Charles Lyons-Burt
Federally-focused information technology provider cBEYONData has enjoyed significant growth in 2024. The Arlington, Virginia-based company completed its integration of recent acquisitions Alta Via and Summit2Sea into one cohesive entity; has won 100 percent of its recompetes over the last 12 months; landed a spot on the $8 billion FBI Information Technology Supplies and Support Services blanket purchase agreement; and added new business at agencies such as the Internal Revenue Service, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Navy.
At the center of this string of triumphs is CEO Dyson Richards, who joined just over three years ago. Richards started his career in the Navy, where he operated nuclear power plants and worked onboard the USS Enterprise. He then ascended through positions of increasing heft at Newport News Shipbuilding, Keyfile Corporation, Vredenburg, American Management Systems, RGS Associates (now a part of USfalcon) and Xcelerate Solutions.
ExecutiveBiz had the opportunity to sit down with Richards to learn about the values driving his and cBEYONData’s growth efforts, the company’s 10-year plan and the state of the mergers and acquisitions market.
ExecutiveBiz: What are cBEYONData’s core values? How do you think these values translate into continued success and growth in the GovCon market?
Dyson Richards: cBEYONData relies on our core values of teamwork, be humble, say no to the status quo, integrity & honesty, be passionate and service-minded as pillars of how we operate, allowing our executives, managers and employees to know what to expect from the company and their co-workers. From the founding of the company in 2011, our values have shaped the company culture and serve as a compass to guide our decision-making.
As an organization of over 400 employees in 31 states serving senior government officials to enable digital transformation and business optimization, we rely on our values to define what kind of company we are and what we expect from our people, as well as how we interact with business partners and clients. The government contracting market is a very crowded ecosystem and to be successful and grow a company must establish a unique identity and brand. The brand differentiates the firm and attracts the best talent, but only by operating in alignment with our values do we earn the trust of our employees and clients who choose to stay with us.
We have found our values integral to our corporate vision to enable government decision-makers to see more and know more so they can accomplish more. They helped us set the vision and mission of cBEYONData and aid in aligning our short-term goals with our long-term objectives. This alignment ensures we remain focused on our purpose and aspirations.
ExecutiveBiz: Where do you see cBEYONData in 10 years and what are the concrete steps you have to take to get to that stage of evolution?
Dyson Richards: In 2034, we will be a significantly larger enterprise, leveraging innovative tools and techniques that have not even been envisioned yet, to improve the business of government. This admirable mission drives our firm to continually seek new ways to help the business of government run at its very best. Our ethos is to operate as both practical advisors and active implementers to provide deep knowledge of the organizational and operational realities of the federal space, as well as top-tier technical expertise. Our customer-facing teams are backed by veteran leadership, decades of experience and cutting-edge technology, to implement what we advise.
Over the past two years, through the acquisition and thoughtful integration of Alta Via Consulting and Summit2Sea Consulting, we created a specialized company with the capabilities needed to make a significant difference in government operations. Each of our client services teams are strong and capable because our employees have the specific training and experience to understand what federal decision-makers need, and are empowered to deliver solutions to optimize the business of government.
Now that we have built the platform, it’s all about execution. We will design, build, and deploy solutions that solve critical business challenges facing federal agencies. To realize the significant growth opportunity we have in front of us over the next 10 years, we will simultaneously:
- Hire the best and brightest solution architects, system engineers, developers and consultants to provide innovation and expert advice to our clients
- Take care of our current clients through exceptional customer service to protect our base
- Continue to invest in our solutions such as CFO Control Tower and cBEYONDLab, to enhance their utility to solve our target clients’ toughest challenges
- Execute effective capture and sales strategies to identify and close contracts with new clients
We have the leadership team in place and deep technical expertise in digital transformation, automation, artificial intelligence and machine learning and state-of-the-art data management to execute our strategy and be among the leaders in our corner of the market.
ExecutveBiz: Do you think it’s a seller’s or a buyer’s market right now and why?
Dyson Richards: I believe it’s a seller’s market right now. Over the past few years, and especially since the pandemic, I’ve observed increasing interest by private equity firms to enter and grow in the federal GovCon space. Private equity firms go where the money is, and the federal government continues to spend increasing amounts each year to acquire the innovative solutions and technical talent provided by government contractors. The competition this has created between the PE firms and strategic acquirers drives up offers and puts the sellers of attractive companies in the driver’s seat.
ExecutiveBiz: In your view, what are the biggest upsides and/or downsides to inorganic growth?
Dyson Richards: Acquired growth carries inherent risks. As I mentioned, the cost of acquiring great companies has risen significantly, and the required capital for these transactions has shot up over the last two years. Meaning, acquiring companies requires a larger investment. The GovCon market is littered with examples of failed acquisitions where the return on investment has been negative. Successfully acquiring and integrating companies is like riding a motorcycle while reading e-mails on your phone in heavy traffic — possible, but requires numerous things to go exactly right to be successful. The acquirer must integrate cultures, contracts, systems, pay and benefits, organizational structures, processes, strategies and clients while keeping the core business on track.
The rapidly evolving information technology landscape means that building significant new capability organically, which can take years, could leave you in the dust. That is why, in my view, acquisitions will remain a major strategy for IT-focused GovCon companies to quickly acquire necessary experience, contracts, relationships and intellectual property to enable “speed to market” in high growth areas. Although risky, successful acquisitions can be a method to quickly add capabilities and capacity that help to keep pace with or surpass the competition. When done well, it can elevate companies to new heights, making the M&A market attractive.
