Archive for category: Awards

Inc. Magazine Unveils Its Annual List of America’s Fastest- Growing Private Companies—the Inc. 5000

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Inc 5000 team picKnight Federal Solutions Ranks in the Top 50 from the
Metro Orlando Area with Three-Year Revenue Growth of 117 Percent

Inc. magazine revealed on August 14, 2019, that Knight Federal Solutions is No. 3,132 on its annual Inc. 5000 list, the most prestigious ranking of the nation’s fastest-growing private companies.  Translate that to the companies from Florida being named to the list and Knight Federal Solutions ranks #261 in Florida, #78 among honorees in the IT System Development field and #33 in the Orlando metro area.

The list represents a unique look at the most successful companies within the American economy’s most dynamic segment—its independent small businesses. Microsoft, Dell, Domino’s Pizza, Pandora, Timberland, LinkedIn, Yelp, Zillow, and many other well-known names gained their first national exposure as honorees on the Inc. 5000.

“We are extremely proud to have earned a spot on the 2019 Inc. 5000 list,” says Chris Baeten, CEO of Knight Federal Solutions.  “For companies of our revenue size, it requires a determined effort from a great team along with fantastic partners to achieve this growth and profitability at the same time.  This award is a credit to the entire team!”

Not only have the companies on the 2019 Inc. 5000 (which are listed online at Inc.com, with the top 500 companies featured in the September issue of Inc., available on newsstands August 20) been very competitive within their markets, but the list as a whole shows staggering growth compared with prior lists. The 2019 Inc. 5000 achieved an astounding three-year average growth of 454 percent, and a median rate of 157 percent. The Inc. 5000’s aggregate revenue was $237.7 billion in 2018, accounting for 1,216,308 jobs over the past three years.   Knight Federal’s revenue growth over the past three years is a staggering 117 percent!

Complete results of the Inc. 5000, including company profiles and an interactive database that can be sorted by industry, region, and other criteria, can be found at www.inc.com/inc5000.  The link for Knight Federal is available at https://bit.ly/33Dvu4S.

“The companies on this year’s Inc. 5000 have followed so many different paths to success,” says Inc. editor in chief James Ledbetter. “There’s no single course you can follow or investment you can take that will guarantee this kind of spectacular growth. But what they have in common is persistence and seizing opportunities.”

The annual Inc. 5000 event honoring the companies on the list will be held October 10 to 12, 2019, at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort and Spa in Phoenix, Arizona. As always, speakers include some of the greatest innovators and business leaders of our generation.

About Inc. Media
Founded in 1979 and acquired in 2005 by Mansueto Ventures, Inc. is the only major brand dedicated exclusively to owners and managers of growing private companies, with the aim to deliver real solutions for today’s innovative company builders. Inc. took home the National Magazine Award for General Excellence in both 2014 and 2012. The total monthly audience reach for the brand has been growing significantly, from 2,000,000 in 2010 to more than 20,000,000 today. For more information, visit www.inc.com.

About Inc. 5000 – Methodology
The 2019 Inc. 5000 is ranked according to percentage revenue growth when comparing 2015 and 2018. To qualify, companies must have been founded and generating revenue by March 31, 2015. They had to be U.S.-based, privately held, for profit, and independent—not subsidiaries or divisions of other companies—as of December 31, 2018. (Since then, a number of companies on the list have gone public or been acquired.) The minimum revenue required for 2015 is $100,000; the minimum for 2018 is $2 million. As always, Inc. reserves the right to decline applicants for subjective reasons. Companies on the Inc. 500 are featured in Inc.’s September issue. They represent the top tier of the Inc. 5000, which can be found at http://www.inc.com/inc5000.

Employee of the Quarter – KFS Joint Staff J7 Technical Support Team Names Christa Hill

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Employee of the Quarter - KFS Joint Staff J7 Technical Support Team Names Christa HillEach quarter, Knight Federal’s Employee of the Quarter (EOQ) award for the Suffolk, VA location recognizes the outstanding qualities and contributions of employees towards Knight Federal’s goals and mission. Knight Federal recognizes that driven and loyal employees empower an organization.  This second quarter the award recipient covering April-June 2019 is Christa Hill.

Christa is one of four individuals that will receive the award each year. The honor is awarded the beginning of April, July, October and December during the Christmas party for an outstanding employee from the three preceding months.

EOQ 2019 Winner:
April – June  – Christa Hill

Christa was a key player in providing Audio and Visual support for Senior Leadership Seminar, Exercise Cyber Flag and EOD Quarterly All Hands, three highly visible events .  Supporting the KEYSTONE training class, her ability to make multiple simultaneous daily VTC connections for remote General Officers to brief the Keystone students at JS J7 was lauded by multiple Flag Officers. This required close coordination with all parties concerned as she assisted with slide presentations for briefings and rehearsals, setup auditorium for panel discussions, coordinated the recording of each course session for briefers to review later, and deftly made last minute adjustments for the day’s schedule changes. The concurrent support of Exercise Cyber Flag 19 and EOD All hands efforts demonstrated the highest level of skills required for her position.  Her exceptional performance during this period is in keeping with the highest standards of the Joint Staff as a whole and is a credit to Knight Federal Solutions and the Joint Staff J7 Tech Support Team.

The Employee of the Quarter will receive:

  • A gift card for $50
  • A framed certificate recognizing their accomplishments
  • A Knight Federal imprinted leather notebook

Nominate an Employee

Complete the EOQ Nomination Form and submit it to the program manager Murray Hess.  Anyone may nominate an employee. Nomination forms may be submitted at any time.

Nominations are due by the tenth day of the month preceding the award month (i.e., February, May, August, and November) or the next working day if the tenth falls on a weekend or System Offices holiday.

The Process

The EOQ Committee will meet on a quarterly basis throughout the year. The committee will assure that the nominee meets all of the basic requirements. The committee will consider the following contributing qualities when making the award selection:

  • Longevity and performance
  • Contributions to the Knight Federal community
  • Contributions to his or her office
  • Contributions to the outside community
  • Awards or recognition received

Employee of the Quarter – KFS Joint Staff J7 Technical Support Team Names Dave Drake

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Employee of the Quarter - KFS Joint Staff J7 Technical Support Team Names Dave DrakeEach quarter, Knight Federal’s Employee of the Quarter (EOQ) award for the Suffolk, VA location recognizes the outstanding qualities and contributions of employees towards Knight Federal’s goals and mission. Knight Federal recognizes that driven and loyal employees empower an organization.  This second quarter the award recipient covering October – December 2018 is Dave “Duck” Drake.

Dave is one of four individuals that will receive the award each year. The honor is awarded the beginning of April, July, October and December during the Christmas party for an outstanding employee from the three preceding months.

EOQ 2018 Winner:

October – December  – David Drake

Dave was awarded for his exceptional efforts over the past quarter.  He continues to do superior test work and stands out amongst his fellow testers. During this Quarter Dave led the EAD Testing and Evaluation (T&E) Team through three different Test Sprints, overseeing the testing of 40 unique test cases for the Joint Exercise Design Tool that was demonstrated during the Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation and Education Conference (I/ITSEC) 2018.  He is consistently providing feedback to the software developers and government product owner on bugs, maintenance issues and potential improvements.

Additionally, Dave mentored a fellow tester in developing the most recent Test Sprint of the Terrain Generation Services (TGS) software. This software has not had formal testing by the T & E Team in over 10 months. His actions continue to show the KFS team in the most positive light. He is a credit to the team!.

The Employee of the Quarter will receive:

  • A gift card for $50
  • A framed certificate recognizing their accomplishments
  • A Knight Federal imprinted leather notebook

Nominate an Employee

Complete the EOQ Nomination Form and submit it to the program manager Murray Hess.  Anyone may nominate an employee. Nomination forms may be submitted at any time.

Nominations are due by the tenth day of the month preceding the award month (i.e., February, May, August, and November) or the next working day if the tenth falls on a weekend or System Offices holiday.

The Process

The EOQ Committee will meet on a quarterly basis throughout the year. The committee will assure that the nominee meets all of the basic requirements. The committee will consider the following contributing qualities when making the award selection:

  • Longevity and performance
  • Contributions to the Knight Federal community
  • Contributions to his or her office
  • Contributions to the outside community
  • Awards or recognition received

Knight Federal Solutions Teams with Engility, An SAIC Subsidiary to Win $106 Million Defense Intelligence Agency Contract

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Knight Federal Solutions Teams with Engility, An SAIC Subsidiary to Win $106 Million Defense Intelligence Agency Contract

Award Expands Services for Potential 10-Year Performance Period

Engility Corp, a subsidiary of Science Applications International Corp. (NYSE: SAIC), teamed with small business subcontractor Knight Federal Solutions, a solutions provider of simulation and training, cyber security, information technology, finance and intelligence analysis solutions to the Defense and Intelligence sectors, to win a single-award, indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contract worth potentially $106 million by the Defense Intelligence Agency’s National Media Exploitation Center (NMEC).

The new contract provides for continued media management and analysis work, and will expand these services to include all of the DIA Science and Technology Directorate. Knight Federal Solutions has been a supporter of this program as a small business subcontractor to Engility since 2016. The contract award comes on the heels of SAIC’s $2.5 billion acquisition of Engility, completed in January 2019, as part of its strategy to expand its intelligence community portfolio.

“Since we have teamed with Engility, we have experienced growth of existing capabilities and gained new experiences within the NMEC. We are excited for the opportunity to continue supporting SAIC through the life of the follow-on and the stability it offers us to continue supporting this customer and mission,” says Matthew Herring, Vice President of Business Development at Knight Federal Solutions.

The IDIQ carries a potential 10-year period of performance. The contract supports NMEC’s training, document and media management, program support, and related intelligence operations. The team assists NMEC with document and media exploitation processes like data acquisition, ingest, processing, reporting, and timely dissemination to ensure the chain of command is immediately informed of any changes or developments based on media gathered by the U.S. military and intelligence community.

“Partnering with the DIA is a privilege we take seriously,” said Michael LaRouche, executive vice president and general manager of SAIC’s National Security Customer Group. “Expanding our services to the entire Science and Technology Directorate offers our team of intelligence and data analytics experts a great opportunity to bring value and technological innovation to even more missions.”

About SAIC
SAIC® is a premier technology integrator solving our nation’s most complex modernization and readiness challenges. Our robust portfolio of offerings across the defense, space, civilian, and intelligence markets includes high-end solutions in engineering, IT, and mission solutions. Using our expertise and understanding of existing and emerging technologies, we integrate the best components from our own portfolio and our partner ecosystem to deliver innovative, effective, and efficient solutions. For more information, visit saic.com or for ongoing news, please visit our newsroom.

Knight Federal Receives Northrop Grumman 2019 World Class Team Supplier Award

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Northrop Grumman 2019 World Class Team Supplier Award

Awards Program Recognizes Small Business Suppliers for Significant Performance and Outstanding Achievements

AwardKnight Federal Solutions, a solutions provider of simulation and training, cyber security, information technology, finance and intelligence analysis solutions to the Defense and Intelligence sectors, received Northrop Grumman’s 2019 World Class Team Supplier Award. The award is presented to small business suppliers that consistently demonstrate outstanding achievements and support of Northrop Grumman programs.  28 Small businesses from across the country were recognized for their significant performance as outstanding suppliers.

Chris Baeten, CEO, and Matthew Herring, Vice President of Business Development, attended the Corporate Global Supplier Diversity Programs Recognition Awards Luncheon held on May 16, 2019 in Linthicum, Maryland and accepted the award on behalf of the Knight Federal team.

“We are extremely honored to be recognized for this prestigious award from Northrop Grumman. This award reaffirms Knight Federal’s commitment to provide world-class technology solutions and services to our valued partners and the outstanding efforts of the Knight Federal team,” said Baeten.

Northrop Grumman annually acknowledges outstanding suppliers under its supplier diversity program which strives to ensure that capable small businesses receive subcontracting opportunities. The award selection process includes an extensive review against criteria such as technical capability and performance, cost competitiveness, product and service quality, and outstanding program support.

“Small business suppliers play a critical role in applying innovation and affordability to meet the challenging global security needs of our customers,” said Patricia McMahon, vice president, corporate supply chain, Northrop Grumman. “These awardees demonstrated superior business support and outstanding contributions to our small disadvantaged business, women-owned small business and service-disabled veterans’ objectives and top performance goals. They also have a large part in our relationships with the mentor-protégé programs, Historically Black Colleges/Universities and AbilityOne program initiatives.”

About Northrop Grumman
Northrop Grumman is a leading global security company providing innovative systems, products and solutions in autonomous systems, cyber, C4ISR, space, strike, and logistics and modernization to customers worldwide. In 2018, Northrop Grumman contracted more than $8 billion to a broad base of suppliers, with more than 37 percent of its procurement spending going to small businesses and women- or minority-owned firms.

» more information

2019 OBJ CEO Business Leader of the Year

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CEO of the yearChris Baeten, CEO of Knight Federal was honored as one of the 2019 CEO Business Leaders of the Year by the Orlando Business Journal (OBJ) in May 2019.

This year, 19 of the most dynamic and influential individuals in Central Florida, were honored at the awards luncheon held on May 10 at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress.

Each year the OBJ, along with panel of community and business leaders, select a group of individuals whose business success, community engagement and innovative influence has moved the region forward. Once again, this year has recognized a stellar group of leaders.

These chief executives have led their firms to fiscal success, created engaged workplaces and made Central Florida a better place to live.  They have established a strong vision for their companies, involved their employees to bring that vision to fruition and made significant contributions to the community overall.

The award honors the highest-level executives at companies, organizations or agencies based in Orange, Osceola, Seminole, Lake or Volusia counties.  These leaders have had significant achievements in their careers within the past year, a strong record of innovation, outstanding performance in their work and are actively involved in their community.

The list of 2019 CEOs

CEO PDF

Read Interview

Knight Federal CEO Named 2019 CEO Leader of the Year

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Chris Baeten 2019 CEO Leader of the Year

2019 CEOs of the Year Announced

The Orlando Business Journal is recognizing 19 individuals as CEOs of the Year for 2019 based on their significant achievements in their careers within the past year, as well as a strong record of innovation, outstanding performance in their work and are active in the Central Florida community.

These dynamic, influential and passionate executives have contributed to Central Florida‘s economy by fueling the economic engines of the community by the thousands of companies, organizations and government agencies that are operating and moving along strongly thereby strengthening the local economy.

These leading individuals don’t lock themselves away in the corner office. Rather, they establish a strong vision for their companies, involve their employees in bringing that vision to fruition and make significant contributions to the community overall.

This year, the Orlando Business Journal is recognizing 19 such individuals in the 2019 CEOs of the Year Awards. The program honors highest-level executives at companies, organizations or agencies based in Orange, Osceola, Seminole, Lake, Volusia or Brevard counties who have had significant achievements in their careers in the past year.

Chris Baeten made the list and will be honored at the awards luncheon on May 10 at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress in Orlando.
For the full article link, which includes the list of all 19 CEOs on the Orlando Business Journal site – visit this link.  NOTE: You must subscribe to the Orlando Business Journal to view the article.
Source: Orlando Business Journal, Anjali Fluker (March 29, 2019)

Employee of the Quarter – Recognizes Caroline “Carrie” Powers

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Each quarter, Knight Federal’s Employee of the Quarter (EOQ) award for the Suffolk, VA location recognizes the outstanding qualities and contributions of employees towards Knight Federal’s goals and mission. Knight Federal recognizes that driven and loyal employees empower an organization.  This quarter the award recipient is Caroline “Carrie” Powers.

Carrie is one of four individuals that will receive the award each year. The honor is awarded the beginning of April, July, October and December during the Christmas party for an outstanding employee from the three preceding months.


EOQ 2019 Winner:
January – March 2019 – Carrie Powers
Carrie was recognized for her exceptional efforts for the First Quarter – January through March 2019. As the only Tactical Communications Support Processors (TCSP) operator on staff, her technical expertise and dedication were critical with respect to ensuring that the TCSPs were configured, tested and ready to support testing and 24/7 operational readiness. She accomplished this despite a lack of formal training with no impact on connectivity to training audience “Intel” C2 systems during exercises and testing. Additionally, for Austere Challenge 19, she took on the additional effort to train two TB1 SYSADs on the basic operations of the TCSPs, so that they could make immediate, limited, restoral actions if the circuits went down when Carrie was off shift. Her exceptional performance during this period is in keeping with the highest standards of the Joint Staff as a whole and is a credit to Knight Federal Solutions and the Joint Staff J7 Tech Support Team.

The Employee of the Quarter will receive:

  • A gift card for $50
  • A framed certificate recognizing their accomplishments
  • A Knight Federal imprinted leather notebook

Nominate an Employee
Complete the EOQ Nomination Form and submit it to the program manager Murray Hess.  Anyone may nominate an employee. Nomination forms may be submitted at any time.

Nominations are due by the tenth day of the month preceding the award month (i.e., February, May, August, and November) or the next working day if the tenth falls on a weekend or System Offices holiday.

The Process
The EOQ Committee will meet on a quarterly basis throughout the year. The committee will assure that the nominee meets all of the basic requirements. The committee will consider the following contributing qualities when making the award selection:

  • Longevity and performance
  • Contributions to the Knight Federal community
  • Contributions to his or her office
  • Contributions to the outside community
  • Awards or recognition received

From the Frontlines to the Boardroom – Feature on Shawn Lopez

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Shawn Lopez

Shawn Lopez is the program manager for the Purple Knight Initiative (PKI), Knight Federal’s internship program for wounded warriors. In this role he gets great pleasure to serve the nation’s combat veterans by providing them with paid internships and training that help reintegrate them into future successful careers. As a wounded veteran and graduate of the program, he is able to have firsthand knowledge on what these heroes face when they transition from active duty and integrate back into the workforce. This relatable experience propels Lopez to excel and find passion in the new career path he has chosen to follow.

“I am so grateful to Knight Federal, it has given me the opportunity to intern at the Joint Staff J7 after having served in the U.S. Marine Corps Wounded Warrior Battalion – East. This was an amazing experience that launched my current career and allows me to leverage my experience to ease their stress of transitioning and the feeling that they are alone in pursuing the next chapter of their lives,” says Lopez.

Lopez came on board at Knight Federal in July 2016. He was working in Charleston, South Carolina and communicating with his mentor Tim Baker, PKI Director, voicing his unhappiness with his current location and role. Baker told Lopez about a new company that was energetic and young that just became part of the Joint Staff Support team. He asked Lopez to reconsider moving back to Suffolk, VA where there could be a potential opportunity. Lopez recalls immediately recognizing the potential opportunity and took the advice to contact Matt Herring, Knight Federal’s Director of Programs. Herring reassured Lopez that they were not just about filling roles for work awarded, but their mission was to THRIVE as a team. After that call, Knight Federal hired Lopez as a communications technician for the Joint Staff Deployable Communications Shop. There he supported the Joint Exercises Division, as all areas support major simulated exercises for the Joint Staff J7.

“Having a CEO who stands by his employee’s and creates/supports a team environment is a huge plus to this job and company. Since the day I met Chris Baeten he welcomed me and supported me in all of my goals. He heard my story and said we can do more. Having a boss that has never served in the military, but yet understands the struggles of our veterans is highly respectable as a leadership trait in my eyes. Knowing that he supports the veteran community at work and within the community makes me proud to work with him.  Knight federal has become family to me,” says Lopez.

Moving forward Lopez hopes to become one of the leaders of Knight Federal in business development, with the coaching of Herring and Baeten. He continues to learn about its customers, teammates and the overall operations and business goals of Knight Federal.

Lopez has a distinguished military career. He joined the US Marine Corps in 2007. After graduating from Marine Corps recruit training Depot, Lopez was assigned to 2D Battalion 2D Marine Regiment, 2D Marine Division Camp Lejeune North Carolina. He served two tours in support of Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom. While serving in Afghanistan, Lopez received wounds from combat and was awarded the Purple Heart along with the Navy and Marine Corps Accommodation Medal with Valor. Lopez medically retired from the Marine Corps in 2012, and now has two children Shawn Jr. and Mia Lopez. He is attending Saint Leo University to pursue a degree in Business Administration. Lopez is involved in the community and currently serves on board of directors and as Tampa chapter president for Operation WetVet.  Additionally, he volunteers with Project Therapy at Sea’s “Taking Combat Veterans from Front Lines to tight lines!” – whose mission is to get Combat Wounded Veterans that suffer from P.T.S.D. together to enjoy a fun day of fishing and therapy along with counseling as needed. In his spare time, Lopez enjoys fishing, rock climbing, skydiving, motivational speaking and spending time with his kids. He also enjoys traveling.

Lopez’s words of wisdom for others: “People think the grass is greener on the other side. What they don’t realize is what it took to turn green. First you need to plow the land, then you plant the seeds, next you water it and feed it. In order to feed it, you have to grab the manure and throw it in front of you and walk through it. This process must be repeated over and over. Bottom line – it takes hard work, dedication, consistency, and commitment. At the end you will have grass. People can go one of two ways – are you going to continue looking over the fence, or are you going to grow your own grass? Stay hungry and do the work – hard work – it’s worth it in the end!”

Knight Promotions – Matt Herring Advances

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Matt Herring

Knight Federal is proud to announce the promotion of Matt Herring to Vice President of Business Development. 

Matt has been with the company since its inception in 2013 and has been a critical part of growing the company into what it is today. 

Since Knight Federal’s inception, Matt has been instrumental in every aspect of the company’s growth.  His business development efforts allowed Knight Federal to grow more than 40% in the last two years. During this time Knight Federal added over 30 employees. His ability to capture, propose and win business led to Knight Federal’s award of its first prime contract in 2017. In addition to winning the first prime contract, Matt added new contracts and customers to Knight Federal’s portfolio while expanding and fortifying their current capabilities.  Being an emerging company, Matt wears many different hats in his role. In the competitive world of government services, Matt’s understanding of the market and network have allowed Knight Federal to be poised for strong revenue growth in 2019 and beyond.

With this promotion, Matt will be in charge of developing business in the Department of Defense and Intelligence sectors as well as forming strategic partnerships within industry and government. 

“The team at Knight Federal is very proud and excited for Matt on this important promotion.  The potential for exponential growth of Knight Federal is in very good hands,” says CEO Chris Baeten.

Contact Us

407-243-6008

info@knightfederal.com

Address

Knight Federal Solutions, Inc.
11486 Corporate Boulevard, Suite 151
Orlando FL  32817

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