Brad Jones has been with SkyePoint Decisions, Inc. for 4 1/2 years and is a Security Analyst with EPA.

We interviewed Brad who told us what he thinks the biggest benefits are of working at SkyePoint, what rewards him about his work, and how our culture is different than any other he’s experienced before.

How and when did you join SkyePoint?
I joined the company in October 2018.

What parts of SkyePoint’s mission do you most connect with?
I enjoy being a part of the implementation of innovative IT solutions that we provide our customers.

What is the best part of SkyePoint’s corporate culture?
The respect, communication, and friendliness from the top down. In most companies where I have worked, the higher levels are not approachable, and the culture was not to approach them. With SkyePoint Decisions, it is very likely that you will be in a meeting with the highest levels of the company at times. I’ve had some reach out to get my insight/opinion into how we can improve processes. The culture is entirely different than anywhere I have ever worked.

What kinds of resources have you taken advantage of while at the Company?
I’ve enjoyed being paid to further my education, attend company gatherings, and travel.

What is the most rewarding aspect of your job?
It’s seeing the progress that my team has made growing into our roles. As Team Lead, I have worked to train my team members, and I love watching them train new members as they learn more and more.

What has been the most challenging project or aspect of your job, and how have you been able to overcome it?
For me, the most challenging part of my job is all the processes and procedures that must be followed. Working with the government, there are always checks and balances, and because of that there are specific ways things must be completed and documented. To accomplish this, I had to use Teams and/or OneNote to help keep track of the way things must be done, and who to contact if I had questions about specific silos within the Agency.

Have you implemented any innovative tools or techniques that help with your job?
We have implemented the use of Powershell and scripting to allow us to automate some tasks that would normally have taken hours to accomplish.

What is your proudest professional achievement?
It was being told by the heads of the EPA that my reputation had preceded me; my work ethic and ability to communicate with non-IT employees was well-noted. It made me feel like my hard work had paid off.

What does true leadership mean to you?
The ability to stay positive while making good decisions to move others toward a common goal.

Favorite candy?
At this point in life, probably Nerds.

Jerome Martin has been with SkyePoint Decisions, Inc. for over 7 years and is a Network Engineer at the U.S. Department of State Diplomatic Security Cyber Mission (DSCM).

We interviewed Jerome to learn more about his leadership style and what rewards him most on the job. Read about his passion for keeping systems safe from hackers, why he wants his kids to travel the world, and how he pays it forward to his colleagues.

How and when did you join SkyePoint?  

I joined SkyePoint in 2016 and came on board in Washington, DC. I was there until September of last year. Next, I moved to Beltsville to join the network engineering team. Recently, I was selected for the Program Liaison program. This allows me the opportunity to move around in the company and do both technical work and management—both of which I enjoy. The SkyePoint Program Liaison Program identifies senior members within the company’s contracts and strategic business units to advocate for our employee’s needs, be corporate ambassadors to our customers, and be an operational and strategic extension of SkyePoint while also developing our corporate leaders of tomorrow.

What kinds of resources have you taken advantage of while at the Company? 

Along with the previously mentioned Program Liaison program, I’ve also participated in brown bag sessions sharing the technical cyber work I’ve done. Another thing I’ve enjoyed is staying connected with the other colleagues from SkyePoint at the State Department during company lunches where we sit down and keep each other in the loop on our separate activities.  

What is the best part of SkyePoint’s corporate culture? 

When I first got out of the military, I worked for a really small company. There were maybe 25 of us in the company and we were like a family. SkyePoint has a similar family feel but is just a bit bigger. At company events, it’s just everybody enjoying themselves and having fun regardless of titles or levels. It’s a good environment.  

What is the most rewarding aspect of your job? 

I like cybersecurity and network engineering security—being able to lock down the systems that keep adversaries from being able to come into the network. I look forward to going to these systems, seeing what their weaknesses are, where their vulnerabilities are, and helping them secure their networks to keep breaches from happening. It’s rewarding for me, being able to say I know the network is secure, I know I can leave, go home, and don’t have to worry about coming in the next day and finding personal or Department of State information on the news. 

What parts of SkyePoint’s mission do you most connect with? 

SkyePoint’s main mission is cybersecurity and protection and that’s right in my wheelhouse. I’m grateful because the company has multiple locations where that work is going on. If I want to move from D.C. to Carolina, or other places, I have the opportunity to do that because SkyePoint has multiple contracts all over the country. 

How do you define success? 

Success to me is achieving goals that you have for yourself and helping people around you achieve their goals. One thing I learned when I was in the military and was promoted, is that you don’t move up the ranks by yourself. The people that work for you are the ones that make you look good and help get you promoted. The ones that make everybody notice you, at the same time, you need to bring those people with you, and help them get promoted. It’s just like they say, pay it forward.  

What is your proudest professional achievement? 

My proudest professional achievement was being promoted to Navy Chief. A lot of people don’t know but that is very hard to do and then I had to go through 16 weeks of initiation. 

What does true leadership mean to you? 

Many leaders don’t relate to the people that they’re leading and try to treat everybody the same. You can’t do that. Everybody’s different. Everybody has their own way of being spoken to, of following and learning, and you have to understand that. To be a true leader you have to know what kind of people you are leading. Some people can simply take the ball and run with it while other people need more hand-holding. I’ve learned from good leaders, and from bad leaders as well. I take parts that I know are going to help me be successful. I learned in the military that to get people to really want to work for me, they had to know that I had their backs no matter what and then they had mine. 

What is on your bucket list? 

I’ve been around the world a couple of times. My bucket list would be able to show my kids everything that I was able to see and enjoy. I’ve told them that we’ll get an RV one day and just travel so they can realize how good they have it here. I didn’t know how good I had until I went overseas.  It’s important to enjoy life and have fun. It can’t always be just about the work.  

If you could have any superpower, what would it be? 

I would like to be able to feed people. The power to snap my finger and have a refrigerator full of food, because there are so many people out there that don’t have enough.  

Favorite candy? 

Jolly ranchers. That’s my go-to. I like apple, grape, and cherry flavors best.  

LeDon Miller joined SkyePoint in 2010. Currently, he is a Senior Exchange Storage and Cloud Architect on the DOS VG 221 contract.

As a cloud architect, LeDon works primarily on the infrastructure of cloud solutions and is constantly developing them. He creates well-informed cloud strategies and develops and organizes cloud systems. He also provides on-premise Exchange support on different storage platforms. LeDon has his Zero Trust Certificate to assist with security measures for on-premise and cloud environments.

We interviewed LeDon to learn more about him personally and professionally. Read about what drives him, his thoughts on automation, and what’s on his bucket list!

How and when did you join SkyePoint? 

I joined SkyePoint in 2010, 13 years ago and it’s been a blast. 

What parts of SkyePoint’s mission do you most connect with? 

I’ve connected most with the people at SkyePoint. The technology has grown from when I started to where it is right now. Back then we were still using exchange 2003 and I’ve been through multiple migrations from 2003 to 2010. Now we have 2016 and we’re in the cloud now, so as time has progressed, I’ve grown past the storage side of things. I went from a storage engineer to an exchange engineer and now I’ve developed into a cloud engineer as well. 

Who are some of your biggest inspirations within the Company? 

I have a close relationship with Bo because he initially interviewed me and when I first started, I was going through a rough patch at one point.  He came down and spoke with me and said a couple of things to me that touched me in a way where I was able to improve on myself and it’s made me into a better person today. 

What kinds of resources have you taken advantage of while at the Company? 

I’ve completed a certification through the company’s training incentives program for Zero Trust Strategist. 

If you could switch your job with anyone else within SkyePoint, whose job would you want?  

Believe it or not, I wouldn’t want any other job. I love what I do.  

What is the most rewarding aspect of your job?  

It’s night and day for me. I go to sleep thinking about tech. I wake up if there’s an issue going on. I solve it in my sleep from time to time. I dream about it. My experience with certain things, how I strategize and come up with to make things better, has always been inspiring to me.  

Have you implemented any innovative tools or techniques that help with your job? 

Everything that we’re doing now is part of automation. We’ve been able to automate and use tools that have made our jobs and our lives a whole lot easier.  I would say that automation, process, and development are the stones to moving forward in technology anyway. 

How do you define success?  

I define success not just within myself. It takes a team to define success. It takes people. It takes endless hours, and endless days, and it takes a crew of people that love to work together. My big thing is communication. Everything else is easy. Communication is the key. 

What does true leadership mean to you?  

It’s not just what you do or what you can provide. It’s a combination of recognizing the people around you and being able to interact with those people to succeed. Everybody brings something to the table, right? So, it’s whoever is leading that team. I define that by how they’re able to make people better. It’s all of us working together as SkyePoint. It’s not just one person.  We all work together to accomplish the same goals. 

What is on your bucket list?  

To travel to Africa for the experience itself… and then be able to survive the flight there and back. 

If you could have any superpower, what would it be?  

To innovate and to change people’s perspectives on how we’re living today and how we see the future. 

Favorite candy? 

I have so many. I would say Peanut M&M’s. 

Kelly Quarles was born and raised in the Washington, DC, area. She studied information technology at the University of Maryland. Previously, Kelly worked with IT at the Department of Defense TRICARE Management Activity (DOD-TMA), the Defense Centers of Excellence (DCOE), the National Naval Medical Center, and the White House-Executive Office of the President.  

Kelly has been with SkyePoint Decisions for almost 6 years and holds several training and industry certifications. We interviewed Kelly to learn more about her personally and professionally, and here’s what she shared:

What parts of SkyePoint’s mission do you most connect with? 

Delivering information technology solutions in a team and diverse setting. 

What is the best part of SkyePoint’s corporate culture? 

The diversity of it all. SkyePoint doesn’t just talk, they take action. SkyePoint hears your ideas and implements them.  

Who are some of your biggest inspirations within the Company? 

Bo Kimbrough, no question. He is a natural leader who shares information, encourages leadership, and ensures the SkyePoint community is doing well and thriving. 

If you could switch your job with anyone else within SkyePoint, whose job would you want, at least for a day?  

For a day: Bo Kimbrough (CEO and founder) for sure, and Ritchie Rodriguez (Corporate Delivery Manager), in a close second! 

What kinds of resources have you taken advantage of while at the Company? 

I’ve utilized SkyePoint University in the past for several online courses, which were beneficial. Quarterly lunches are very informative. 

What is the most rewarding aspect of your job? 

Working to ensure our (State Department) GO Mobile Environment stays healthy by identifying, assessing, and remediating vulnerabilities, staying current on updates, and deploying the latest software. The environment is graded weekly, so having and maintaining an A+ is always the goal and rewarding. 

What has been the most challenging project or aspect of your job, and how have you been able to overcome it? 

Prioritizing tasks. Creating daily tasks to complete instead of trying to do everything all at once is difficult but necessary. 

What is your proudest professional achievement? 

To date, working for the Executive Office of the President for 7 years, serving under the Obama Administration.  

How do you define success? 

Accomplishing your goals. Short-term as well as long-term goals.  

What does true leadership mean to you? 

Having integrity. Not only talking the talk but also walking, showing, sharing, and delegating. Leading by example. 

If you could have any superpower, what would it be? 

Time traveling. Doctor Strange is my favorite superhero. 

Favorite candy? 

Peanut M&M’s. 

Daphne joined SkyePoint more than 12 years ago and is an Operations Process Analyst on our Department of State Vanguard 2.2.1 contract and she is one of our Department of State Site Leads. She connects most with SkyePoint’s mission; “Enabling our clients to most efficiently and effectively deliver their mission – anytime, anywhere, securely”. We asked Daphne to tell us a bit more about herself both inside and outside of work, and here is what she shared:

Who are some of your biggest inspirations within the Company?
Bo Kimbrough, the founder/CEO inspires me because he is people-oriented; he cares about people. He is very direct; you don’t have to guess about who he is or what he is thinking. He is goal-oriented and determined and that is impressive.

Heather Conigliaro, the Chief Operations Officer inspires me as a female who came to SkyePoint not knowing anyone but utilized her skills to accomplish not only her goals but the goals of the company. She also cares about people and will do her best to help others. She listens and is always seeking ways to improve. She is a caring and honest person. I always remember when Heather initially came to SkyePoint and I had a concern but didn’t say anything. She sensed that something was wrong and asked me about it. After I told her about the problem, she immediately corrected it and she said to always let her know if something is wrong. We have an open line of communication which I appreciate and value.
Melanie Fetters, our Project Manager is always there to help!! I appreciate her help with different activities. She is just always there and easy to talk to about different things. She is always responsive when I need her.

I think one thing that all these individuals have in common to me is the kindness, caring, loyal and determination for the employees and the company.

What kinds of resources have you taken advantage of while at the Company?
I have enjoyed taking advantage of our brown bag sessions, ITIL training and site lead. One brown bag session I attended that made an impression on me was in July 2021 on the topic of IT Service Management presented by Al Kelly. It was very detailed, informative, and well presented. These types of activities give us an opportunity for continued growth, which I value. The ITIL training was helpful to learn as much as possible.

I’ve enjoyed our holiday events. They are always creative and well organized. Although we were not able to come together in 2020 due to the pandemic, SkyePoint still put together something virtually.

I’ve enjoyed the luncheons we used to have with Bo as well as the happy hours. These types of events bring the company together as well as our families. It is meaningful to us to include our families in our company activities.

What is the most rewarding aspect of your job? 
Interacting with the staff of other employees.

What is the best part of SkyePoint’s corporate culture? 
The commitment and unity.

What has been the most challenging project or aspect of your job, and how have you been able to overcome it? 
To effectively perform my job, I have to obtain information from others, which can be challenging at times. To overcome this, I utilize all aspects of communication (i.e., text, email, phone messages, etc.). I listen to the employees and take notes of our conversations. I also try to identify with them personally because although we are hired to perform a job, we all have personal lives, and sometimes it helps to know that someone cares.

What is your proudest professional achievement? 
I was the EML (email) Operations Manager for eight years. It was a very challenging and demanding position, but I learned so much and believe I impacted the people within the State Department environment.

How do you define success? 
To me, success is my faith, peace of mind, family, and friends.

What does true leadership mean to you? 
Being able to encourage and motivate others and setting an example for others. People will see what you are doing, and if it is encouraging and motivating, they won’t have a problem following. What you do will trickle down to others to make a difference in your environment. It may not change the world, but it will make a difference where you are.

What is on your bucket list? 
Having my kitchen remodeled.

If you could have any superpower, what would it be? 
I would protect children and the elderly from danger.

Favorite candy? 
It used to be almond joy, but as I’ve gotten older, I love a good piece of Ghiradelli Intense Dark Sea Salt Almond (Dark Chocolate).

Benita Chibayere is a contractor and team leader of SkyePoint’s Plan of Actions and Milestones (POA&M) management team for all FSA systems. She offers guidance on the POA&M processes while organizing and supervising workload to meet client expectations. We asked Benita to discuss what she does both at work and outside of work. Here is what she shared:

How and when did you join SkyePoint?
I joined SkyePoint in January 2022.

What parts of SkyePoint’s mission do you most connect with?
SkyePoint prides itself as a mission-oriented organization, leveraging the competencies of a diverse workforce in pushing the boundaries of IT Security solutions that enable clients – primarily federal government agencies – to achieve their business mandates. This passion for goal accomplishment strikes me the most out of this great company’s many overlapping and competing values. I am a natural goal-getter poised to identify solutions and take daily action to accomplish set goals. Consequently, SkyePoint’s passion for success naturally aligns with my predilections. It blends into my daily routine and has become second nature.

Who are some of your biggest inspirations within the Company?
There are several good, and inspiring figures, people/colleagues that I have met since my employment with SkyePoint. Melanie Fetters, who helped myself and the team to have a smooth transition to SkyePoint, has had the most profound impact/inspiration on me.

What kinds of resources have you taken advantage of while at the Company?
I am excited to take advantage of the quarterly target certifications offered by SkyePoint to acquire more certs.

What is the most rewarding aspect of your job?
The most rewarding part of my job is providing the highest level of service to my client and gaining their trust.

What is the best part of SkyePoint’s corporate culture?
In my assessment, SkyePoint’s corporate culture could well go down as the most legendary attribute of the company that has made the relationship between employees and management remain incredibly strong. In addition, SkyePoint encourages social interaction by organizing activities where employees can meet and socialize.

What has been the most challenging project or aspect of your job, and how have you been able to overcome it?
The most challenging part of my job was doing a lot of manual work because a major tool was broken. I overcame that challenge by coming up with workarounds while the tool was being fixed.

Have you implemented any innovative tools or techniques that help with your job?
I have implemented processes that helped increase productivity and efficiency.

What is your proudest professional achievement?
I will say my proudest professional achievement is getting my certifications. I don’t like to be complacent; it was imperative for me to continue to acquire knowledge to improve my skillsets.

How do you define success?
Success in my job is a portion of something even more significant than my role. I view success as the achievement of the collective goals of the unit which I lead and, most importantly, helping SkyePoint to meet worthy goals that bring the much-desired values to our clients and the parts of the universe that we can impact positively by the nature of the business we support.

If you could switch your job with anyone else within SkyePoint, whose job would you want? (or whose job would you want to try for a day)
If I could switch my job with anyone else within SkyePoint, I will say someone in corporate leadership. I would like to get an insight on what they do.

What does true leadership mean to you?
I consider authentic leadership to be demonstrable traits that tend to listen without being condescending. This understanding of leadership thrives on the willingness to hear the perspectives of others without rushing to judgment. Such a trait enables true leaders to be patient and relentless in their ability to pursue excellence and motivate the team to do their best as individuals and as a team. In addition, the ability to be a good listener tends to influence followership and support in achieving collective goals. Besides, it endears the leaders to colleagues and people they meet.

If you could have any superpower, what would it be?
My superpower is to fly to any where I want.

Favorite candy?
I am not into candy, but if I had to pick one, European chocolate.