Established government contracting executive Matt Tait has been appointed CEO and president of defense technology firm ManTech, effective immediately.
Tait has also been voted to ManTech’s board of directors and, in his new role, succeeds the retiring Kevin Phillips, a six-time recipient of the Wash100 Award who has been with the company for 17 years, the Herndon, Virginia-based company said Monday.
“I am honored to assume the CEO role and am energized by the opportunities to advance our leadership position and deliver even stronger outcomes for our customers,” commented Tait.
The executive is a U.S. Navy veteran who, after serving for nearly a decade, transitioned to the private sector to work for Accenture, where he held a number of positions of increasing responsibility — including director of marketing and business operations portfolios as well as senior managing director — for 20 years. At Accenture, Tait oversaw and directed impactful information technology transformations for federal civilian, intelligence and defense community clientele.
At ManTech, where Tait has spent the last four years, the newly promoted leader first served as president of the mission solutions and services group, which saw him reconfiguring and strengthening the company’s national defense, security and federal civilian-aimed services. For the last two years, he has been chief operating officer, in charge of facilitating international business processes and approaches so that the organization can stay current and attuned to the market’s changing needs.
“Matt has been an integral member of our leadership team and my partner over the last four years in developing and executing our strategic plans,” remarked Phillips.
Phillips will stay on with the company as chairman of the board. He emphasized his gratitude for the prosperous years he led the company and predicted that the company will endure continued success under Tait’s leadership.
The leadership changes at ManTech arrive shortly after the company’s acquisition by Carlyle was finalized in September. Now that the sale is complete, ManTech is a private company once again, following a 20-year stint as a public company.
The new organizational shifts additionally include a newly instated board of directors. The complete member list is as follows: Chairman Kevin Phillips; Carlyle Managing Directors Dayne Baird, Brian Bernasek and Ian Fujiyama; Bush International President Mary Bush; former National Security Agency Director of Operations Jonathan Darpy; former Central Intelligence Agency Deputy Director of Operations Beth Kimber; AUSA Deputy Chairman Tom Rabaut; former President of ManTech Mission, Cyber and Intelligence Solutions Group William Varner; and Tait.
