100% Employee Owned

ESOP News

ACT1 Federal converts to a 100% employee-owned company

Arlington, VA – ACT1 Federal (ACT1), a certified Great Place to Work®, announced its transition to a 100% employee-owned company under a program called the ACT1 Federal Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP).

“It is a very exciting time for ACT1 and for our new employee-owners and customers as we enter our 26th year as a company,” ACT1 President and CEO Mehdi Cherqaoui said. “We are proud of our legacy, and with this ESOP we are well-positioned to continue to grow and delight our customers. It’s both a way to reward our hardworking employees, and to build on our business continuity. In addition, employee-owners are highly motivated since they know that their effort directly impacts their benefits.”

ACT1 Chief Financial Officer Andrew Hill notes, “Transitioning to an employee-owned company will not change ACT1’s day-to-day operations or management, or our continued focus on exceptional service to our customers. The ACT1 leadership team will continue to run the company. The primary difference is that the company stock is now held by a trust on behalf of ACT1 employees.”

About Employee Stock Ownership Plans

An ESOP is a retirement benefit plan similar to a 401(k) designed to provide employees with an ownership stake in the company. It is a long-term plan that rewards employee-owners for their commitment and contribution to the company’s growth over time. According to the National Center for Employee Ownership (NCEO), over 6,500 companies in the U.S. have an ESOP, comprising approximately 14 million employee-owners. Studies conducted by the NCEO and partners note an increase in retention rates, productivity, individual retirement security, and overall company performance.

Polsinelli PC law firm served as ACT1’s counsel in this transaction.

About ACT1
Headquartered in Arlington, VA, ACT1 is a leading lifecycle program management company that delivers reliable and cost-effective solutions to U.S. National Security, DoD, Intel and Space agencies. We are an ISO 9001:2015 certified company assessed at CMMI Level 3 with functional expertise in Engineering, Logistics, International Security Cooperation, Foreign Military Sales (FMS), Business & Financial Management and Information Warfare. ACT1 is consistently recognized for our excellence by customers and lauded for a positive work environment and company culture by our talented workforce.

For more information about ACT1, please visit https://act1federal.com.

REGINA O'SULLIVAN

CORPORATE CONTROLLER

BIOGRAPHY

Ms. Regina O’Sullivan serves as ACT1’s Corporate Controller.  She leads a very efficient accounting operations team.  Ms. O’Sullivan joined ACT1 in 2021, she has quickly revamped the company’s Costpoint system, streamlined the monthly close process, attracted talented accountants to support the company’s ambitious growth projections.  Ms. O’Sullivan is charged with a simple mandate, which is to provide insightful, Accurate and Timely financial information to enable operational decision making.

Ms. O’Sullivan has nearly 30 years of accounting and finance experience, most of which in the Government services space.  Prior to joining ACT1, Ms. O’Sullivan held accounting leadership positions at Lockheed Martin Corporation, AECOM, Six3 System, Inc. (acquired by CACI), etc.

Ms. O’Sullivan is a licensed CPA in the State of Maryland.  She earned a bachelor’s degree in Management from Gettysburg College in Gettysburg, PA and an MBA with concentration in Finance from the University of Maryland. She loves staying active, running, walking, and riding her Peloton bike (member of the PZ pack team!!)

LORA JEWELL

DIRECTOR OF HUMAN RESOURCES

BIOGRAPHY

Ms. Lora Jewell serves as ACT1’s Senior Human Resources Manager within our integrated Human Capital Management (HCM) team.  She has been entrusted with the simple mandate of “Caring for our People.”  At ACT1 we believe that taking care of our workforce is not simply to provide total rewards that are fair and equitable, but also includes attracting retaining and growing talent, and providing sophisticated, compassionate, inspiring, and engaging integrated human capital support that focuses on the employee experience.  Ms. Jewell oversees all aspects of employee engagement, total rewards, employee relations, policy administration, and HR operations.

Prior to joining ACT1, Ms. Jewell most recently served as HR Director at Delinea, Inc. where she provided strategic HR business partnership to leadership, managed compensation, benefits, and performance programs, implemented HRIS, and managed HR Operations.  She has over 20 years of experience in human resource management.

Ms. Jewell is a native of the Washington, DC area and resides in Bristow, VA with her husband, Chris and their dog, Harley and cat, Mow-Mow.

TIM SNOWDEN

SENIOR DIRECTOR OF BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

BIOGRAPHY

Mr. Tim Snowden serves as Senior Director of Business Development for ACT1. Tim is directly responsible for new business capture and relationship evolution for ACT1’s within the Department of the Navy, leveraging his extensive background in naval operations, logistics, and IT tranformation.

Tim is a seasoned executive with over 28 years of experience in military logistics, defense contracting, and enterprise IT solutions. Prior to joining ACT1, Tim held senior positions at Significance, Inc. and Guidehouse, including Director of Navy Accounts and Associate Director for Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR), where he focused on implementing the Navy’s Enterprise Logistics IT Strategy. His 20-year naval career culminated as the Depot Maintenance Requirements Officer at the Chief of Naval Operations (OPNAV) N83, following roles in fleet readiness and aviation maintenance leadership.

Tim holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Memphis and a Master of Business Administration from the Naval Postgraduate School.  He lives in Alexandria with his wife Holly, son Jack, and two dogs.

LISA FANTAUZZO

VICE PRESIDENT, HUMAN CAPITAL MANAGEMENT

BIOGRAPHY

Ms. Lisa Fantauzzo serves as ACT1’s Vice President, Human Capital Management. Along with Ms. Lora Jewell (Human Resources), Ms. Fantauzzo is a leader in our Human Capital Management (HCM) team. She has been entrusted with the simple mandate of “Attracting Talent”. At ACT1, we believe that our ability to attract new talent is not a simple matter of providing fair and equitable pay & benefits.  It goes together with personal and professional development opportunities, and an “obsessive” focus on employee experience / employee engagement.  Ms. Fantauzzo leads ACT1’s talent acquisition team.  She oversees all aspect of ACT1’s talent acquisition process to include candidate identification, pipelining, cultural assessment, and recruiting.  Prior to joining the ACT1, Ms. Fantauzzo held various talent acquisition leadership positions at General Dynamics IT (GDIT) and Telecommunications Systems. Ms. Fantauzzo is a passionate, energetic, and people-centric leader with broad-based business acumen, sound judgment and proven, in-depth executive experience in Talent Acquisition at all levels.  She has over 20 years of experiences in talent acquisition with a strong track record of successful delivery of revenue growth, profitability enhancement, and candidate experience management.  Ms. Fantauzzo has helped with countless success stories of bringing-in the right talent.

Ms. Fantauzzo earned her undergraduate degree in Business Management from Sawyer Business School in Pittsburgh, PA. She enjoys spending time with her family, baking, and the Outdoors. Ms. Fantauzzo lives in Upper Marlboro, Maryland with her sister Lauren and her two dogs, DeCheye and Kane.

SHERI BENNINGTON

DIRECTOR OF CONTRACTS

BIOGRAPHY

Sheri Bennington serves the Director of Contracts at ACT1 Federal LLC, where she leads all aspects of contract formation, administration, and close-out, ensuring compliance and operational excellence across the organization. With over 30 years of combined experience in the U.S. Air Force and the defense industry, Sheri brings unparalleled expertise to her role.

Her distinguished career includes critical contributions to high-profile programs such as Global Hawk, the Joint Strike Fighter, and the Lockheed C-130 production in Marietta, GA. She has also served in the Air Force Secretariat and has firsthand experience in wartime contracting operations in the Middle East. Her extensive background reflects her commitment to supporting mission-critical initiatives and advancing operational success on a global scale.

NEDIM KIRIMCA

SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT FOR OPERATIONS

BIOGRAPHY

As the Senior Vice President for Operations, Mr. Nedim Kirimca directs programs delivering services to key ACT1 Federal customers including the F-35 Lightning II Joint Program Office, the Deputy Under Secretary of the Air Force, International Affairs, the 505th Test and Training Group, Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, and the Royal Australian Air Force. Mr. Kirimca develops the organization’s overall program management strategies, provides leadership to ACT1 Program Managers, and partners with corporate leadership to ensure continued success across ACT1’s diverse customer base.

Mr. Kirimca brings 37 years of experience in program management, engineering, and procurement roles to ACT1, including 27 years as an Air Force Officer and ten years of contractor support services leadership. In uniform, Mr. Kirimca held senior acquisition, program management, and engineering roles including serving as Director, F-35 Production with the F-35 Lightning II Joint Program Office, Program Executive Officer for Sourcing with the Department of Defense’s Business Transformation Agency, and Commander of the 409th Supply Chain Management Squadron. He also served on the Pentagon staff as an Air Force Legislative Liaison and as a Deputy Division Chief with the Directorate of Global Power Programs, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Technology & Logistics. Prior to joining ACT1, Mr. Kirimca served as a government contracting senior executive directing contracts supporting the Departments of Defense and Homeland Security.

Mr. Kirimca holds a Bachelor of Science in Aerospace Engineering from NYU Tandon School of Engineering, a Master of Science in Management Science from the University of Dayton, a Master of Military Operational Art from Air Command and Staff College, and a Master of Science in National Resource Strategy from the Eisenhower School.

ERIC HAMLIN

VICE PRESIDENT OF GROWTH

BIOGRAPHY

Mr. Eric Hamlin serves as Vice President of Growth for ACT1. Eric is directly responsible for new business capture and relationship evolution for ACT1’s International Security Cooperation line of business.

Eric is a high-energy, results-driven, business leader whose passion for strong partnerships encourage collective wins. Prior to re-joining ACT1 in 2023, Eric held a variety of private, government and military positions spanning the security cooperation enterprise, and the U.S. efforts focused toward the African continent.

Eric holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from the Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland College Park. He also earned a Master of Arts in Diplomacy from Norwich University, and a Bachelor of Arts in Public Relations from Hampton University. Eric is an avid traveler, having spent much of his time in Sub-Saharan Africa, Western Europe, and the Near East. He is a private pilot, SCUBA diver, and enthusiastic skydiver.

SARAH THAYER

VICE PRESIDENT OF PROPOSALS

BIOGRAPHY

Ms. Sarah Thayer serves as the Vice President of Proposals at ACT1 Federal. She leads the Proposal Development Center through a collaborative approach to winning bids, and an effective resource planning methodology.

Prior to joining ACT1, Ms. Thayer was a Senior Proposal Manager at BAE Systems, within the Intelligence & Security sector of 7,000 employees. There, she led large cross-functional teams to winning bids ranging from $100 to $900 million in total contract value, including new customer organizations and strategic recompetes with DoD and the Intel Community.

Prior to joining BAE Systems, Ms. Thayer was a proposal manager at Phacil, Inc. from its time as a small business through exponential growth that culminated with its acquisition by By Light. Ms. Thayer continued supporting By Light as a Deputy Director of Proposals, after its acquisition of Phacil.  There, Ms. Thayer led proposals that resulted in over $250 million in total contract value awards. 

Ms. Thayer has also worked at Synectics (SMDI) and won several key efforts during her tenure. Throughout her career. Ms. Thayer has been involved in both AFCEA and ACT-IAC, received a “Distinguished Service Award” from the AFCEA Bethesda Chapter in 2017 and “Distinguished Young AFCEAN” from Young AFCEA International. Ms. Thayer graduated from both the ACT-IAC Associates (2015) and Voyagers (2019) leadership cohorts.

Ms. Thayer earned her bachelor’s degree in both English and Computer Science at Trinity College in Connecticut and maintains an APMP Practitioner certification. In addition to her proposal career, Ms. Thayer owns a portrait photography business. She lives in Virginia with her tuxedo cat Ziti.

CLAUDIO MONTICELLI

CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER

BIOGRAPHY

Mr. Monticelli serves as Chief Operating Officer for ACT1. He leads efforts to boost operating performance and transform the program management function at the company; he supports ACT1’s delivery of total acquisition management services to DoD, federal, international and commercial clients. He oversees contracts for performance, sales, and profitability.

Mr. Monticelli has nearly 25 years of senior leadership. His experience includes management of over 150 personnel with key oversight responsibilities of technical staff in the Italian Air Force and for 10 years, successfully supporting the Department of Defense’s (DoD) F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) Program Office (JPO). His proficiency leading large complex programs and interfacing with multiple government stakeholders contributes to ACT1’s successful delivery of Total Acquisition Management solutions to our multiple customers.

Mr. Monticelli is a highly motivated, results-oriented leader who provides strategic management in the areas of Aerospace and Defense international programs, bilateral negotiations, cost analysis, process improvements, U.S. and European acquisition processes, aerospace production engineering and government contracts administration. Mr. Monticelli served as the manager of all Subcontractors and directorate support manager for Alion’s SAFTAS F-35 Team. In those roles, he effectively managed more than 20 defense services suppliers and highly skilled technical experts. After attending the Italian Air Force Academy in Naples, Mr. Monticelli served in the Italian Air Force for 18 years in a variety of roles. His experience included the introduction and establishment of Lean Six Sigma approaches in the fighter jet heavy maintenance line, increasing aircraft efficiency and delivery from 64% to 88%. Serving as Director of the Italian Defense Contract Management Agency and Defense Contract Auditing Agency (main companies were Leonardo Finmeccanica, Avio, Selex, United Technologies, and Augusta Westland). Mr. Monticelli led over 60 civilians and military personnel, simultaneously overseeing three subordinate organizations, that executed national and international contract management responsibilities. Additionally, as Principal Acquisition Expert, he provided general engineering and architecture acceptance and delivery planning in support of the JPO Production Integrated Product Team. Mr. Monticelli holds a Master of Engineering in Aeronautical Engineering from Federico II University in Naples, Italy; a Master in Organizational Science from the Italian Air Force Academy in Naples, Italy; and a Bachelor of Engineering in Aerospace Engineering from Federico II University.

Mehdi Cherqaoui

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

BIOGRAPHY

Mr. Cherqaoui is an accomplished leader specialized in the federal market.  He was appointed President of ACT1 in January 2022 with a simple mandate: (i) grow ACT1; (ii) deliver superior customer experience (iii) attract, retain, develop, and optimize ACT1’s talent, and (iv) create value for stakeholders of the company.

Mr. Cherqaoui has a strong track record as a successful executive, leading people and large organizations through change, growth, transformation, and M&A transactions.  Prior to joining ACT1, Mr. Cherqaoui served as the COO of Avantus, COO & CFO of Phacil and CFO of Applied Insight. He also held various leadership positions with PAE, URS and KPMG. He started his career as an M&A professional with PwC, where he advised private equity and strategic clients for over a decade.

Mr. Cherqaoui earned his undergraduate degree from the Aix-en-Provence Institute of Technology in Aix-en-Provence, France and graduated from the Toulouse Business School in Toulouse, France. Him, his wife Christel and his two kids Leon and Mina live in Alexandria, VA.

ANDREW HILL

PRESIDENT AND CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

BIOGRAPHY

Mr. Andrew Hill serves as the President and Chief Financial Officer for ACT1.  He oversees all administrative and financial affairs of the company.  Mr. Hill’s mandate is to lead the way on enterprise value creation.

Prior to joining ACT1, Mr. Hill served as the Vice President of Finance at By Light, a PE-backed company of approximately 1,500 employees. During his tenure at By Light, Mr. Hill focused on reporting, FP&A, price-to-win, strategic pricing, rates management and program finance. Prior to joining By Light, Mr. Hill was the Director of Finance at Phacil, a $140 million in revenue IT services government contracting firm. During that time, he led corporate finance, FP&A, strategic pricing, and program finance. Mr. Hill was instrumental in the successful sale of Phacil in 2019. 

Prior to this, Mr. Hill held various finance leadership roles, including Sector Controller for the Defense business at URS Federal Services.

During his amazing career, Mr. Hill led strategic pricing for well over $1 billion in contract wins. His strategic pricing vision resulted in the wins of highly desirable IDIQ contracts vehicles such as GSA Alliant II, ENCORE III, ITES-3s, and CIO SP3 SB.  He also supported many buy-side and sell-side M&As as well as integration efforts of acquisitions and joint ventures.

Mr. Hill earns a Bachelor of Science in finance from Virginia Tech and is a CPA. He lives in Alexandria, Virginia with his wife, Kara, and two dogs.