when in.
Speaker 4 (06:58):
Fact, all I was doing was isolating and not living
in a very healthy or noble way at all.
Speaker 1 (07:02):
So I did that.
Speaker 4 (07:04):
I've been sober since two thousand and seven, November two
thousand and seven, and initially after I got sober, like
I said, I did some one person consulting for a
long time and then start a Decision Point in twenty eleven.
And I think the progress and the success we had
(07:26):
would would never have been achievable in any way if
I had not made the changes in my life that
I made got into recovery. I spent a fair amount
of time working with other people who struggle with alcoholism
and addiction, and because it's a priority in my life,
and it always has to be a priority in my life.
But I think that that that's kind of to be,
(07:48):
you know, to open up, to be transparent as that.
I mean, I think without that, none of this would
have been none of any of what came after would
have been achievable. And so I'm grateful for that. And
obviously that's been a journey that's included a lot of
people who've helped me in so many different ways.
Speaker 3 (08:05):
Understood, and thanks for the candor, Brian. So let's talk
about the company and Decision Point. What is the mission statement?
Speaker 4 (08:14):
Very simple, to empower mission critical organizations in the Department
of Defense, in the civilian community, and in some in
the intelligence community, to better execute their missions, to better
support their constituencies, to keep the country safer, to keep
the country healthier, to deliver critical services to veterans and
(08:35):
those who are who are not as you know, who
need the social services to live and to prosper and
to have a quality of life. So it's to make government,
to understand what government is trying to do better and
then to enable them to execute at a higher level
of performance.
Speaker 2 (08:50):
Got it.
Speaker 3 (08:51):
So there's going to be a lot of people in
this series that are listening right now, Brian, that probably
haven't heard a decision point before. So if you were
to introduce a company as a newbie to decision point
and give a thirty thousand foot view, what would you
tell them exactly what you do?
Speaker 1 (09:06):
We embrace innovation, We embrace understanding.
Speaker 4 (09:11):
The first thing we do when we enter into a
contract with a new new command or new customer is
to understand and align ourselves with their mission. What is
it that they do that is unique and specific and
critical to the performance of the constituents they serve.
Speaker 1 (09:29):
And then we and so in doing that, what we
need to do is we.
Speaker 4 (09:33):
Need to stabilize the environment that we come into, right,
and so we understand, we embed, we align with the
mission space.
Speaker 1 (09:40):
We understand what the vision and imperatives are of.
Speaker 4 (09:43):
The command structure or the leadership structure of that organization,
and we align ourselves importantly. And so after stabilizing, after
building that level of understanding, then we begin the analysis process.
And the analysis process is about understanding their mission, aligning
with their mission.
Speaker 1 (10:00):
You're sending their vision and imperatives.
Speaker 4 (10:01):
What are the things that we can bring to them
that will enhance their ability to execute their mission, to
be more efficient, to be more effective, and regardless of
whether they're delivering quality of life programs to veterans or
trying to become more accurate and more effective on delivering
(10:24):
materials to the war fighter on the other side.
Speaker 1 (10:27):
Of the world.
Speaker 4 (10:28):
And then step three is the enhancement. So we understand
and stabilize, we analyze, we discuss potential improvements, enhancements, innovations
with the customer, and then we begin the enhancement process
to make them better at what they're able to do
for their customer, very based upon their imperatives and their needs.
Speaker 2 (10:49):
Got it.
Speaker 3 (10:49):
Well, let's get into the weeds a little bit with
programs and capabilities. I know you've got several, So what's
the hot topics for clients right now? I know everybody's
unique code to what they do and what you offer them,
But what are you most proud of and what are
you offering the clients are really turned on by now
that are really happy with the relationship with you and
decision point.
Speaker 4 (11:07):
I think there are three or four things we do
exceptionally well. We refer to them as centers of excellence,
and one is sort of digital modernization, and that's the
enhancement piece, you know, through through whether it can be
cloud migration or DevSecOps or enterprise modernization or human centered design,
those types of things we improve the baseline in the
(11:29):
environments that we enter into, whether it's United States Transportation
Command or Department of Veterans Affairs or Peer of Reclamation,
Peer of Land Management, Air Force, Cyber Department of Homeland Security,
State Department CDC, and you know, we're constantly looking for
areas and analyzing areas where we can modernize and make
(11:51):
their systems of performance.
Speaker 1 (11:53):
And there's you know there's they're.
Speaker 4 (11:55):
Families of systems much more effective and efficient. We have
a significant cyber practice, right. Cyber is a buzzword because
we are constantly all of the government systems that you
and I rely upon are constantly under assault from bad
actors seeking to either disrupt process or to gain information
(12:15):
that will give them an advantage, you know, in in
in many in many ways. So we do a lot
of different cyber work. We do defensive cyber, offensive cyber,
We do cyber operations. We have we have programs where
we work on the cyber control and cyber protection systems
(12:36):
on weaponry that.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
That is very interesting. So we got it.
Speaker 4 (12:40):
We have a very we do insider threat, we have it.
We have a very sophisticated cyber practice both in the
D O D and in the civilian sectors. And then
we do a variety of of health I T. We
have a we have a program we're part of a
program where the prime contractor part of a program at
at VA and the program is called V Signals, And
(13:03):
what these signals is is it's a measurement mechanism to
ensure that the millions of veterans who are receiving quality
of life services from the VA that those services are
actually having the impact.
Speaker 1 (13:17):
That they're designed to have.
Speaker 4 (13:19):
So the data analytics, the data collection we do is
designed to enhance the efficacy and the effectiveness of these programs,
programs that we refer to a decision point and not
meant to be unfeeling above the fold problems at the VA.
What are those suicide, PTSD, chronic unemployment, alcoholism, addiction, homelessness,
(13:42):
domestic violence. So when these programs are designed and delivered,
they have to engage the veteran in a way that
it actually has an impact on their life. And so
this V Signals program is constantly mentoring the impact of
programs designed to address those chronic issues, chronic issues that
(14:08):
manifest themselves at a much higher percentage, much higher percentage
in the veteran population than in the rest of the
population in.
Speaker 1 (14:17):
The United States.
Speaker 4 (14:19):
All of those items that I mentioned, all of those
critical mental and physical health issues, economic issues, manifest themselves
in the veteran community at a much higher rate than
they do in the general population.
Speaker 2 (14:30):
Thanks for sharing all that, Brian.
Speaker 3 (14:31):
I did want to have you indulge me just for
a second because it struck me as you were talking
about all the different things that you offer up. You're
obviously in a very competitive space, and we always ask
in the series, how do you differentiate yourself from the competition?
Speaker 2 (14:43):
That's number one? Number two.
Speaker 3 (14:45):
I don't want to make any assumptions, but between your
media training and army and being in the service and
all the different things that you've done government wise, would
lead me to believe that you're really good at networking.
And we know in business that there are two things
that have and it's word of mouth and also selling yourself.
And I know a lot of people that start their
own business like you did or a little intimidated. How
(15:06):
on earth do I cultivate all this new business? So
can you go into differentiating and then talk about networking
for everybody?
Speaker 4 (15:13):
Yeah, I mean, I think what's essential is to is
to build a community of close relationships of people who
truly trust one another, because ultimately, teaming and partnership and alliance.
Speaker 1 (15:33):
Comes down to trust.
Speaker 4 (15:35):
Because we can all have brilliant capabilities, you know, we
can all have brilliant mechanisms, we can all have brilliant relationships,
but if we don't execute on a level of trust
with people in my network or me and people, me
and other people's networks. Then you're never going to maximize
the opportunities there in front of you.
Speaker 1 (15:54):
So finding a small it doesn't have to be large,
but finding a small.
Speaker 4 (15:59):
Community of other companies and other people who have alignment
on culture and try and do what they say when
they say they're going to do it in the manner
in which they say they're going to do.
Speaker 1 (16:10):
It's a fundamental trust is so essential.
Speaker 4 (16:14):
So I know that some people look, particularly in this
era of LinkedIn, right and social media, that they look
at success in networking from a volume perspective. I have
ten thousand followers, five million followers, two hundred and eighty
million followers, and those are very valuable for those kinds
of mechanisms. But when you're talking about pursuing complex business
(16:36):
challenges together in a competitive environment, teaming and working with
people where there is absolute collaboration, communication and transparency fueled
by a foundation of trust is not only the ultimate priority,
it's the only only priority.
Speaker 2 (16:53):
Appreciate that.
Speaker 3 (16:54):
So current challenges in the industry, what are they?
Speaker 4 (16:59):
Oh, you know, I think understanding what it is that
that that any government entity, any mission entity truly wants
and understanding what the core, what the core value of
that organization is, and what the core essential imperatives and
goals are within that organization and within within within it
(17:21):
within a given contract. And that takes that doesn't come
from an RFP, that doesn't come from a performance work statement,
That doesn't come from attending an industry day where they
get up and stand, you know, stand up and and
and and present a whole bunch of slides. It takes
really rolling up our sleeves and digging into reading congressional testimony,
(17:44):
reading IG reports, spending time talking to retired or former
officers or government officials to really understand what were the
things that kept them awake at night. Because if we
can understand what they really want to get better at,
then we we can align our solutions, We can align
our staffing, we can align the kinds of subject matter
(18:05):
experts we bring into that contract to achieve those things.
So being less generic and much more specific and knowledge
about what any given government entity wants to accomplish through
an RFP is essential to being able to maximize performance.
Once we win that contract, or once anyone wins that contract.
Speaker 3 (18:27):
I want to talk to you about the state of
the industry specifically what you do and competitors do right now,
and as we can all watch on TV or see
on the internet and social media, the world is on
fire and we have to worry over the last twenty
years about domestic ter terrorism well as well as worldwide stuff.
And when it comes to specifically to your industry and
how it's evolved and changed over the last say fourteen
(18:50):
years that you started to where we are today, where's
the state of the industry, Because I know it's fluid
ais here now things are changing very quickly.
Speaker 2 (18:58):
What's the state of the union right now? When it
comes to your industry when you work with your clients.
Speaker 4 (19:03):
I think there's been as you pointed out, Tons, there's
been a.
Speaker 1 (19:07):
Ton of change.
Speaker 4 (19:08):
But I think fundamentally what it really comes down to
is people. When I went to work for FED Sources,
on my second or third day there, this is the
early two thousands, the CEO there said to me, our
inventory walks out the door every day. And what he
meant was is we're just a collection of people and
(19:28):
decision points. Ability to excel is entirely dependent on the
quality of people. Were able to attract, higher, train and retain,
and we're all fishing. We're all seeking candidates from the
same labor pool. People with clearances, people with specific certifications,
people with government experience.
Speaker 1 (19:50):
So while the.
Speaker 4 (19:50):
Technologies and the capabilities change, bringing in people, as I said,
have a passion to be part of something bigger than
themselves and have an ability to align with customers' needs
and customer's mission requirements and help make them better is
the essential element. So I think the challenge with all
(20:13):
the changes in technology, the challenge for a company like
Decision Point is to hire the best and keep them.
Speaker 3 (20:21):
Well, that's well said, and it's not going to surprise you, sir,
but it's a common theme of things that you talked
about when it comes to your people and your team
culture and having a passion for what you do.
Speaker 2 (20:30):
So I appreciate you sharing all that.
Speaker 3 (20:31):
I didn't want to get some final thoughts for you,
and I really enjoyed the conversation, but let's kind of
maybe recap everything that we talked about and some final
thoughts about Decision Point.
Speaker 2 (20:39):
The floor is your, sir.
Speaker 1 (20:42):
It's been a remarkable ride.
Speaker 4 (20:44):
As I said, it was the accidental, you know, entrepreneur.
It was not my intent to do this. It started
small and one person, just me, and then over the years,
one or two or three more people, and then in
really the past five or six years has comes sort
of the.
Speaker 1 (21:01):
Incredible growth. It is founded entirely.
Speaker 4 (21:04):
On on on the mentors I've had people like Paul
Fernandi is the former president at STG, Simon Lee who
is the founder and CEO of STG, who are both
part of the decision point, you know, corporate entity. The
amazing people that we've that we've attracted and hired over
the years, who are who are essential to everything that
(21:28):
we do. And and as we've grown, we've we've been
very fortunate that we've been able to continue to build
within within our cultural you know, priorities, as I said,
people who want to be part of something bigger than themselves,
people who seek to serve a greater good, people who
are really committed to the mission. And I and I
(21:50):
think that becomes challenging as you continue to grow, where
where it becomes less of a family. There was a
point in time where I knew everyone in in in
the company, I knew their name, I knew how many
kids their head right, And now that's beyond it, so
so prioritizing and retaining culture is absolutely essential. Keeping keeping
(22:12):
focus on it's it's you know, what was the you
know I think in the Clinton campaign is the economy stupid?
It's the mission stupid. It's about serving the mission. We
are servants to the government missions that that that we
are hired.
Speaker 1 (22:26):
To perform within.
Speaker 4 (22:28):
And as long as we keep that as the priority,
that they come first, and their requirements and priorities come first,
that I think everything else will take care of itself.
And I and I and to continue to hire people
and find people and reward and retain people that share
this common belief that it's about the mission, and it's
(22:50):
about making the country safer, more healthier, more efficient, more effective.
And for those of us who served in uniform, I
think it's to a great degree. Government contracting is a
continuation of an opportunity to serve.
Speaker 3 (23:07):
Well said Brian. For anybody who wants to find out
more about Decision Point, what's the website for everyone.
Speaker 4 (23:12):
At duwww dot Decision Point corpcrp dot com. And would
welcome any outreacher here to answer any questions.
Speaker 1 (23:21):
If anyone has.
Speaker 3 (23:22):
Any outstanding Brian, listen like me, you've had a lot
of chapters in your life, and that's life, and it's
exciting and you persevered, and this story the last fourteen
years with Decision Point is very cool. So I wish
you nothing but the best to you and your team
continue success, and thank you so much for joining us
on CEOs.
Speaker 2 (23:39):
You should know.
Speaker 1 (23:39):
Thanks Than's have a great day, stay well.
Speaker 3 (23:41):
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Speaker 2 (00:05):
Let's be Brian Flood.
Speaker 3 (00:07):
He is the founder and CEO for Decision Point, based
out of Gaithersburg, Maryland, serving many military government agencies for
information tech modernization and digital transformation operations, cybersecurity, health, inform tech,
and intelligent automation. Before we talk more about Brand's company,
I first asked him to talk a little bit about
himself where he's from. In his origin story.
Speaker 4 (00:27):
I grew up in Inwood. That's northern Manhattan, Washington Heights.
It was an Irish and Jewish neighborhood at the very
top end of Manhattan, last up on the A train.
Speaker 1 (00:39):
I'm product of Catholic schools.
Speaker 4 (00:41):
I went to Loyal the High School of Jesuit High
School in the city, and then kind of initially went
to school in Canada to play football and came back
and spent a little time at Fordham University and then
Pace University and both New York schools, and finished up
there outstanding.
Speaker 2 (00:56):
What'd you do after school? Would you want to do?
Speaker 1 (01:00):
Well?
Speaker 4 (01:00):
To be candid with you, I was a little bit lost,
so I went in the army right and what I
found there was a different just a completely different life,
a life of it was all about the unit, It
was all about the mission. It was about each other.
There was a camaraderie and then a spree de corps
that I that I had experienced in some environments, but
(01:21):
nothing like that. And everything I learned about leadership, everything
I learned about cohesiveness, everything I learned about focusing on
the mission, I learned there. And I think I've tried
to practice that inconsistently, but practiced that through the course
of my life, no matter what.
Speaker 1 (01:35):
I was doing.
Speaker 2 (01:36):
How many years did you serve?
Speaker 1 (01:39):
Almost six six years understanding.
Speaker 2 (01:40):
Well, thank you for your service.
Speaker 3 (01:41):
I know you did specials up too, so you must
have saw some wild things after you were getting out
of the army. What was motivating you that you wanted
to do.
Speaker 4 (01:50):
I've initially became a journalist, and as I said, I
worked in Montgomery, Alabama, and both on the television side
and the print side, and then I moved here to
take a job on Capitol Hill, which was just you know,
it was it was a uh, you know, I just
a right time, right place. I met somebody who had
(02:10):
won an election and was coming up here and I
and I and I joined him and it was it
was it was one of the It had a profound
change on me to be that involved in both the
policy side and the politics side.
Speaker 2 (02:21):
You know.
Speaker 4 (02:21):
I also I think I learned about kind of the
core of what drives this town right really, you know,
which is really knowledge and power. And I think that
that Understanding the mechanisms of government, Understanding the mechanisms of budgeting,
how government invests, how government operates, has served me well
at decision point and then some other roles I had.
(02:43):
And I think that, but I also enjoyed the political
side as well. You know, I was on the House side,
so every two years I'd take a leave of absence
for two or three months and go run the campaign
fund be the primary fundraiser, and you know, make decisions
about about messaging and you know, differentiators in the campaign
and things like that. That was interesting and it was exciting.
(03:04):
It was a different time, certainly not as ugly as
it is now. But again it taught me a lot
about about being rigorous and being disciplined and honing a
communication methodology and a message that was going to resonate
with people.
Speaker 3 (03:22):
So before we talk about Decision Point, the company that
you mentioned, of course, founded back in twenty eleven, it's
been around for fourteen plus years now. I get the
good fortune in the series to talk a lot of
people that have military service, and I'm a sports guy
and I'm all about structure because of sports and sports teams,
and there seems to be a correlation that people with
military training have a lot of structure in their life,
(03:43):
and as they take that over to the private sector,
there's a certain way they run a company. And there's
a lot of people in this area that don't have
military service that still have structure. But I know that
a lot of people in this series, future entrepreneurs and
current CEOs would love to hear your feedback when it
comes to your army training, the structure you had, and
how you took it to the private sector and starting
your own company.
Speaker 4 (04:02):
You know, I think there were two things that were
primary and should be primary for everyone who has military service,
regardless of branch, regardless of what their role was, and
that's uncohesiveness and mission readiness. And that comes from a
discipline structure that starts with putting mission and unit ahead
(04:24):
of ourselves.
Speaker 1 (04:25):
So being part of something bigger than.
Speaker 4 (04:26):
Ourselves UH and then understanding the chain of command and
understanding the mission at hand. And I think that can
apply itself in the private sector in many different ways,
but I think one attracting people to our company or
any corporate entity and finding people who have a desire
(04:48):
to serve a greater good, Having people who have a
desire to be part of something greater than themselves, which
is what I learned in the military, I think is
the core foundation or the core element of our core
for DNA. That I that I believe defines decision point.
The mechanisms and the processes and the disciplines can be
(05:09):
somewhat malleable, can be adjustable. But attracting people who truly
care about their colleagues, who care about the missions in
and UH and things that we serve in government and
put those ahead of themselves, I think, I think is essential.
(05:29):
I also found one one of the other things I
found in the military is that when you put mission first,
and when you put your your your your unit first,
you don't focus on yourself so much. And and I
think that that that that that allows one to understand
that not being the smartest person in the room or
(05:51):
believing you're the smartest person in the room ultimately makes
you a lot smarter than you ever would have been.
You thought you had all the good ideas and all
the knowledge you needed.
Speaker 3 (06:01):
Yeah, well said, and a common thread to a lot
of our CEOs and founders that we talked with in
the series. So before we talk about mission and exactly
what you do at decision point, can you tell me
about the origin story about finding the company and starting
it as a one man band.
Speaker 4 (06:15):
Yet, honestly, back back in twenty eleven, I was working
as the SVP for market intelligence and fed sources, and
I was working seventy hours a week and traveling a lot,
and you know, basically working myself and to be completely candid,
drinking myself to death.
Speaker 1 (06:35):
And I knew that I needed to.
Speaker 4 (06:37):
Make not not you know, just a fundamental change in
my life that had really nothing to do with work,
And it was really about putting putting my family first
and living in a way that you know, put them
first and did not involve me spending most of my
time sitting at a bar.
Speaker 1 (06:56):
Thinking I was getting something done, when in.
Speaker 4 (06:58):
Fact, all I was doing was isolating and not living
in a very healthy or noble way at all.
Speaker 1 (07:02):
So I did that.
Speaker 4 (07:04):
I've been sober since two thousand and seven, November two
thousand and seven, and initially after I got sober, like
I said, I did some one person consulting for a
long time and then start a Decision Point in twenty eleven.
And I think the progress and the success we had
(07:26):
would would never have been achievable in any way if
I had not made the changes in my life that
I made got into recovery. I spent a fair amount
of time working with other people who struggle with alcoholism
and addiction, and because it's a priority in my life,
and it always has to be a priority in my life.
But I think that that that's kind of to be,
(07:48):
you know, to open up, to be transparent as that.
I mean, I think without that, none of this would
have been none of any of what came after would
have been achievable. And so I'm grateful for that. And
obviously that's been a journey that's included a lot of
people who've helped me in so many different ways.
Speaker 3 (08:05):
Understood, and thanks for the candor, Brian. So let's talk
about the company and Decision Point. What is the mission statement?
Speaker 4 (08:14):
Very simple, to empower mission critical organizations in the Department
of Defense, in the civilian community, and in some in
the intelligence community, to better execute their missions, to better
support their constituencies, to keep the country safer, to keep
the country healthier, to deliver critical services to veterans and
(08:35):
those who are who are not as you know, who
need the social services to live and to prosper and
to have a quality of life. So it's to make government,
to understand what government is trying to do better and
then to enable them to execute at a higher level
of performance.
Speaker 2 (08:50):
Got it.
Speaker 3 (08:51):
So there's going to be a lot of people in
this series that are listening right now, Brian, that probably
haven't heard a decision point before. So if you were
to introduce a company as a newbie to decision point
and give a thirty thousand foot view, what would you
tell them exactly what you do?
Speaker 1 (09:06):
We embrace innovation, We embrace understanding.
Speaker 4 (09:11):
The first thing we do when we enter into a
contract with a new new command or new customer is
to understand and align ourselves with their mission. What is
it that they do that is unique and specific and
critical to the performance of the constituents they serve.
Speaker 1 (09:29):
And then we and so in doing that, what we
need to do is we.
Speaker 4 (09:33):
Need to stabilize the environment that we come into, right,
and so we understand, we embed, we align with the
mission space.
Speaker 1 (09:40):
We understand what the vision and imperatives are of.
Speaker 4 (09:43):
The command structure or the leadership structure of that organization,
and we align ourselves importantly. And so after stabilizing, after
building that level of understanding, then we begin the analysis process.
And the analysis process is about understanding their mission, aligning
with their mission.
Speaker 1 (10:00):
You're sending their vision and imperatives.
Speaker 4 (10:01):
What are the things that we can bring to them
that will enhance their ability to execute their mission, to
be more efficient, to be more effective, and regardless of
whether they're delivering quality of life programs to veterans or
trying to become more accurate and more effective on delivering
(10:24):
materials to the war fighter on the other side.
Speaker 1 (10:27):
Of the world.
Speaker 4 (10:28):
And then step three is the enhancement. So we understand
and stabilize, we analyze, we discuss potential improvements, enhancements, innovations
with the customer, and then we begin the enhancement process
to make them better at what they're able to do
for their customer, very based upon their imperatives and their needs.
Speaker 2 (10:49):
Got it.
Speaker 3 (10:49):
Well, let's get into the weeds a little bit with
programs and capabilities. I know you've got several, So what's
the hot topics for clients right now? I know everybody's
unique code to what they do and what you offer them,
But what are you most proud of and what are
you offering the clients are really turned on by now
that are really happy with the relationship with you and
decision point.
Speaker 4 (11:07):
I think there are three or four things we do
exceptionally well. We refer to them as centers of excellence,
and one is sort of digital modernization, and that's the
enhancement piece, you know, through through whether it can be
cloud migration or DevSecOps or enterprise modernization or human centered design,
those types of things we improve the baseline in the
(11:29):
environments that we enter into, whether it's United States Transportation
Command or Department of Veterans Affairs or Peer of Reclamation,
Peer of Land Management, Air Force, Cyber Department of Homeland Security,
State Department CDC, and you know, we're constantly looking for
areas and analyzing areas where we can modernize and make
(11:51):
their systems of performance.
Speaker 1 (11:53):
And there's you know there's they're.
Speaker 4 (11:55):
Families of systems much more effective and efficient. We have
a significant cyber practice, right. Cyber is a buzzword because
we are constantly all of the government systems that you
and I rely upon are constantly under assault from bad
actors seeking to either disrupt process or to gain information
(12:15):
that will give them an advantage, you know, in in
in many in many ways. So we do a lot
of different cyber work. We do defensive cyber, offensive cyber,
We do cyber operations. We have we have programs where
we work on the cyber control and cyber protection systems
(12:36):
on weaponry that.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
That is very interesting. So we got it.
Speaker 4 (12:40):
We have a very we do insider threat, we have it.
We have a very sophisticated cyber practice both in the
D O D and in the civilian sectors. And then
we do a variety of of health I T. We
have a we have a program we're part of a
program where the prime contractor part of a program at
at VA and the program is called V Signals, And
(13:03):
what these signals is is it's a measurement mechanism to
ensure that the millions of veterans who are receiving quality
of life services from the VA that those services are
actually having the impact.
Speaker 1 (13:17):
That they're designed to have.
Speaker 4 (13:19):
So the data analytics, the data collection we do is
designed to enhance the efficacy and the effectiveness of these programs,
programs that we refer to a decision point and not
meant to be unfeeling above the fold problems at the VA.
What are those suicide, PTSD, chronic unemployment, alcoholism, addiction, homelessness,
(13:42):
domestic violence. So when these programs are designed and delivered,
they have to engage the veteran in a way that
it actually has an impact on their life. And so
this V Signals program is constantly mentoring the impact of
programs designed to address those chronic issues, chronic issues that
(14:08):
manifest themselves at a much higher percentage, much higher percentage
in the veteran population than in the rest of the
population in.
Speaker 1 (14:17):
The United States.
Speaker 4 (14:19):
All of those items that I mentioned, all of those
critical mental and physical health issues, economic issues, manifest themselves
in the veteran community at a much higher rate than
they do in the general population.
Speaker 2 (14:30):
Thanks for sharing all that, Brian.
Speaker 3 (14:31):
I did want to have you indulge me just for
a second because it struck me as you were talking
about all the different things that you offer up. You're
obviously in a very competitive space, and we always ask
in the series, how do you differentiate yourself from the competition?
Speaker 2 (14:43):
That's number one? Number two.
Speaker 3 (14:45):
I don't want to make any assumptions, but between your
media training and army and being in the service and
all the different things that you've done government wise, would
lead me to believe that you're really good at networking.
And we know in business that there are two things
that have and it's word of mouth and also selling yourself.
And I know a lot of people that start their
own business like you did or a little intimidated. How
(15:06):
on earth do I cultivate all this new business? So
can you go into differentiating and then talk about networking
for everybody?
Speaker 4 (15:13):
Yeah, I mean, I think what's essential is to is
to build a community of close relationships of people who
truly trust one another, because ultimately, teaming and partnership and alliance.
Speaker 1 (15:33):
Comes down to trust.
Speaker 4 (15:35):
Because we can all have brilliant capabilities, you know, we
can all have brilliant mechanisms, we can all have brilliant relationships,
but if we don't execute on a level of trust
with people in my network or me and people, me
and other people's networks. Then you're never going to maximize
the opportunities there in front of you.
Speaker 1 (15:54):
So finding a small it doesn't have to be large,
but finding a small.
Speaker 4 (15:59):
Community of other companies and other people who have alignment
on culture and try and do what they say when
they say they're going to do it in the manner
in which they say they're going to do.
Speaker 1 (16:10):
It's a fundamental trust is so essential.
Speaker 4 (16:14):
So I know that some people look, particularly in this
era of LinkedIn, right and social media, that they look
at success in networking from a volume perspective. I have
ten thousand followers, five million followers, two hundred and eighty
million followers, and those are very valuable for those kinds
of mechanisms. But when you're talking about pursuing complex business
(16:36):
challenges together in a competitive environment, teaming and working with
people where there is absolute collaboration, communication and transparency fueled
by a foundation of trust is not only the ultimate priority,
it's the only only priority.
Speaker 2 (16:53):
Appreciate that.
Speaker 3 (16:54):
So current challenges in the industry, what are they?
Speaker 4 (16:59):
Oh, you know, I think understanding what it is that
that that any government entity, any mission entity truly wants
and understanding what the core, what the core value of
that organization is, and what the core essential imperatives and
goals are within that organization and within within within it
(17:21):
within a given contract. And that takes that doesn't come
from an RFP, that doesn't come from a performance work statement,
That doesn't come from attending an industry day where they
get up and stand, you know, stand up and and
and and present a whole bunch of slides. It takes
really rolling up our sleeves and digging into reading congressional testimony,
(17:44):
reading IG reports, spending time talking to retired or former
officers or government officials to really understand what were the
things that kept them awake at night. Because if we
can understand what they really want to get better at,
then we we can align our solutions, We can align
our staffing, we can align the kinds of subject matter
(18:05):
experts we bring into that contract to achieve those things.
So being less generic and much more specific and knowledge
about what any given government entity wants to accomplish through
an RFP is essential to being able to maximize performance.
Once we win that contract, or once anyone wins that contract.
Speaker 3 (18:27):
I want to talk to you about the state of
the industry specifically what you do and competitors do right now,
and as we can all watch on TV or see
on the internet and social media, the world is on
fire and we have to worry over the last twenty
years about domestic ter terrorism well as well as worldwide stuff.
And when it comes to specifically to your industry and
how it's evolved and changed over the last say fourteen
(18:50):
years that you started to where we are today, where's
the state of the industry, Because I know it's fluid
ais here now things are changing very quickly.
Speaker 2 (18:58):
What's the state of the union right now? When it
comes to your industry when you work with your clients.
Speaker 4 (19:03):
I think there's been as you pointed out, Tons, there's
been a.
Speaker 1 (19:07):
Ton of change.
Speaker 4 (19:08):
But I think fundamentally what it really comes down to
is people. When I went to work for FED Sources,
on my second or third day there, this is the
early two thousands, the CEO there said to me, our
inventory walks out the door every day. And what he
meant was is we're just a collection of people and
(19:28):
decision points. Ability to excel is entirely dependent on the
quality of people. Were able to attract, higher, train and retain,
and we're all fishing. We're all seeking candidates from the
same labor pool. People with clearances, people with specific certifications,
people with government experience.
Speaker 1 (19:50):
So while the.
Speaker 4 (19:50):
Technologies and the capabilities change, bringing in people, as I said,
have a passion to be part of something bigger than
themselves and have an ability to align with customers' needs
and customer's mission requirements and help make them better is
the essential element. So I think the challenge with all
(20:13):
the changes in technology, the challenge for a company like
Decision Point is to hire the best and keep them.
Speaker 3 (20:21):
Well, that's well said, and it's not going to surprise you, sir,
but it's a common theme of things that you talked
about when it comes to your people and your team
culture and having a passion for what you do.
Speaker 2 (20:30):
So I appreciate you sharing all that.
Speaker 3 (20:31):
I didn't want to get some final thoughts for you,
and I really enjoyed the conversation, but let's kind of
maybe recap everything that we talked about and some final
thoughts about Decision Point.
Speaker 2 (20:39):
The floor is your, sir.
Speaker 1 (20:42):
It's been a remarkable ride.
Speaker 4 (20:44):
As I said, it was the accidental, you know, entrepreneur.
It was not my intent to do this. It started
small and one person, just me, and then over the years,
one or two or three more people, and then in
really the past five or six years has comes sort
of the.
Speaker 1 (21:01):
Incredible growth. It is founded entirely.
Speaker 4 (21:04):
On on on the mentors I've had people like Paul
Fernandi is the former president at STG, Simon Lee who
is the founder and CEO of STG, who are both
part of the decision point, you know, corporate entity. The
amazing people that we've that we've attracted and hired over
the years, who are who are essential to everything that
(21:28):
we do. And and as we've grown, we've we've been
very fortunate that we've been able to continue to build
within within our cultural you know, priorities, as I said,
people who want to be part of something bigger than themselves,
people who seek to serve a greater good, people who
are really committed to the mission. And I and I
(21:50):
think that becomes challenging as you continue to grow, where
where it becomes less of a family. There was a
point in time where I knew everyone in in in
the company, I knew their name, I knew how many
kids their head right, And now that's beyond it, so
so prioritizing and retaining culture is absolutely essential. Keeping keeping
(22:12):
focus on it's it's you know, what was the you
know I think in the Clinton campaign is the economy stupid?
It's the mission stupid. It's about serving the mission. We
are servants to the government missions that that that we
are hired.
Speaker 1 (22:26):
To perform within.
Speaker 4 (22:28):
And as long as we keep that as the priority,
that they come first, and their requirements and priorities come first,
that I think everything else will take care of itself.
And I and I and to continue to hire people
and find people and reward and retain people that share
this common belief that it's about the mission, and it's
(22:50):
about making the country safer, more healthier, more efficient, more effective.
And for those of us who served in uniform, I
think it's to a great degree. Government contracting is a
continuation of an opportunity to serve.
Speaker 3 (23:07):
Well said Brian. For anybody who wants to find out
more about Decision Point, what's the website for everyone.
Speaker 4 (23:12):
At duwww dot Decision Point corpcrp dot com. And would
welcome any outreacher here to answer any questions.
Speaker 1 (23:21):
If anyone has.
Speaker 3 (23:22):
Any outstanding Brian, listen like me, you've had a lot
of chapters in your life, and that's life, and it's
exciting and you persevered, and this story the last fourteen
years with Decision Point is very cool. So I wish
you nothing but the best to you and your team
continue success, and thank you so much for joining us
on CEOs.
Speaker 2 (23:39):
You should know.
Speaker 1 (23:39):
Thanks Than's have a great day, stay well.
Speaker 3 (23:41):
Our community partner, M and T Bank supports CEOs you
should know. Is part of their ongoing commitment to building
strong communities and that starts by backing the businesses within them.
As a Bank for communities, M and T believes in
dedicating time, talent, and resources to help local businesses thrive
because when business us to succeed, our communities succeed
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