Kathy Albarado Named Chair of SECAF Board

Contact: Amy Talley
For SECAF
atalley@jeffersoncomm.com
(703) 323-8939

SECAF Elects New Board of Directors Leadership

Kathy Albarado Named President; Curt Anderson, Mark Melton, and Matthew Agresti Elevated to Officers; Richard Pineda Joins as Member-At-Large

September 5, 2017, McLean, VA – The Small and Emerging Contractors Advisory Forum (SECAF), the premier organization for the small and emerging government contractor community, today announced the appointment of Kathy Albarado (President and CEO, Helios HR) as Chair of the Board, while Curt Anderson (Director of Strategic Alliances, CSSI, Inc.), Mark Melton (Cordia Partners, Partner), and Matthew Agresti (Senior Vice President/Senior Relationship Manager – Business Banking, Bank of America Merrill Lynch) were elected as Vice-Chair, Treasurer and Secretary respectively.  Further, Richard Pineda (CEO, Spear, Inc.) was named to the Board of Directors.

“I am a strong advocate for the power of the relationships found in SECAF. Helios HR received its first government contract as a direct result of our involvement. I look forward to celebrating the success of our members with similar stories,” said Albarado.  Albarado has served on the Board since 2010 and will continue driving the organization’s mission of providing education, resources, and advocacy vehicles that enable the government contractor community’s success and access to federal opportunities.  She succeeds Cameron Hamilton, Principal at The McLean Group. “It has been an honor to serve SECAF’s membership, the contracting community as a whole, and lead this extraordinary and committed Board. In this capacity, I have had the privilege of working with Kathy over the past several years and know without fail that she will steward in the organization’s next round of successes,” said Hamilton.

Albarado founded Helios HR, an award-winning human capital management and recruiting firm, with a commitment to aid companies in solidifying strong human resource practices that build and enhance their corporate culture. She brings more than 25 years of progressive human capital management experience to companies looking to scale their next stage of growth. In this role, she and her team have helped launch and grow hundreds of organizations ranging from start-ups to Fortune 500.  She is an executive committee member of numerous regional organizations, an active member of Professional Services Council and is also a founding Board member of George Mason University’s School of Business, Women in Business Initiative. An Alumni of GMU, Albarado holds a B.S. in Psychology, a M.A. in Human Resource Management, and is certified as a Senior Professional of Human Resources.

Pineda will lend his strategic expertise in extending the SECAF’s reach and growth.  Currently at Spear, Inc., he is responsible for the company’s strategy, leadership, and long-term growth. In this capacity, Pineda leverages more than 22+ years of demonstrated success in the government contracting industry.  Prior to his current position, he served as the President of Dell Services Federal Government, a Fortune 50 organization. There he was responsible for oversight of the company’s business growth, operations and service delivery to its civilian federal government, Department of Defense, and national security customers.  Pineda earned a B.S. in Finance from Virginia Tech and a M.B.A. with a concentration in Finance and Management Information Systems from George Washington University. He is an active Board Member of the Virginia Tech NCR Leadership Council as well as other professional and philanthropic organizations.

SECAF’s full 2017-2018 Board of Directors slate is as follows:

• Kathy Albarado, Helios HR, President and CEO – Chair
• Curt Anderson, CSSI, Inc. – Vice-Chair
• Mark Melton, Cordia Partners, Partner – Treasurer
• Matthew Agresti, Bank of America Merrill Lynch – Secretary
• Scott Brezler, Dixon Hughes Goodman LLP
• Pava Cohen, Sage Communications, LLC, President, Government Group
• Frances Craig, Unanet, CEO and Founder
• Ben Edson, VariQ Corporation, CEO and Founder
• Sue Evans, Evans Incorporated, President and CEO
• Cameron Hamilton, The McLean Group, Principal
• Devon Hewitt, Protorae Law, Partner
• Sirena Johnson, Citrin Cooperman, Partner
• Shiv Krishnan, INDUS Corporation, President
• Mark Moore, Access National Bank, President and Member of the Board
• Richard Pineda, Spear, Inc., CEO
• Kwesi Rogers, Federal National Commercial Credit, President
• Andrew Sherman, Seyfarth Shaw LLP, Partner

# # #

About the Small and Emerging Contractors Advisory Forum
The Small and Emerging Contractors Advisory Forum (SECAF) enables the small and emerging government contractor to achieve maximum growth in a highly competitive marketplace. Providing members with business resources, access to influencers and government agencies, SECAF is an important resource for a growing company.  SECAF also serves the medium to large government contractors, providing invaluable introductions to specialized small businesses that enable the overall contracting community to work successfully in tandem. For more information, visit www.secaf.org.