It's everything the system needs before it will buy — the right contract vehicle, the people who own the requirement, audit-ready compliance, a board that understands the timeline. That's where I come in.
A strong demo, a Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) award, a pilot at a base — these prove the technology works. On their own, they don't build a program. A lot of good companies do the hard technical work and still stall right here, in the frozen middle — a few expired awards, one active contract, and no clear path to scale.
Crossing from the government uses it to the government is buying it at scale is an infrastructure problem — the right contract vehicle, a named requirement owner, audit-ready compliance, and a board that understands the timeline. That's the work I do, and most of it can be sequenced.
Most defense companies sell in one direction — out, to the government customer. Two more decide whether the revenue holds.
Government revenue is slow, milestone-driven, and lumpy — nothing like a commercial growth curve. If the people funding you expect commercial-style numbers, the first quarter the program doesn't deliver reads as failure. Selling up means leadership and investors understand the real timeline and what it demands, so a slip is a data point instead of a fire drill.
The side everyone focuses on: the program office, the requirement owner, the contracting officer. What they need to see before they'll fund a prototype, and which vehicle moves fastest. Built on nearly a decade of cohort programs and field work across the Army, Air Force, and the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU).
Audit exposure runs roughly one in four per contract, and you can't reconstruct documentation after the fact. Former employees with live system access, personnel vetting gaps, the prime/sub dynamic where subcontractors are the soft target for a Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA) audit. I've been the sub — I know what it costs when hours tracking slips.
Worked across Army Futures Command, the Defense Innovation Unit, the Air Force, the Army Research Lab, and Govini as the Warfighting Acquisition System was being built. Originated the methodology institutionalized as the SPARTN SBIR program, and oversaw the Soldier Innovation Platform and Soldier Engagement Platform — connecting 35+ units to a pipeline that produced 67 funded projects across the Army, Air Force, and DIU.
I came up on the demand side of defense innovation — the side most defense technology companies are trying to reach. I translated soldier and program-office capability gaps into requirements that survived acquisition scrutiny, built the platforms that captured those requirements at scale, and helped non-traditional companies through the gates that decide whether a prototype becomes a Program of Record (PoR).
I've navigated that pathway from the government side — not read about it. That's the asymmetric piece I bring to a founder trying to build real government revenue.
Air Force Academy graduate. Bronze Star, Operation Enduring Freedom. Ground Forces Commander across Kabul, Wardak, and Baghlan Provinces. Managed 660+ Air Tasking Orders and directed $30M in Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) infrastructure supporting 155 embassies.
Every engagement is scoped in a Statement of Work — a defined deliverable, a clear success metric, and an exit. Fractional only. Most relationships start with a conversation, and a Snapshot.
A short, company-specific read of where your government revenue actually stands, built from the public record. Names the problems and the stakes. Usually where we start.
A company-specific acquisition strategy in DoW language — compliance and infrastructure, market entry, and program-office alignment, sequenced in the order they have to happen.
The role of a fractional VP of Government Business Development — a monthly market scan, pathway review, stakeholder mapping, a strategy memo, and honest counsel on call.
The six compliance landmines, audited before DCAA shows up — the Sell It Down work. TABA-fundable for Phase II awardees.
Pathway brief, an honest risk memo, financial framing, and a Q&A drill for the board conversation — Sell It Up.
Presence at government facilities and prime meetings, with a deliverable agreed before the day starts.
Targeted presence against a real target list, with a written contact report inside 48 hours.
I ran the plays from inside the acquisition system. I'm not guessing at the pathway.
Every engagement runs on a Statement of Work: a defined deliverable, a success metric, and an exit.
The government owns every funding decision. I bring judgment and a playbook, and I'll tell you plainly what I can and can't move.
Fractional engagements only — senior help without the full-time line item.
The best work in this space starts with a conversation, not a pitch. Whether we end up working together or not, I like knowing good people who are building things that matter to national defense.