Five Executives in Health Care GovCon to Watch

The coronavirus pandemic tested the limits of the U.S. health care system, forcing the industry to quickly adopt measures to prevent being caught off-guard by similar emergencies in the future.

According to the University of Central Florida, the industry has become more robust following its adoption of the latest health care technology. The sector now has new ways to provide care and alleviate the pressure of supply chain disruptions.

The Potomac Officers Club—a division of Executive Mosaic—features five health care executives in the government contracting sector.

Julie Crouse, Vice President of Technology Operations, Programs and Delivery at Cognosante

Julie Crouse is the vice president of technology operations, programs and delivery at health care consulting firm Cognosante, working out of Cape Charles, Virginia. She is a senior leader with 18 years of experience in enterprise-wide technology delivery, system integration, cloud hosting, infrastructure, go-live readiness and project management, according to her LinkedIn profile.

Crouse’s career has seen her work across the federal government, commercial and non-profit sectors. Her larger focus has always been on strategic planning, delivery and operational process improvements.

Crouse rejoined Cognosante in February 2021 after briefly working in other firms. Her current role sees her working on cloud delivery and optimization, system integration, health information exchange, health IT standards, electronic medical records, security and privacy, customer satisfaction, strategic planning and success measurement, among others, her profile reveals.

During a brief break from Cognosante, Crouse worked as a senior manager at Accenture and deputy chief technology officer for Manifest Medex. This part of her career saw her working with the leadership of federal agencies to modernize and transform health care information technology solutions.

Crouse initially joined Cognosante as a senior project manager in 2015.

Crouse earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Virginia. She later earned her master’s degree in biotechnology and business enterprise from Johns Hopkins University.

Zachary Parker, President and CEO of DLH Corp.

Zachary Parker is the president and CEO of health care support provider DLH Corp. He is experienced in, among other things, defense and government contracting, research and scientific studies, health care and data analytics.

Parker leads the whole company, including its Public Health & Life Sciences sector. This organization works on advancing infectious disease research through clinical trials and analyses and environmental prevention methods.

Parker also ensures that DLH provides various health-related support services to various government agencies in dealing with environmental and infectious disease threats.

The industry veteran has been the president and CEO of DLH since 2010, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Parker held various leadership positions before assuming his current role. Among these positions are president of VT Group, executive director of Northrop Grumman Mission Systems & IT and western region manager of GE Government Services.

Northrop Grumman Mission Systems & IT was acquired by Peraton in 2020 for $3.4 billion while GE Government Services was acquired by Lockheed Martin.

Parker started his professional career as manager of systems engineer at management consulting services company VSE Corp.

The DLH chief executive holds a bachelor’s degree in behavioral science from California State University Northridge.

DLH offers cloud, system modernization, clinical support, artificial intelligence and machine learning and health operations and logistics services to government and military clients. It is headquartered in Atlanta and has multiple offices in North Carolina and Maryland.

Vishal Tulsian, Senior Vice President of Health, State and Local and Federal Financial at SAIC

Vishal Tulsian is the senior vice president of health, state and local and federal financial at information technology consulting firm SAIC, working out of Sterling, Virginia. He is a highly qualified and goal-oriented senior executive with “depth and breadth of experience” in strategy, finance, operations, and business development reinforced through systems integration and consulting background, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Tulsian is further described as “talented in proactively identifying and resolving complex issues,” such as negative revenue trends. He is skilled in controlling expenses, improving operational processes, enhancing employee productivity and delivering double-digit percent profit increases.

Tulsian has been working at SAIC for almost nine years. His tenure at the company has seen him managing the commercial portfolio of customers, a job that covers account management, sales and business development management, profit and loss management, and pipeline management, his profile reveals.

Before joining his current employer, Tulsian held executive positions of increasing importance at Canadian IT consultancy CGI. During the last two years of his nine-year tenure with the firm, he served as its director of portfolio and investment management. 

Tulsian earned his bachelor’s degree in neuroscience from the University of Rochester. He later earned his general management program certificate from Harvard Business School.

Elizabeth Smith, Senior Vice President of Health Strategy at Maximus

Elizabeth Smith is the senior vice president of health strategy at government contractor Maximus and is a Potomac Officers Club member. She has over three decades of experience working with government agencies, health care and technology firms and commercial systems integrators.

Smith leads the Center for Health Innovation, where she designs the company’s federal health strategy and leads new initiatives to support market growth. The Center for Health Innovation includes Maximus Public Health and Health Science and Analytics, which support pandemic-related solutions and projects.

Smith has been with Maximus since March 2020, according to her LinkedIn profile.

The industry veteran has held various leadership roles throughout her 30-plus-year career. Before joining Maximus, she was the president of E Smith Consulting, where she developed short- and long-term plans that support the government business of organizations.

The other leadership positions that Smith had held include senior VP of federal business and strategy growth at UnitedHealth Group’s Optum business, VP of federal sales at IT company Unisys and executive VP at Perot Systems, which Dell acquired for $3.9 billion in 2009.

She started her career in 1985 as a senior associate at Booz Allen Hamilton. In her eight years at Booz Allen, she designed management consulting engagements, oversaw business and staff development and conducted competitive analyses.

She holds a master’s degree in health policy and planning from Johns Hopkins University and a bachelor’s degree in biology from Syracuse University.

Maximus offers clinical services, consulting, digital transformation and public health support services to clients in the defense, federal and health care sectors. It is headquartered in McLean, Virginia, and has multiple offices outside the U.S.

Tom Dowd: Principal, Civilian Sector Leader, and Health and Human Services Lead Account Partner at KPMG US

Tom Dowd is a principal, civilian sector leader, and health and human services lead account partner at KPMG U.S., working out of the Washington-Baltimore Metropolitan Area. He delivers strategy operational improvements, change and organizational transformation, and digital enablement solutions to various agencies within the federal government, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Dowd has been with the U.S. arm of KPMG, a multinational auditing and tax advisory firm, for almost 11 years. His role sees him focused on delivering innovative solutions to federal agencies whose mission is to provide health and social services to Americans.

Before joining his current organization, Dowd was a vice president and director of business development at SAIC. He joined the IT consultancy as the assistant vice president of health solutions in 2010.

Earlier in his career, Dowd worked as a senior manager at Deloitte, another multinational auditing firm. Between 1997 to 2004, he was a senior associate at the information technology consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton.

Dowd earned his degree in economics from the University of Rochester. He later earned his bachelor’s degrees in accounting and finance from Lo Moyne College. Later still, he earned his master’s degree in telecommunications and data communications from the University of Colorado Boulder.

Dowd has a professional certificate in strategic management.

ABOUT POTOMAC OFFICERS CLUB

The Potomac Officers Club is owned and operated by Executive Mosaic. Since 2002, Executive Mosaic has been a leader in media and exclusive senior executive networking programs primarily targeted to the U.S. federal government contracting (GovCon) marketplace. In addition to connecting executives of consequence into a fabric of like minded communities, the company’s growing cross-media platform serves as a leading source of news about the people, policies, trends and events shaping the nation’s GovCon sector.

Category: Executive Profiles

Tags: Elizabeth Smith Executive Profiles govcon government contracting health care Julie Crouse Tom Down University of Central Florida Vishal Tulsian Zachary Parker